
Written by Niall Crabtree
Niall is the director and designer at Crab Studios, and external designer at Team 17. He specializes in game design.
What do you Mean “Getting Your Game to the Table”?
The first concept to understand is this: in the board game sector, which is unlike any other gaming sector in this regard, consumers are not considering buying your game just for themselves (unless it is a solo game). When considering a purchase, one of the top questions the consumer needs to ask themselves is “who will play this game with me?” or, “can I convince anyone to play this game?”.
This question is one that is being asked more and more as the epidemic of unopened/unplayed games consuming players’ kallax shelves has never been more present on social media as a key talking point.
So, not only is your job at the designer of your game to make a great game that people will enjoy WHEN they play it, but to design a game which is attractive to a wide enough audience that it is easier to get people TO play it.
How to Get Your Game to the Table
There are multiple ways to improve your chances of getting your game to the table. I shall list and go through them below, this does not mean that it is recommended to do all of these, but the list should give you enough suggestions to make changes to your game to improve your chances.
-
Make your game fit your target audience (see article about player personas). Most players often play with players who like similar games to them, so if your game has a lot of key mechanics, and has artwork which aligns with your target audience, then it will be an easier sell to get your game to the table.
-
As an extension to the previous point, make the box size, components, and rulebook fit your target audience. For example, if your game is targeted at a player persona who enjoys light-weight games, but your box is 280×280 and your rulebook is 20 pages, then it will almost certainly never be played.
-
One strategy to get your game to the table starts at the concept stage. Creating a game that is designed to be an improvement on another is an easy/low risk way to make sure you reach the right target audience, and improve the chances of getting it to the table. If reviewers say that this game is “like x game, but better” then your target audience shouldn’t have any issue convincing their like-minded friends to play it.
-
Through component efficiency (see article about component efficiency) make it an easier sell to the initial consumer to suggest the game in the first place. A lot of consumers who host board game nights often either look up a how to play video (which often includes the setup) or does a run through of the setup of the game before their friends arrive. If they find the setup laborious and tedious, or just generally takes too long in comparison to the length of time it will be played, it is unlikely they will even suggest it to be played.
-
Design your game so that mechanics which are common pain points for your target audience are not a core mechanic, or are not part of your game at all. For example, if your game is targeted at the euro game market, with potentially a cosy art style, then having a core take-that mechanic which is actioned every round will put a big enough portion of the target market that at you can rely on at least one member or a friend group rejecting the idea of playing the game.
To reiterate, these are just some examples of how to help get your game to the table. With the notion now in your head, hopefully this can be apart of your thought process when it comes to designing and developing your game.
Why is Getting my Game to the Table Important? They Have Already Bought it!
This is a valid point, and you shouldn’t feel bad for having this question. However, more and more so, especially via the self-publishing route, the longevity of board games is as important as ever. Whether your next game is a sequel or expansion to the previous one, or whether you are creating an entire new IP, players nowadays remember and care about how much your previous game got played.
Additionally, if we adjust our mindset to take into account the overall health of the board game market (which affects us all, big and small) then striving to create games which get to the table more often can only be a positive to you. If the consumer’s confidence grows through experience in the fact that when they buy a game that appeals to them, that they will get to play it, then this should have a long lasting effect on the success of your games, as well as the market as a whole.