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This is Game Theory — Kickstarter and the Tabletop Revolution
Before Kickstarter: Publishers Had All the Power
• Publishing a board game was nearly impossible for independent designers
• You needed a publisher who decided what got made, funded, and reached store shelves
• If your game didn't fit their portfolio, it didn't exist
• If you couldn't get a meeting, your game stayed in a drawer
• The barrier to entry was massive
Kickstarter Changed Everything (Launched 2009)
• Gave creators a direct line to their audience
• No publisher needed, no warehouse full of inventory
• You needed: an idea, a prototype, and the ability to convince people your game was worth backing
• If enough people believed in your vision, you got funded
• If not, you went back to the drawing board
• The power shifted from gatekeepers to gamers
The First Major Successes
• Alien Frontiers (2010): Raised over $20,000—proved the model worked
• Zombicide (2012): Raised over $700,000
• Kingdom Death: Monster (2012): Raised nearly $2 million
• Exploding Kittens (2015): Raised nearly $9 million, one of the most-backed Kickstarter projects ever
• The floodgates opened
Today: Kickstarter Is the Lifeblood of Tabletop
• Thousands of board games, RPGs, miniatures, and accessories launch every year
• Some raise a few thousand dollars, some raise millions
• Funded everything from small card games to massive miniature-heavy campaigns with hundreds of stretch goals
How It Works
• Designer creates a campaign page: show off the game, explain rules, share prototype images, set funding goal
• Backers pledge money in exchange for rewards (most common: the game itself at a discounted price)
• If campaign hits funding goal by deadline, project gets funded
• If it doesn't, no one gets charged and the project dies
More Than Just Funding
• Marketing, community building, and validation
• You're asking people to believe in your vision before the product exists
• Building hype, generating buzz, creating a community of backers who feel invested in your success
• They're not just customers—they're stakeholders
Stretch Goals: Gamification of Crowdfunding
• Once campaign hits initial funding goal, creators unlock stretch goals
• Additional content or upgrades added if certain funding thresholds are reached
• More miniatures, upgraded components, extra cards, alternate art
• Stretch goals create momentum—backers see the campaign growing and want to be part of it
• It works
Exclusives: Creating Urgency
• Many campaigns offer content only available to backers
• Exclusive miniatures, promo cards, deluxe editions
• Can't buy them in stores, can't get them later
• Miss the Kickstarter, miss out
• FOMO (fear of missing out) drives pledges
• People back games they're on the fence about because they don't want to regret it later
The Dark Side of Kickstarter
Not Every Project Delivers
• Some campaigns run by inexperienced creators who underestimate costs, timelines, logistics
• Raise money, start production, realize they can't afford to manufacture and ship
• Backers wait months, sometimes years, for a product that never arrives
• Some projects fail outright; some deliver a product nothing like what was promised
Kickstarter Fatigue
• Platform is saturated—hundreds of tabletop campaigns launch every month
• Hard to stand out
• Designers spend thousands on marketing, ads, preview copies just to get noticed
• Backers are overwhelmed, can't back everything, become selective
• Only the most polished, most hyped campaigns succeed
• Barrier to entry lower than traditional publishing, but competition is brutal
The Retail Problem
• Kickstarter campaigns often offer games at prices retailers can't match
• Why buy at local game store for $60 when you could have backed on Kickstarter for $40 with exclusive content?
• Some publishers offer retail version with fewer components—creates two-tier system
• Backers get deluxe version, retail customers get stripped-down version
• Controversial
Despite the Problems: A Net Positive
• Given us games that never would have existed otherwise
• Gloomhaven: Highest-rated board game on BoardGameGeek, started on Kickstarter
• Kingdom Death: Monster: Cult classic with devoted fanbase, only exists because of Kickstarter
• Frosthaven: Sequel to Gloomhaven, raised nearly $13 million—most-funded tabletop game in Kickstarter history
Democratized Game Design
• Don't need connections or a big publisher
• Need a good game and the ability to sell your vision
• Designers from all over the world, from all backgrounds, can launch campaigns and find their audience
• Leveled the playing field in ways traditional publishing never could
For Backers
• Support creators directly
• Get games at a discount
• Be part of something from the ground up
• Not just buying a product—funding a dream
• Helping a designer bring their vision to life
• When that game arrives at your door, you feel like you were part of making it happen
The Bottom Line
Kickstarter isn't perfect. It's risky, chaotic, and oversaturated. But it's also exciting, innovative, and empowering. It's changed the tabletop industry forever, and it's not going anywhere.
If you've never backed a Kickstarter, you're missing out. Just do your research, back creators with a track record, and manage your expectations. The best Kickstarter campaigns deliver something amazing. The worst ones teach you to be more careful next time.
Either way, you're part of the revolution.
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