Category: Your Board Game Self-Publishing Questions Answered
Clear, detailed answers to common board game self-publishing questions. CE marks, VAT, manufacturing, marketing, and other practical indie publishing guides.
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Kickstarter campaign metrics (conversions, costs, momentum, etc.) and debrief for Quickdraw: Battle for Silver City
I wanted to share some of the key metrics of my Kickstarter campaign to help first time creators peer behind the curtain a little. For context, this is my first campaign I’ve launched. It has a $15 base tier, $50 deluxe tier, and a $4 PnP tier. It funded at 226% the goal, with 274 Read more
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How do I ship my game to the EU? Do I need a CE Mark, AR, VAT?
If you want your game in the EU you’ll likely need all of the above. It’s a fair amount of work but very doable once you understand it. I got really frustrated when searching for clear answers on how to ship a board game into the EU/UK. I found a lot of misinformation, “experts” that Read more
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How do I market my game and get followers?
Show people something interesting and focus on honest engagement. I just started hosting a monthly Q&A for self-publishers on the Break My Game Discord channel (check it out!), and the same question keeps coming up: “How do I market my game?”“How do I build an audience?” It’s tough, and I’m living this struggle myself as Read more
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How do I get my game printed?
Start talking to manufacturers to understand which work best for you. You’ve got your prototype – scraps of paper, cardboard tokens, rough printouts – and you can already picture the glossy, shrink-wrapped version sitting on a game store shelf. But how do you actually get it printed? Manufacturing can feel like a black box the first Read more
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Where can I get playtesters for my game?
The Break My Game Discord channel and in-person playtesting specific events will set you up for success. This is my favorite question to answer, because this is the question that will do the most to bring your game to life. Playtesting early and often not only will give you the best game, but also save Read more
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Should I copyright/protect my game before sharing it with others?
No. Ideas on their own are worthless and you only hurt yourself by delaying meaningful feedback. This is one of the most common questions I’ve seen on various blogs from new designers. Or I see it manifest as anonymous posts asking vague questions about a game they aren’t fully describing. I get it, I had Read more
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I’m 3 months away from my Kickstarter launch, what should I be doing?
You should already be building your audience, locking down manufacturing, and preparing like you’re launching a full product – not just an idea. I’m about three months out from launching Quickdraw, and the reality is setting in: a successful Kickstarter doesn’t start at launch. I see too many posts that begin with “Help, my Kickstarter is failing,” and Read more
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How can I maintain productivity using Agile board game development?
Passion for your project will come and go. Rely on a proven process to structure your chaos, and progress becomes inevitable. 3 months out from my Kickstarter, and since I’m planning right, there are a million things to do: playtests, promo art, manufacturer files, campaign pages, shipping quotes, and on and on it goes. Every day Read more
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Is self-publishing or pitching better for my goal? My Decision and Five Year Plan
Nuggets of Wisdom: Determine your goal and use that to filter through the endless amount of information out there. Discussion Question: What is your goal and how are you going to get there? Once I knew that I wanted to develop Quickdraw my first question was, should I publish it on my own, or should Read more