How did Kickstarter change the world of board games?

Celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Kickstarter platform , its leaders expressed their joy at the success achieved. The financial side of this joy is impressive, but the impact that the platform has had over the years on thousands of developers and millions of people who have enjoyed the fruits of their labor is difficult to measure. Today we'll take a closer look at the platform itself and talk about its impact on the board game industry. But first, let's step back a bit.

When you look online for a definition of the word "kickstarter," you'll most likely find the following explanation: an online crowdfunding platform. These four words almost completely describe the essence and principle of Kickstarter - you come up with an interesting idea, register it on the platform, present your project to a global audience, successfully convince a critical mass of people to join it and collect the necessary funding. Backers are usually rewarded with the product they create. Everyone is satisfied and a new high-quality product is introduced to the world.

Iron Forest, a board game from Brain Games Publishing, will also be available on Kickstarter soon (February 8th), taking skill games to a new level.

At first glance, Kickstarter looks like a previous sales system. The buyer finds an idea, innovation, product or cultural product that he likes, pays the amount of money required by the developer and receives it when the ordered item is produced or appears on the market. In short, it can be described like this. But a closer look reveals that Kickstarter is much more than just a marketplace or online trading platform.

This becomes clear when visiting the homepage of the platform. Browsing the site can soon feel like you're in an exhibition of ideas and creative innovations that surprise and amaze. Here's a project we came across - modular, wall-mounted, hexagon-shaped plant boxes that look like honeycombs and have a smart self-watering system built into them. The elegant design attracts attention, and you already begin to imagine how these boxes would beautify the bare wall above your computer monitor and how grateful your beloved plants would be. Almost a thousand people have already believed in this idea, and its developers have already collected 150 thousand of the initially planned 13 thousand dollars.

This does not seem surprising if you look at the presentation of the project. It has everything it needs to succeed. A simple and ingenious idea. One that stings a bit, because obviously you could have imagined it too. A lot of visual materials that reveal both the functionality of the created product and its aesthetic beauty. An extensive and clear supporter reward system. A dynamic video reel is a must-have for Kickstarter projects. It is witty, informative and clear to understand. And most importantly , it conveys the main message of this platform: you can turn this great idea into reality, you can become its supporter.

This is the most important task for all board game developers trying their luck on Kickstarter . Convince potential players that this particular project is worth their attention, money and time. It's worth investing in. In our opinion, this is a really big challenge in the board game category. A tool that turns any bicycle into an electric bike or self-expanding plant boxes is one thing, while board games, which have long been part of the more traditional publishing industry, are quite another. The board game market is huge, its community is extremely diverse and its habits are different.

But at the same time, Kickstarter is like a paradise for independent board game developers and smaller publishers. It gives you freedom and allows you to implement all kinds of ideas. Major publishers often act as filters. Since the publishing and distribution of games largely depends on the big publishing houses, your game could see the light of day only if a publisher likes it. Or if you cover the high production costs from your own funds. So, even after coming up with the most brilliant, craziest, freshest idea, you have to face the question: what if it doesn't pay off? Such doubts can derail even the greatest masterpiece.

With nearly $13 million raised, Frosthaven is the most funded game on Kickstarter .

Kickasterter helps answer this question before it becomes a serious problem. Create a game, develop its campaign, present it to players and they will tell you if success is expected. They will make it very clear with a specific amount of money. If the idea seems interesting to them, you will collect the necessary funding for its development. If not…

But money is not the main thing. In this article, we have already mentioned several times that it is possible to become a supporter of an idea in order to implement it together. Kickstarter has turned a new page in game development and distribution. It's less like advertising and more like direct communication. Stefan Werning, who studies Kickstarter's impact on board games, talks about the relationship that develops between a game and its backers. Campaigners can feel like co-authors and at the same time express their wishes and support a developer they trust and whose vision has convinced them. This allows the author to implement several successful campaigns one after another. Thus, a previously known author can become a celebrity, and smaller or larger communities can begin to form around him.

Simply put, Kickstarter is like a bubble made of smaller bubbles. And the best part is that these bubbles are not sealed. The success of the biggest campaigns or the big publishers that appear bolder and more often on the platform allows everyone to take advantage of their brilliance. The resulting large audience is accessible to even the smallest project. Along with stories like Exploding Kittens and Rising Sun , which have raised millions of dollars, there are many smaller projects that cost only a few thousand. We can safely say that without Kickstarter , these projects would have remained in authors' notepads or drawers. Maybe then we wouldn't have gotten so many new board games and we wouldn't have raised the standard of game quality to an unprecedented high.

In 2015, Exploding Kittens was a huge success on Kickstarter. It remains one of the most supported board games on the platform, collecting nearly $9 million at the time.

Brain Games Publishing will also be present on Kickstarter ! Very soon (February 8th) we will invite you to support the latest work from the creators of the award-winning game "ICECOOL" , which will take skill games to a new level. With your help, of course. We look forward to the launch of the Iron Forest campaign, when we can show you everything we have in store. A huge box that turns into a playground on two floors, different scenarios, unique miniatures, their launch mechanism and stunning design. And even more, we can't wait to play it with you! Learn more about Iron Forest here , and follow the game's release on the Kickstarter website. To make sure you don't miss anything, follow the "Iron Forest Kickstarter launch" event on Facebook .

"Iron Forest" presentation video

In short , Kickstarter has changed the rules for publishing board games. It has given even the smallest game developers access to a huge market. It has given even more power to the players, contributed to rapid changes in board games and raising their quality standards.

The author of the illustrations of "Iron Forest" is Reinis Pētersons.