How Do You Get a Board Game Published?

cyclomedia asks: "I've been dedicating a little of my time to devising a strategy board game, pitched somewhere between Checkers and Chess but probably not as deceptively complex as Go. Without giving too much away I can tell you that there's a nerd factor within the game itself, possibly leaning the possibility of marketing towards the Games Workshop end of the spectrum, but without the 80-sided dice and Orcs. The next step in my plan is to see if I can actually create a prototype made of coins, stickers and cardboard, and then to attempt to teach the rules to my wife (she's a Trek fan, hence the marriage). If I get past that stage, presumably I can't just show up at Hasbro with my jerry rigged setup and expect an enthusiastic response. So, what do I do?"

Comments

Do it, but be persistent

[Renegade Lisp]

The game publishing business seems very conservative. Many of the games that became classics over the last few decades were initially rejected by all of the major publishers: Mastermind, Monopoly, you name it. Even Sudoku took more than twenty years until it finally hit home.

A friend of mine developed the board game Friedrich, a strategy game about the Seven Years' War. It took him fifteen years to arrive at the final version, building very elaborate prototypes, and playing hundreds of games with friends who were acting as beta testers. The game was rejected by all major publishers he showed it to, mostly on the grounds that "it takes too long to play" (3-5 hours at least). After he'd mentioned that, every discussion was immediately over. My friend finally decided to publish the game himself, founding his own game publishing company. The game quickly achieved almost a cult following, both in Germany, where it was initially published, and in the US. I think some 4000 copies have been sold so far. It won the prize for the Best Historical Simulation by the American Games magazine in 2006.

So I'd say: Be prepared to go a long way, but it may well be worth it.

Have you tried?

[91degrees]

presumably I can't just show up at Hasbro with my jerry rigged setup and expect an enthusiastic response.

Stop being so presumptious. Write to Hasbro with a brief concept of your game and see what they say. Get the game finished and balanced first. No publisher is interested in a half designed game. But don't worry about production values. Graphic designers can be hired by the publisher. And find some other people to help playtest the game. You might want to try a few other publishers as well.

A better place...

[timftbf]

...to ask the question would be the Board Game Designers' Forum - http://www.bgdf.com/

You're almost certainly not going to be talking to Hasbro or GW - you're going to be talking (if you're lucky!) to people like Rio Grande, Uberplay, Kosmos, Mayfair, JKLM... If those names don't mean anything to you, get yourself over to http://www.boardgamegeek.com/ and start reading :)

Go to some Gaming Cons

[trip11]

I would recomend that once you have a playable prototype, look into some local (or non-local if you're serious) gaming conventions. A lot of these have events for YOU. Everyone brings in a game they have designed, it is play tested, and voted on. Winner gets the game developed or something. Well the details can vary but look into it. Not to mention you could just set up your own, independent game and get lots of feedback from people. It might help smooth out some rough spots. Plus there may be booths set up where you could talk to some reps from publishing companies. At least as much as 'hey, who should I write to in your company about a new game'.

I know there is a big gaming Con in Denver Colorado, and Columbus Ohio. But there are undoubtedly more.

cheapass games

[kattphud]

If the major board game publishers jilt you, consider selling your idea to Cheapass Games, the creators of such works of subgenius like Kill Doctor Lucky and Give Me The Brain.

You could try SJ Games..

[Zawash]

SJ Games may publish your game - if you have a good concept.. :)
Read the guidelines for submitting card- and boardgames..
Also check out the Author Guidelines for submitting other types of content.

(Unfortunately, they seem to be rather busy at the moment..)
Good luck!

advice from actual designers & publishers

[Anonymous Coward]

I sat in on several forums at gencon last year, which of course does not make me an expert of any sort, but I can pass along what actual game designers and publishers were willing to tell a bunch of nerds at 9am on a saturday -

The concensus was that getting your game published is generally an inside job. This is not to say that outsiders have no hope; rather, it is to say that the path to enlightenment (getting published) lies through opening dialogue with designers & publishers through established means - online forums, attending trade shows, etc. It's much more a face-to-face industry - people like to know who they're working with.

The single key element that was reinforced over and over was PLAYABLE PROTOTYPE. Common advice was not to spend money on production values for said prototype, but rather to spend that time and effort making the game playable and enjoyable, and to put tremendous effort into making the rules comprehensive and readily understandable. Apparently nothing irks publishers more than getting a gaudy prototype with an incomprehensible rules sheet and unexplained/missing parts, unless it's some guy waving his hands and insisting his game is 'so awesome' without producing a prototype of any sort at all.