I researched domestic board game manufacturers for a board game that I did not end up producing. The following is what I learned:

5-10k is a good rule-of-thumb minimum for game manufacturing. There are places that can do runs of 500, but they appear to utilize lower-quality production techniques and require you use all standard pieces, which can limit the types of game play you can design. Additionally, the small-run places are generally optimized for niche games, which is great if you're doing a fundraiser or limited run, but bad if you're ever planning to scale. They either can't do it, or their production techniques mean that the games would be quite costly even if they can fulfill orders of multiple thousands.

Here’s a run-down of what we’ve learned about the two companies we’ve spoken with in-depth (both of which can do large-scale game manufacturing)

Paragon Packaging

http://www.paragonpackaging.com/

Contact: Ron Cohn, rcohn@paragonpackaging.com

Location: Ferndale, CA

I found Paragon via Google, and was impressed by the website and the immediate response to our request for information. Ron was extremely responsive to all information inquiries, and is a good sales guy. He didn’t seem to know too much about manufacturing techniques, but he didn’t seem to overpromise when he doesn't know the answer; when I asked how small we could cut a chipboard puzzle, he told me he didn’t know, but he could find out (and then followed up). There were a few other times where he said Paragon might be able to do certain things, but he wouldn’t confirm until he had checked with the right people and was absolutely sure.

One drawback to working with Ron is that he’s not very good at conceptualizing ideas when described over the phone. In order to get any real feedback I generally had to send him sketches or other visuals. This is likely due to the fact that Ron is more of a sales guy than an engineer/designer.

My overall sense of Paragon is that it’s set up to handle games that don’t deviate much from standard sizes and components; if you wanted to do a Foo-opoly game, this would be a great company to work with. I made this inference based both on the fact that the website is very well-optimized for Google search (“Game Board Manufacturers” if you’re interested), and is very polished. Also, when I asked about standard box sizes for standard 10”x10” quad fold boards, Ron told me that they were 10.5”x10.5”x3”, and that he could send me a template file to lay out the graphics on. When I asked the same question to Jay at Package Right (see below), he said that they have dies for 2”, 2.5”, and 3” tall boxes, and can do specialty dies for about $400 if none of those options work. Jay has never offered me template files, which gives me the impression that he tends to work with bigger producers who have the skills to create their own templates.

Package Right

Manufacturer: http://www.packageright.com/

Playing pieces: http://www.rolcogames.com/

Contact: Jay Smale, jays@packageright.com

Location: Tipton, IN

Prepare to be underwhelmed by Package Right’s website. I’m guessing that most of Package Right’s business comes from big players who have worked with them for a long time, or through word-of-mouth, meaning that the web presence is largely an afterthought. Hat tip to Michelle Lee PD '04, who worked with Package Right at University Games and sent me the recommendation. I was impressed that when I called up and spoke with Jay, and mentioned Michelle, he remembered exactly who she was even though she hasn’t worked at University Games for about 10 years.

Jay is definitely not sales-y,  which sometimes means he takes a couple of days to respond to emails, and usually does so by calling back instead of emailing. The flip side of this is that Jay is absolutely fantastic at giving you ideas about how to change your playing pieces so they’ll be easier and cheaper to manufacture, and just plain better when they’re done. He also has a good knowledge of specialty manufacturing processes like different ways to print on the game board, depending on the types of graphics you have. Whereas Ron tends to emphasize standard piece and board options, Jay repeatedly reassured me that custom dies are straightforward and inexpensive.

As for lead times, Paragon quoted 4-6 weeks given no custom injection molded playing pieces, and Package Right is in the same ballpark at a flat 4 weeks lead time. These quotes were based on me describing the game as a “Monopoly-like quad fold board with paper currency and chipboard playing pieces with plastic stands.”

Page last updated by 8/16/12

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