Tag Archives: app

(New) Diamond “Re-Evaluates” its Online Services

Posted on by

Just as (New) Diamond announces that they’re moving their Previews catalogue to a digital only offering, and with it the potential for ordering that opens, they have now told retailers they are “re-evaluating” its online services such as ComicSuite and Previews Pullbox.

No one should be surprised by this announcement.

ComicSuite is a suite of tools for retailers’ point-of-sale system that’s geared specifically for comic shops. It was built to take advantage of Diamond’s data to help with ordering and re-ordering as well as manage customer subscriptions.

Previews Pullbox launched in June 2021 and was a service that allowed comic shop customers to manager their own preorders and subscriptions. It was initially announced in February 2018 but suffered delays. In the initial announcement it said it had 300 comic shops using it and over 17,000 customers. It allowed them to use the Previews website to place orders directly with their local comic shop. It’s unknown how much it was used since its launch.

With upcoming Previews going digital only, it provided a great opportunity to integrate with both making ordering by customers and shops even easier.

Specifically, for shops that are still using ComicSuite:

  • The point-of-sale system will continue to run but automation of subscription management from the web and store will cease to function as well as reporting shortages/damages, and general ordering.
  • Stores can still use the point-of-sale system but will need to get support from Retail Hero’s Retailer Management Hero (RMH) or a third party.
  • RMH might cease to function if the user license or software license expires.

In short, retailers still using this needs to find alternatives and fortunately there are alternatives that have been on the market such as Comic Hub (hell we easily built our own when I ran a shop back in 2000).

It’s no surprise that Diamond’s digital tools are degrading as key staff that handled it have left the company. Add in short pickings due to publishers halting their shipments to (new) Diamond over lack of payment, and it goes intot he pile of good ideas in the comic industry executed poorly and dying a much needed death.

(thank you Ryan Higgins for the tip)

Diamond’s Pullbox Launches on June 7

Posted on by
Previewsworld Pullbox

Diamond Comic Distributors has announced June 7, 2021 as the official launch of PREVIEWSworld PULLBOX to consumers, a new service that allows comic shop customers a better way to manage their preorders and subscriptions with their local comic book specialty shop. PULLBOX was announced in February 2018 and “slated for release later” that Spring.

The service, which is currently wrapping up beta testing, already boasts an impressive list of existing users. There are currently more than 300 comic shops and 17,000+ consumers using PULLBOX to manage their weekly orders. PULLBOX users are managing more than 225,000 subscriptions on the platform, which supports the full list of products available Diamond’s PREVIEWS catalog and beyond, including fan-favorites Image Comics, Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Dark Horse Comics, IDW Publishing, Dynamite Entertainment, BOOM! Studios, VIZ Media, Funko, Kotobukiya, Mezco Toyz, Diamond Select Toys, and many more!

PULLBOX allows fans to use the PREVIEWSworld website to place orders directly with their local comic shop. A suite of easy-to-use tools allows consumers to synch orders with participating local comic shops, manage preorders & subscriptions, place special orders, keep a wish list, and track weekly purchases. It also provides customers with e-mail alerts for order confirmations and when items are available for pickup.

PULLBOX will officially launch to consumers June 7. Consumers interested in setting up a PULLBOX account can visit PREVIEWSworld.com/PULLBOX starting June 7.

White Wizard Games’ Epic Digital App Launches for Free on February 18

Posted on by
Epic Card Game Digital app

White Wizard Games has announced that on Tuesday, February 18, 2020, they will be rolling out the much anticipated Epic Card Game Digital app! And it will be FREE!

Epic Digital is a fast-paced card game of fantasy combat designed by Hall of Fame Magic players Rob Dougherty and Darwin Kastle. The App will feature multiple ways to experience the game such as Single Player Campaign Mode, Online Real-time Play vs. other players, Dark Draft, Constructed, Limited and Ranked Heads-up Games. We are welcoming players new and old to come battle with the four factions Good, Evil, Sage, and Wild. Which will you choose?

Casual play in Epic Digital, including owning unlimited copies of every card in the game, will be COMPLETELY FREE!

  • No cost to download the app.
  • No cost to get new sets.
  • No cost or restrictions on online or offline casual play.
  • Every player will have every card in the game and be able to build any deck, any time.

Players will be able to play the campaign, play games vs the AI, and even play unlimited Sealed, Draft, and Constructed online games ALL FOR FREE! The only things players pay for are cosmetics (like digital foils), extras (like extra deck slots) and competitive play (like Arena and Tournaments). 

Epic Card Game Digital app

Czech Games Launches an App for Letter Jam

Posted on by
Letter Jam

Have you wondered what the codes on the cards in Letter Jam are for? Would you like to add mystery and surprise to your game? Czech Games Edition has you covered with a new app available for iOS and Android.

The game companion app works as a scanner for Letter Jam cards. It prepares a secret word for every player around the table without anyone knowing any of the words! Once the game is over, the app reveals which words were chosen for each player.

The app is available in English, Czech, and German.

If you don’t own the physical game, the app is a reference to give you a better idea of how the game works.

Valiant Partners with Silent Legends for the Battle of the Valiant Universe Collectible Card Game App

Posted on by

Valiant has announced that it has joined forces with independent game studio Silent Legends to present Battle of the Valiant Universe, a free-to-play collectible card game app that pits Valiant hero against Valiant hero in real-time, lightning-fast battle rounds!

Previously available to playtest on Steam’s Early Access service, Battle of the Valiant Universe allows players to create a deck from hundreds of available cards featuring some of Valiant’s most popular characters, from Bloodshot to H.A.R.D. Corps to Faith and much more! Challenge friends in real-time PvP matches and defeat your opponents with unique combos and power-ups. Then, update your deck by crafting new cards, finishing quests, and earning booster packs!

You can download the Battle of the Valiant Universe game to your mobile device on iOS or Google Play.

eigoMANGA Is Developing a Comic Streaming App for iPhone and Android Devices

Posted on by

eigoMANGA has announced its plan to launch a comic media streaming app for iOS and Android devices.

eigoMANGA’s app will include access to digital comics, video animation, and music soundtracks. Users will be able to stream and discover comic media, search and filter by genre, creator and title, save comics to read offline, as well as find out more about their favorite studios. Users can also review and recommend titles with the ability to share their favorites on social media.

The app will be free to download and content will also be available for free within the app with no sign up required. It’s slated to be released for iOS and Android devices within the Spring of 2019.

The company is a long time player in the tech world releasing video games and a virtual reality comics app. With numerous choices on the market, it’ll be interesting to see how this new addition can stand out from the crowd.

Archie Comics is Launching an Exclusive Series on Yarn, a Micro-Storytelling App

Posted on by

Archie Comics is teaming with Mammoth Media to produce original mobile story content based on the Riverdale, Betty & Veronica and Sabrina The Teenage Witch comic book series.

Delivered through the app Yarn, the short form storytelling will use text messages and video. Adaptations of the Archie Comics’ franchises will premiere today and expand on the classic comic book tales based in Riverdale and Greendale.

Yarn is a micro-storytelling platform that uses text message to tell their tales. The platform features 60 million stories and 8 billion messages read to date. The average user reads 4 times per day for 2 minutes per session and 56 minutes their first week. Users spend 82,000 hours per week reading Yarn stories.

Diamond Comic Distributors Launches a Digital Pullbox

Posted on by

Something that’s long past overdue is finally here as Diamond Comic Distributors has announced Pullbox, cloud-based softwarethat allows comic shop customers to preorder titles and products from their local comic shop. The software fills a gab and attempts to help solve something that has plagued the direct market, the difficulty in ordering products.

Developed from the ground up to help customers place orders with their local comic shop, Pullbox handles monthly comic subscriptions, preorders for upcoming titles and products, and special orders all from Diamond’s consumer pop-culture website, PREVIEWSworld.com, while also providing comic shop retailers with the back-end tools necessary to manage their pull-and-hold customer base.

The new cloud-based software is part of a broader strategy by Diamond to create an easy way to funnel orders to local comic book shops and make the preorder process a much more viable and vital process for the entire comics industry.

Pullbox has a variety of included features to help customers order and purchase from comic book shops:

Manage Preorders. Add titles to your monthly pull-and-hold list, order additional titles and products from that month’s PREVIEWS preorder catalog.

Synch with Your Participating Local Comic Shop. Powered by comicshoplocator.com, customers can choose a local participating comic shop and synch with them to send their monthly preorders, special orders, and more.

Place Special Orders or Keep a Wishlist. Forgot to order a title or saw something new coming in to comic shops that you want to purchase? Customers can use PULLBOX to place a special order with their comic book shop to purchase. They can also keep a Wishlist of other items and then send it to their retailer to see if they have any items in their store.

Enhanced Search and Ordering. Customers will be able to access a more advanced search at PREVIEWSworld.com that allows them to search the complete database of items offered by Diamond and place orders with their local comic shop.

Track Your Weekly Purchases. Customers will get additional tools to track which titles and products they ordered are releasing that week to stores, see future week’s orders, and more.

Retail Functions. Retailers will be get a full suite of functions available from the Diamond Retailer Services website: Back-end approval of new PullboxCustomers, Alerts to new orders, Set ordering dates, and Upload your own ordering requirements and guidelines. Retailers can synch orders with their initial orders online, or export orders into ComicSuite or other POS software.

Comic-Suite Integration. Seamlessly integrate PULLBOX Pull List, Subscription and Special Orders directly into ComicSuite for approval and ordering, manage new pull-and hold customers, synch customer data and individual orders.

Pullbox is slated for release later this Spring, and will be available for free from PREVIEWSworld.com to comic shop customers. Retailer pricing and additional retailer information will be released in the coming months.

Wizards of the Coast Announces: Magic: The Gathering Portal

Posted on by

Magic: The GatheringIn 2018, Magic: The Gathering is getting an all-in-one companion app that will track life and counters, managing and inviting friends to home tournaments, look up rules, and more.

The free app will be available in iOS and Android in every language Magic publishes.

The app will:

  • Create, manage, and track home tournaments complete with pairings, invitations for friends, brackets, and playgroup stats. Set up a tournament, invite friends, and keep track of the results. All from your phone.
  • Look up card information on the fly, including searchable rules databases for card rulings, keywords, and mechanics, all streamlined for showing your friends.
  • Keep track of life totals as well as wins and losses across multiple devices to show just how you stack up against your friends.
  • Stay up-to-date on Magic news with a customizable hub. You can focus your feed to read just about what you want—whether that’s news from the very people who make the game, updates to the official Magic story, or results from the latest Pro Tour.
  • Keep in touch with your playgroup through social linking that lets you invite friends to events, simultaneously track life totals, and manage a friend list.
  • Learn more about Magic through access to video tutorials, glossaries, and rule lookups. New players can learn together, and experienced players can settle rules disputes with a flip of their phone.

The Citadel Paint System in Your Pocket?

Posted on by

Games Workshop has really been emphasizing their paints and painting over the recent years with lots of tutorials and guides to help modelers in their hobby.

The game company is taking a new step in that this September when they launch a new app “designed to help you paint like a pro.”

While details are scarce, they promise that it’s geared towards those just starting out as well as veterans and is a “handy pocket reference guide.”

The app will be free and be like have a Duncan in your pocket.