Board games remain a hugely popular pastime, and have the crowdfunding to prove it

By Jon Martindale Published June 3, 2016

board games video crowdfunding kickstarter conanboard — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Although crowdfunding has had its ups and downs in the minds of gamers all over the world, there’s no denying that we’ve invested a lot in the companies that utilize it. In fact, since Kickstarter first came about, over half a billion dollars has been pledged to games alone.

That collection includes a lot of different types of games: video games, gaming related projects, and the biggest crowd funded group of all: board games. That might not have been something anyone would have predicted just a few years ago, but board games have proved to be the most popular gaming-related projects on Kickstarter, according to ICV2 (via QZ).

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Out of that half a billion dollars that gaming has raised in all of its various guises, board games have pulled in $265 million. That’s a stupendous total that shows that even in this digitally dominated age, playing a board game with friends is one of our most popular pastimes, and it may even be growing in popularity.

So much so, in fact, that popular video games like The Witcher series and Dark Souls have had their own board game adaptations. That latter project recently raised $5.48 million from its crowdfunding campaign.

We’ve also seen a heightened interest in digital board games, with the likes of Blood Bowl 2, Space Hulk, and Tabletop Simulator all showing a growth in interest of digital and real-world board gaming.

What’s perhaps even more impressive about these totals, though, is how much individuals have given. That $265 million was generated by just 2.2 million backers, which means that, on average, they pledged over $120 a piece.

How does all this stack up with non-gaming projects on the site? In total, Kickstarter has raised over $2.4 billion since its inception for various teams around the world. That stockpile of funds was generated from over 107,000 different projects which were fully funded.

What are some of the campaigns you have kicked money into over the past few years?

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Evergreen writer

Jon Martindale is a freelance evergreen writer and occasional section coordinator, covering how to guides, best-of lists, and…

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