The magic of tabletop crowdfunding is dying

polygon.com:

Compared to many other crowdfunding sectors, the board game business has been a relatively safe bet over the past decade. In stark contrast to what’s happened with tech and video game backers, tabletop players have often plunked down their cash and then, a couple of years later, received crisp new boxes of cardboard and plastic. This approach has resulted in some of the best board games of the past decade, and it has fundamentally improved the industry by raising production values and broadening creativity. It’s been such a successful endeavor that some of the largest companies in the industry have emerged from Kickstarter, such as CMON Games (Zombicide, Marvel United), Stonemaier Games (Wingspan, Scythe), and Awaken Realms (Nemesis, Tainted Grail).

Yet recently, I feel that trend has started to change. This once-exciting method of producing games has taken a bit of a turn, and the dice have started to come up craps. Projects have become less enticing for consumers, with increased risks, higher costs, and promised exclusive content that ends up not really being exclusive.

The single most significant culprit for this downturn has been the economic impact on publishers due to the pandemic. Supply chain issues and rising materials costs have exerted a tremendous amount of pressure on an industry that operates on small margins. China’s multiple shutdowns and its unstable economy have resulted in an ever-evolving logistics situation, which requires increased effort and skill on behalf of publishers. In addition to the ever-shrinking profits on the production side, the consumer has been significantly impacted.

One look at a CMON campaign’s shipping price is guaranteed to make the hairs on the back of your neck stiffen. I remember when the company’s original Kickstarter campaign for Zombicide launched way back in 2015. It’s hard to believe now, but the shipping was free. The campaign caught fire, raising nearly $800,000 and producing a bevy of exclusive content that would