What tabletop games need to win the parents of tomorrow

Gamewright’s jester logo adorns some of the most popular tabletop games of the last 30 years, including Sleeping Queens and Sushi Go! Gamewright Vice President of Product Development Jason Schneider says digital games lack the sensory experience, like the feel of cards in your hand or the sound of a ripple shuffle. But he also thinks the rise of video games has forced tabletop developers to make better, more engaging games. How long will this symbiotic yet frenemy state hold?

Matt Carmichael: What makes a game popular with kids and parents, and is that changing?

Jason Schneider: The point of a game is to bring people together over some kind of shared experience. A kid may be getting something out of the experience that's wholly different than the parent, but ultimately, it’s a sense of engagement.

Carmichael: Is that different in the digital world?

Schneider: You’re forced to use your imagination more. The strongest thing about board games and card games is the soft skills you learn, namely eye contact and listening and watching and reacting to the movements that are going on around the table versus watching some minute motions that someone may be making on a joystick or on a tablet.

Carmichael: What’s different for kids learning through a physical game vs. a screen-based game?

Schneider: You could learn any educational curriculum through a screen-based game or a physical based game, right? Board games and card games can really excel at the ability to spend time in the same space with other people and learn about some of the social emotional needs of that particular moment. To learn patience, you're waiting to take your turn.

Carmichael: Ipsos data shows that supporting local and small businesses are big, purpose-driven reasons people buy stuff. Do you feel that?

Schneider: The board game industry is growing so fast, it's harder and harder for brands to stand out and matter to the consumer. I compare it to the book industry. There are obviously major publishers, but there are lots of upstarts, and it's easy to get your own book published. But is it title-driven or is it brand-driven? Gamewright was at the right place at the right time. We were able to build this brand up over decades to get a following.

Carmichael: So how do games get discovered?

Schneider: The barrier of entry for making a board game today is pretty much a credit card or Kickstarter campaign. It's not like starting up a car company or a space company, right? You're able to come up with an idea, and there's tons of them out there. How do you, the consumer, curate that down? Your local toy store staff is a great example of someone who can say, “Well, this is what I like.” And that's where sometimes brands can come into effect. The Gamewright brand has been around for 30 years. We’ve built a reputation.

Carmichael: During the pandemic, board games seemed to have a bit of a renaissance. Did you feel that?

Schneider: There was a big tug on nostalgia for games. Whether it was adults being able to slow down and recognize, “I miss playing this game that I played when I was 10 years old, and I'd love to play it with my 10-year-old.” Or whether it was just the collective familiarity of the legacy games that have been in people's homes for generations.

Carmichael: Will nostalgia shift to digital as these kids who were raised on video games age?

Schneider: All board game publishers should think that there's an existential threat out there. Our kids are digital natives, and as they become parents what are the traditions they're going to be handing down to their kids? “We all played Minecraft and Roblox,” so that's where they're going to go first.

Carmichael: What other impacts do you feel from competition with digital products?

Schneider: Board games have become a lot more interesting because of the digital world. Not because we can compete with them, but because we're competing against them, and we’ve got to do our best to engage someone who spends the whatever it is, $20 or $30 on a physical game.

Carmichael: Is there a way to translate some of your games into a digital world?

Schneider: Just yesterday I was working with some developers porting Sushi Go, one of our best-selling games, to a digital version. It’s doable. It’s not the same. It was really great that we could play remotely, but I missed holding cards in my hand.