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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

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raid517
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Hi, I am new here - so I'm sorry if I leap in with both feet first.

The thing is I have a few ideas for some boardgames - but what I am really interested in is finding out the names and business addresses of all of the major board game manufacturers.

Does anyone here know where I will be able to find a resource like this?

GJ

Dralius
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

www.gama.org has one but it is not working for some reason.

I would say you are jumping in head first not feet first.

The process is as I see it.

1. Design a game.
2. Test it.
3. Test it.
4. Test it.
5. Redesign
6. Return to step 2.

(Yes this first part goes on indefinitely or at least it seems to)

7. Once you have a game that works really well then it is time to start looking for a publisher to license it too.

If you’re not done with your game don’t worry about figuring what publishers might want it yet.

raid517
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

No its not that kind of a deal. Let's just say I am representing an existing franchise who may be interested in commissioning a board game.

Essentially this franchise already have a winning product - and they wish to explore converting this into board game format.

Which is why I am looking to speak to possible manufacturers directly.

Unfortunately you are right that the list of manufacturers on that site appears not to be working. Do you or anyone here perhaps have any kind of functional list?

GJ

Dralius
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

raid517 wrote:
No its not that kind of a deal. Let's just say I am representing an existing franchise who may be interested in commissioning a board game.

Essentially this franchise already have a winning product - and they wish to explore converting this into board game format.

Which is why I am looking to speak to possible manufacturers directly.

Unfortunately you are right that the list of manufacturers on that site appears not to be working. Do you or anyone here perhaps have any kind of functional list?

GJ

In that case it would be beneficial if you approached them with game in hand. Contrary to popular belief most game companies don't design many games. They just market and sell them. If they have designers working for them they likely only work on refining designs and altering games they have licensed to fit their market plan.

We are the people that design games and then license then to the companies for a % of the take. There are some that do all their design in-house but they tend to be smaller operations.

This sight has both armature and professional designers with all levels in-between. If you interested in finding someone to work on your project this is the place to post your job offer.

As for talking to them directly that can be hard if your talking about approching Hasbo for example, they don't just taalk to anyone. You might want to contact a game broker for assistance with that.

raid517
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

Well I'll talk to anyone. But really I'm not sure where to start. I have a task in mind and I am not entirely clear (yet) how to achieve it. I guess I specifically need a manufacturer who does have in house designers.

I am not really concerned if Hasbo don't talk to anyone - that is their choice. If they don't want to make money then that is up to them.

The problem I imagine with dealing with freelance game designers is that at some point you are going to run into a law of deminishing returns.

Moreover I am not in a position to offer anyone any employment, as my task is simply to investigate what's possible and then take things from there.

The way things are at the moment is that company a) has a franchise (and I represent them) and they wish to explore the possibility of launching several new board game titles. My assumption was that this would/should involve simply contacting company b) which would ideally be a company that was both well known and capable of designing and manufacturing board games. Company a) wishes to make money from this, as does presumably company b). I also as the broker (who is not normally associate with board games) wish to make money - so bringing in external designers would certainly complicate things still further.

Noetheless on the basis that I am not offerring anyone any job (yet), if anyone want's to work on a percentage basis, given that it might be a percentage of nothing if the deal doesn't pull through then I am happy to consider any input anyone has.

In the meantime a revised list (or any list) of board game manufacturing and/or design companies would still be very much appreciated.

GJ

Brykovian
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

You might want to send PM's to "OrlandoPat" and/or "Z-Man" through the forum's private message system (or a direct e-mail) ... they both run their own board game companies and might be able to point you to the full-service manufacturers.

I'm confused about if you're looking for just manufacturers (make the game, but don't sell it), or publishers (have the game made by a manufacturer and do the selling).

-Bryk

raid517
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

Probably both. I am probably looking to learn about the industry and how it works. My objective is to deliver an already existent a multi million dollar franchise and allow this franchise's products to be converted into board game format. It is essentially a merchandising type scenario. I have no interest at all in producing any games on my own.

What is the standard form? You approach a publisher who then approaches a manufacturer? What role exactly do each of these play - and again who are the main players in the industry? You might imagine that this last question should be the easiest of all to answer, but after initial investigation it seems really quite difficult. There isn't a single web based list that I have been able to find.

Is there such a thing perhaps as a reference book containing all of the names of the main games publishers and or manufacturers currently in operation? (Since it seems I am just learning that these are not necessarily the same thing). I know there are similar directories for other industries. If there is I may just purchase the book.

When you guys have a fairly completed game concept, who exactly do you pitch your ideas to?

GJ

VeritasGames
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

In the U.S. for Card Games only you can look to U.S. Playing Card Company and Carta Mundi U.S.A.

If your game has non-card components (boards, plastics, etc.), you can go with Delano, or more likely Yaquinto.

I'm not familiar with the overseas board game manufacturers.

Keep in mind that you may have to drop $20 thousand to $40 thousand for a mass market game, just for a production run if you have custom plastic components, etc.

Delano can probably handle smaller runs, but charges a substantial markup on smaller orders, really cutting into your chances to actually getting into distribution.

I've heard of a place called MJS Creations, but I know nothing about them. I think they run the www.boardgamedesign.com website.

The only way you can probably cheaply produce a board game is to use "off the shelf" plastics (like those at Plastics for Games) so that your manufacturer can buy them instead of having to custom make them.

Smaller runs really should be done by getting all the components and putting them together yourself. Get the cards done in Asia if you are cost conscious. But "off the shelf" plastics. Use whatever standard board sizes the manufacturer can manage. Maybe get the boxes at wholesale and pay a separate printer to manufacture the box wraps.

That's probably what you need to do to be able to produce 500 or so copies of a game. Otherwise you are most likely looking at 5000+ copies through a place like Yaquinto.

Brykovian
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

raid ...

Most of us here are more familiar with the hobby games market ... most of those companies do not make use of big-time licenses and usually deal in the number of units that Lee mentioned (5K-10K).

It sounds like you're dealing with more of a major mass-market type license. If that's the case, you might want to find a contact at a company like Briar Patch (http://www.briarpatch.com) which makes use of familiar licenses for their games.

-Bryk

raid517
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

Quote:
That's probably what you need to do to be able to produce 500 or so copies of a game. Otherwise you are most likely looking at 5000+ copies through a place like Yaquinto.

But no single reference source where I can learn about the subject in general, how things are done, who the main players are, who are the best contacts and so on?

I think I may just have to go to my local toy store and research this in person - as I think that doing things this way is possibly somewhat more difficult than it needs to be.

I already represent an industry that has money to spend on product development. To be exact I have contacts within this industry whom after some initial discussions have agreed that their products and their specific brands would transpose easily as part of a merchandising package into board game format. I have therefore opted to investigate this further and if it looks promising (which it does) then perhaps I will act as a broker and attempt to put a suitable deal together.

That is why I find it difficult to understand why Hasbro, or anyone else for that matter would not listen - unless they are in the habit of turning down large and lucrative franchises? But if you say this is true then I have no option but to take your word for it. I am as I said something of a beginner in this specific field.

Perhaps my local reference library will have some more suitable research material?

In the meantime thanks for all of the pointers.

GJ

raid517
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

Brykovian wrote:
raid ...

Most of us here are more familiar with the hobby games market ... most of those companies do not make use of big-time licenses and usually deal in the number of units that Lee mentioned (5K-10K).

It sounds like you're dealing with more of a major mass-market type license. If that's the case, you might want to find a contact at a company like Briar Patch (http://www.briarpatch.com) which makes use of familiar licenses for their games.

-Bryk

This is true! The people I am representing are unlikely to wish to indulge in small one off production runs!

The only difficulty I am having at the moment is that I am not recognising any of these names. In the world of advertising and promotions, there is a lot to be said for a name. Maybe this is due to the fact that I am living in the UK. Are these manufacturers really the top name American companies currently working in this field?

GJ

phpbbadmin
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

Raid,

It sounds like, in your particular situation, the company you represent will be the publisher. You will then need two things. A designer to create the game and a manufacturer to actually print the game and it's components. A normal publisher would handle all aspects in between the design stage and the manufacturing stage, and everything after manufacturing. So it may look something like this:

1) Game Design
2) Prototype creation
3) Playtesting
4) Design refinement / prototype modification
5) Back to step 3 when necessary.

6) Graphic design / layout / Editing / Artwork

7) Print and obtain components
8) Package everything in box
9) Have everything delivered to your storage location

10) Obtain distribution channels
11) Setup website
12) Advertise / Market game
13) Fulfill orders from distributors / website / mail order, etc.

Normally stages 1-5 are performed by the game designer. Stages 6, and 10-13 are performed by the publisher, and stages 7-9 are performed by the manufacturer. Either the company you represent needs to act as the publisher or you need to have that outsourced as well.

Another alternative that your company may want to consider is to let game publishers know that you are licensing your particular franchise for board games.

Also, you may want to contact Brian Yu, who is a board game designer at Mattel who has designed a BUNCH of games from famous licenses. If you can find some way to contact him, ask him how the business relationship between Mattel and it's licensors works.

At any rate, Good luck with your games, and if I may make a request: Try to make designer games. And by that I mean games that are well thought out and have meaningful choices for the players. So many board games based upon franchises are just garbage slapped together to make sales. For once it would be nice to see a major IP franchise put out a decently designed game to the American public.

-Darke

phpbbadmin
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

raid517 wrote:

The only difficulty I am having at the moment is that I am not recognising any of these names. In the world of advertising and promotions, there is a lot to be said for a name. Maybe this is due to the fact that I am living in the UK. Are these manufacturers really the top name American companies currently working in this field?

GJ

Raid,

Have you tried contacting Waddington's? Essentially I think they are equivalent to the British division of Hasbro.

Quote:

That is why I find it difficult to understand why Hasbro, or anyone else for that matter would not listen - unless they are in the habit of turning down large and lucrative franchises? But if you say this is true then I have no option but to take your word for it. I am as I said something of a beginner in this specific field.

Actually it may be incorrect to say that Hasbro would not talk to *you*. They don't talk to *us* (and by us I mean indepedent game designers) because they develop most if not all of their games in house. I don't see why they wouldn't discuss creating a game for someone who had a viable franchise.

Hope this helps!
-Darke

raid517
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

Everything will preferably be outsourced. We are talking about two separate industries with little or no experience of each other's relative fields - and while a degree of creative input will be required from both sides, there is likely to be a cut off point where the industry I represent would just say 'here is x amount of money, we would like to contract you to create, publish, test, manufacture and possibly distribute a game for us, based on our existing range of products.'

Not only this, but I think my clients would only really be interested in a big name publisher. (It would help sooth some nerves I think if I could have at least one big name on board from the board game side of the industry).

It is a pity if what you are saying is accurate, because this would appear to indicate that there is no such thing as a one stop shop.

Perhaps though, there may be something like this in the UK?

I suspect I will have no option but to continue my research.

GJ

OutsideLime
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

The Game Inventor's Guidebook by Brian Tinsman has a fairly good list of major international game companies and their contact information.

You can pick it up off Amazon.com for about $10US.

Also, this website has links to over 80 board game publishers, from major internationals to smaller independent outfits. Each publisher will provide contact info from their own website. It'll take you a little pointing and clicking, but you gotta earn your % somehow... Good luck, and remember my middleman fee when those millions roll in!

~Josh

VeritasGames
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

raid517 wrote:
Are these manufacturers really the top name American companies currently working in this field?

GJ

Yaquinto is a major game manufacturing plant. They actually typically recommend that you go to someone else for quantities less than 10,000 units in most cases.

Dralius
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

Darkehorse wrote:
Actually it may be incorrect to say that Hasbro would not talk to *you*. They don't talk to *us* (and by us I mean indepedent game designers) because they develop most if not all of their games in house. I don't see why they wouldn't discuss creating a game for someone who had a viable franchise.

Hope this helps!
-Darke

Any suggestion on my part that Hasbro is not interested in being contacted comes from thier web site. It seems fairly clear that if they don't know you already they don't want to.

Hasbro wrote:
For many years it has been and remains our company's policy to decline offers to consider unsolicited external ideas or suggestions. We depend on our employees and other organizations with whom we deal on a regular basis for such ideas. Also, the toy and game industry has had the unfortunate experience of law suits being filed by individuals who allege misappropriation of their ideas as a result of a company's consideration of even the most general concept. We simply cannot assume such risks. Therefore, we do not encourage the submission of ideas by individuals who are not directly associated with our company or its agents.

for the entire posting go to http://hasbro.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/hasbro.cfg/php/enduser/std_alp.php and search for product idea

They suggest you take your idea to a game broker first.

raid517
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

I doubt I will comment on this more. But to be clear, I don't have a game idea. I have a business proposal - which is quite a diffrent beast.

I don't think it is sensible to confuse the two.

GJ

Dralius
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

raid517 wrote:
I doubt I will comment on this more. But to be claer, I don't have a game idea. I have a business proposal - which is quite a diffrent beast.

I don't think it is sensible to confuse the two.

GJ

In that case since you are from the UK you might consider contacting their European division.

UK OFFICE
Telephone - 0208 569 1234

our address is:
Hasbro
2 Roundwood Avenue
Stockley Park
Uxbridge
UB11 1AZ

Good Luck

VeritasGames
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

You sound like a man who should go to Toy Fair with a stack of business plans and promotional materials and shop around your client's IP. Outside of that forum, you seem to be working on the inverse of the normal production model -- like a guy with a license you are trying to shop around and find someone who wants to produce a licensed game.

It's unclear exactly what you are trying to do. Are you trying to sell rights to produce a licensed game (i.e., you are shopping around your license)?

If you are wanting someone to custom design you a board game with little or no input from you, there are companies on the net that do that, but they charge you, and most are not interested in paying for the privilege. Most game manufacturers are not going to pay you for producing your game. They will want you to pay them to design and produce your game. Is that what you are trying to do?

Because, as I've noted with Toy Fair, there are venues where people are expected to try to shop around ideas, licenses, etc. For instance, Top Cow just distributed lots of materials at the E3 (?) computer game show to tell people what licenses were available. It seems you are trying to "push" your content, when it may be more to your advantage to go to the right convention, advertise, and "pull" interested parties toward you.

GAMA is the organization to contact for game companies in the hobby game industry. If you want to reach more companies who get their stuff into typical Toy Stores, the Toy Industry Association is a good place to start.

Link to Toyfair: http://www.toy-tia.org/Content/NavigationMenu/TIA_Trade_Shows_and_Events...

All this said, I would ask you kindly to be a little less short in the patience department. I'm not a moderator, so I'm just asking as one person to another. People have given you some leads. You just don't seem to like them. It's kind of unclear exactly what you want to do, since you haven't explained all the details, and, in fact, seem like you are purposefully keeping some of the details close to your vest.

You started out the thread sounding like "my client wants to get in touch with a fully featured game development shop and manufacturer to pay to get a game designed for them with their brand on it."

Then on re-read it sounds like you are shopping around a license.

Those are potentially two different groups of people you need to talk to: people you are willing to pay to build you a game from the ground up, versus people willing to pay for the privilege of licensing your client's IP.

All in all, I'm not entirely certain what you are trying to do, but clarity on that front will likely get you better answers.

VeritasGames
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Who are the Major Manufacturers?

raid517 wrote:
But no single reference source where I can learn about the subject in general, how things are done, who the main players are, who are the best contacts and so on?

Check out this review for the Game Inventor's Guidebook:

http://www.looneylabs.com/OurStores/product.html?ProductID=162&List=Full...

The Toy and Game Inventor's Handbook:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1592570623/qid=1135368374/...

Stephen Peek has the Game Inventor's Handbook (memory tells me that there was a more recent version than this, but I can't remember).
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/093262085X/qid=1135368442/...

RehtBill
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Rehtmeyer Inc

Just wanted to Chime in here - My name is Bill and I work for Rehtmeyer Inc. We also do manufacturing, in addition to design, development, and licensing. Our facilities for production are in China and we have the capabilities to literally produce anything you might require from paper, to metal, to plastic, etc.

You can visit out site at www.toysngames.com and see some of what we do.

Our minimum order is normally 5,000 units.

Thanks!

Bill

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