Running a successful company requires you to be efficient and part of that is using the right tool for the job. Over the years I have found myself settling on a number of tools which help me achieve my goals and today I would like to share them with you.
Should board games offer multiple modes of play, or is it the job of the designer to define the best way for the game to be experienced? This weekend I had the pleasure of trying Path of Exile's new Ruthless mode and it was a joy!
We are about to enter the Easter weekend which in the UK means 4 entire days devoted to eating chocolate, and I hope regardless of whether Easter is a holiday you celebrate, that you get to enjoy a tasty treat this weekend as well!
I have always wanted to keep all my games, expansions, and accessories available for anyone around the world but this has been tricky over the past couple of years. The costs of shipping skyrocketed which meant I had to be a bit more careful on restocking older games.
The good news is prices of freight shipping have come back down and I’m now working hard to restock just about everything The City of Games has ever made. I’m hoping by the end of 2023 that the days of out of stock games will be behind us and I appreciate your patience with this.
There will also be some new surprises later this year and while Race to the Raft will be the big new game hitting stores, I’m hopeful we’ll see a few other items releasing this year as well.
I can’t say too much just yet but I think for the first time in a long time I can say there will be something for everyone and I am very excited about it!
This month in publisher lessons I discussed the following topics:
I have managed to play a lot of new to me games recently including 7 Wonders Duel, Skulls of Sedlec, Beyond the Sun and Colourful, which I really enjoyed. I also managed to sit down with Sara and watch The Whale which turned out to be a fantastic movie that I highly recommend watching.
I’m currently working on a lot of small projects which I’m looking forward to revealing later this year but for now my priority continues to be getting Race to the Raft made and into your hands.
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When it comes to board game publishing there are many examples of companies that have grown to a considerable size with just 1 person behind the wheel, and there are others that have gone ahead as a team. Whether you need a team depends on a number of factors.
After what was likely a lengthy process of designing, crowdfunding, and manufacturing a game, you have one step left – Get the game to your backers hands. Picking the right fulfilment partner is crucial as in this case cheaper isn’t always better.
It’s November 10th 2021 and an email arrives, how would you feel about us featuring The Isle of Cats in our game? It’s not the first time I’ve received such an email, but this time it was a little different...
After a slightly scary weekend I was reminded of a topic that I hate to talk about but think is incredibly important to plan for. Most of us are familiar with the concept of wills and what would happen if we were to pass, but as a business owner, have you ever considered a business will?
I always thought getting into distribution would instantly take The City of Games to the next level, and in some ways I was right, but I hadn’t considered just how slow the process would be. I quickly discovered that distribution is a gradual process of trust building and growing relationships.
Running a business can be a very joyful experience and over the years The City of Games has created some of the happiest moments of my life. Today I’d like to look back at some of those moments.
Making a physical game is hard, not only do you have to design the game but then you need to put together artwork and rules, you need to get the components right, manufacture and assemble the game, and then ship it somewhere. There are countless steps and the chance of a mistake happening is high, but just how costly is it?
