Recently Nocturion, a resource management game arriving at Game Giant in August, blew past its stretch goals and was able to replace all its plastic components with real wood or metal pieces. Games that hit their stretch goals are able to provide a better product for consumers and encourage the industry to build better games as a whole.
Kickstarter, the popular crowdfunding site, has revolutionized how board games are made. It makes sense, board game developers can turn to crowdfunding with a game that may otherwise not get published. Large board game companies can be reluctant to fund risky, ambitious projects, but if enough backers on Kickstarter are excited about a game, it will get made. This has resulted in many of the most interesting, cutting edge board games coming from Kickstarter campaigns. The Kickstarter process, particularly stretch goals, has also changed board games physically, putting emphasis on high quality art and components. Recently Nocturion, a resource management game arriving at Game Giant in August, blew past its stretch goals and was able to replace all its plastic components with real wood or metal pieces. Games that hit their stretch goals are able to provide a better product for consumers and encourage the industry to build better games as a whole.
One of the first, and probably the most famous game to come out of Kickstarter, was Cards Against Humanity. Party games have been around for a long time, Cards Against Humanity was inspired by the classic Apples to Apples, but nothing came close to the “R Rated” content of CAH. Kickstarter allowed a game that was to controversial to be published come into existence, and spawned a new genre of party games.
Kickstarter hasn’t just been a source for foul-mouthed party games, many games that have pushed the constraints of board game design have found their start with crowdfunding. In 2016 Scythe was released and quickly shot to the top ten games on review aggregate site BoardGameGeek.com. Scythe had a bold design, players competed to explore a map, compete for resources, and improve their economy. Its artwork was unparalleled at the time, and the complex gameplay was gripping and highly replayable. Scythe blazed the trail for the current top game on BoardGameGeek, the colossal epic Gloomhaven.
Gloomhaven is a campaign game of insane size. The dungeon-delver combines tactical combat, deep storytelling, and a euro-game inspired focus on mechanics. The game has legacy-style replayability, each game moves the plot and unlocks secret parts of the game. The risk associated with a game like Gloomhaven, which weighs more than 20 pounds and retails for $140, prevents major game companies from being able to publish it. However, Kickstarter provides a way for this game, the most hyped game in board games, to exist.
Stretch goals, i.e. objectives after funding for a project is met, have also changed the way games are designed. Miniature-combat games such a Zombicide or Rising Sun have incentivized backers by improving the quality of their components as the amount of funding they receive increases. This trend has been repeated in games like Scythe and Root. As mentioned earlier, Nocturion recently was able to replace all its plastic components with real wood or metal pieces. Other unlocked stretch goals include bonus cards like multiple Quests (i.e Cleansing Ritual Unholy Grounds & Snow Watch Guards), extra Beast cards (would you rather face a Black Spider or an Emerald Tiger?), a 56-page graphic novel, plus more. Games that hit their stretch goals are able to provide a better product for consumers and encourage the industry to build better games as a whole.
Small developers have been the fuel behind the modern board game renaissance, and Kickstarter has provided a path for those developers to create risky, bold projects. Many of the top games of recent years have been funded by Kickstarter campaigns. Kickstarter has also brought a focus to the physical components of games, particularly with the use of stretch goals, that has made the tactile appeal of board games even greater. Crowdfunding is set to remain an import source for exciting ideas as long as the hobby keeps growing. At Game Giant, we are proud to carry many products that have started on this platform. Stay tuned to our social media sites to stay up-to-date on what new kickstarter games we are expecting in.
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