Tabletop games are constitutive parts of the broader board games category. Board games are games that fans play by moving objects, counters, or pieces atop the board or over the tabletop. Although Tabletop board games are common among adults, they are more popular among youths and kids who relish their recreational and learning purposes. Among the specific tabletop games are Dice games, card games, backgammon, Chess, etc.
Over the years, the board games market size has experienced astronomical growth. In 2018, the board games market was valued at USD 11.95 billion. It was projected to grow at a CAGR of 8.7% over the forecast period. Fast forward to 2022, and the global market has grown unprecedentedly. According to the latest statistics, the global outlook for the board games market projects that its size will expand at an average CAGR of 13% between 2020 and 2026. Board games have an educational value to children, no wonder their popularity keeps on increasing. Besides, lately, there has been significant growth in home-based entertainment gaming, of which board games are part. The widespread availability of board games in supermarkets, hypermarkets, speciality stores, small chain stores, catalogue stores, and non-tracked outlet stores is another reason their embrace continues to peak.
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Tabletop Games Market: A Competitive Industry?
The Board games market is highly competitive. The market is projected to grow at 13% CAGR between 2026. This immense growth attests to the percolation of board games into the conventional entertainment industry. Major vendors highlight the intense competitive landscape: Hasbro, Mattel, Asmodée Éditions (Group), and Ravensburger. Further cementing the market’s competitiveness are the globally acclaimed top players. These leading players include Buffalo games, Disney, LongPack Games, Grey fox games, and IELLO USA LLC. With their leading-edge developers, these companies leverage inventive and innovative technologies to create spectacular gaming concepts, layouts, and designs that appeal to a diverse clientele.
How Big is the Board Games Market?
A 2018 market valuation report on the global board and card games market revealed a market value of USD 11.95 billion. Per the report projections, the market growth was expected at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 8.7% in the period under review. The board games market insights report identified numerous reasons that paint the market’s rosy future. For instance, tabletop games have a wide embrace as they buttress team-building spirit. There is a sweeping tide in social gatherings where old-school card and board games are common among millennials. Also, innovative manufacturers are rolling up their sleeves to create simplistic games with elegant mechanics and attractive artwork with cross-generational appeal. Additionally, there has been a steady rise in cafes facilitating board games market growth.
Outlook of Board Games Industry Market Growth
Past data-driven insights greatly influence the current and future outlook of the board games markets. Equally, experts tie their projection to observable player behaviors in the contemporary global markets and board games’ revenues. According to researchandmarkets.com, a reputable and reliable markets insights and analysis company, the board games market revenue at an approximate CAGR of 13% between 2021 and 2026. The company reckons that despite the intense competition from digital entertainment sources, the board games market is resilient with an up-ticking embrace across variants. While unanticipated global shocks have affected the supply and access to board games, the re-emergence of gaming cafes, board game conventions, and nerd culture has superbly contributed to the rising numbers in the global board games market.
The insights reports disaggregate the constituent segments to further understand the various board games segmentation. For instance, educational games gained popularity in the period under review. They posted a global sales increase of 18%, owing partly to home-schooling. As the relevance perception increases among parents, the market share reports indicate that this segment will clock $13 billion by 2026.
Trends of Tabletop Games
Developers leverage definitive trends to impress new and existing gamers as the global board games market size increases. Here are some of them.
Innovative Themes
The Global board games market is experiencing a sharp rise in innovative developers with strategic divestment shifting to the gaming industry given its promising potential. As more creative developers come on board they bring innovative themes that appeal to diverse gamers. They focus on delivering player-centered layouts and designs with attractive mechanics. Leading companies in the sector like Games Workshop Group PLC and Boda Games have a reputation for supplying innovative themes with broader traction among gamers. Additionally, Mikol, a respected board games developer, launched the global’s first of its kind luxury poker cards made from precious black marble. Alongside ergonomic features, these cards have lightweight and laser etched.
Increased Call for Collaborative Play
The increasing appetite for collaborative board game sessions is another global board game market trend. In collaborative play, co-op board games allow players to work together as a team aiming to beat the game itself or driven by a common winning desire. As you build on the team spirit, some exciting board games will let you take on the dreaded monsters while saving a fantasy land. Others can set you to explore new horizons of unexplored territories. Examples of games where players can engage in collaborative play include Spirit Island and Mansions of Madness.
Board Games with an Educational Aspect
The educational elements of board games have resulted in their increasing uptake worldwide. For instance, in India, there is a growing evidence-backed perception that board games play a crucial role in developing the critical thinking abilities among grade-schoolers. As such, parents are increasingly purchasing board games to nurture and enhance the learning quotients of their kids. Globally, it is estimated that the relevance of the education board games among modern parents will push the segment’s market share to USD 13 billion by 2026.
Popular Board Games
Puzzles
Puzzle games are popular board games ideal for family and friends. Their gameplay involves fun and strategy, thus letting our innate competitive instincts run wild. They are brain teasers that set players to test their problem-solving skills.
The Isle of Cats is, for instance, an ideal Puzzle game. The game sets you on a mission to save as many cats as possiblChessthe fictional Isle of Cats island. While on the island, you have to manage resources for effective exploration, befriend Oshax, learn the classic island tales, and eventually find treasures. As you do all these duties, the clock is ticking and you must be super fast in rescuing the cats. Actually, you have to act fast before evil Lord Vesh shows up. Other compelling puzzle games that you can try include Doctor Esker’s Notebook, Dimension, and the Sagrada.
TableTop
Tabletop games are board games sub-categories that can be confused with board games. Draughts and Chess are perfect examples of tabletops. Specific examples of table top games that you can enjoy in board game cafes include the 7 Wonders which borrows a leaf from the ancient 7 wonders of the world tales and their strengths. These strengths are, however, adaptive to new mechanics in order to change how you play. For example, one might afford you powers to intensely combat a rival while others might give you the chance to grab cards from a discarded pile. The game has three developmental stages. First, you move from the basic woodworks and trading and proceed to a period of sawmills and markets. Trade guilds and worker groups characterize the last stage.
Card & Dice
Dice gambling has been around for centuries. Dice games were among the earliest forms of fortune-telling, gambling, and the ultimate social diversion. Nowadays, cards and dices are amongst the most popular board games in any online casino.
Snakes and Ladders, a game with Indian roots, is a cool card & dice board game. Over the years, its popularity has risen in Europe, North America, and South America. The game plays out on a board with square grids bearing numbers 1-100. On top of the grid, configurations are ladders and snakes that connect two squares in no predictable sequence. The snakes prop up randomly from the different positioned ladders. The game’s object is to reach the 100th square by getting as many snakes climbing up the ladder. Respective players strive to prevent their competitors from reaching the top level first or getting to the 100th square. To prevent other players from reaching the rewarding level first, special power-ups can confer an advantage to you or help slow down competitors.
Miniature
As the name suggests, these board games use miniature models or figures. Within the miniature sub-category, there are different genres. For instance, the war games in which figures are set to compete with armies. Figures in these scenarios represent individual combatants or troops. Additionally, there are also sub-genres like the naval wargaming miniature.
Examples of Miniature games include. The War of the Ring. In this game, the player takes part in a clash between Free People and Shadow armies in an intense fight to save middle earth. Fellowships find their way to Mount Doom while Sauron gathers his powerful fighter instincts. As the duel takes the center stage you must delicately balance war, politics, and the ringbearer’s security.
There are many other miniature games with equally stimulating storylines. As such, you can try Star Wars: Imperial Assault, Scythe, and Blood Range among others.
RPGs
Since the first Role Playing Game launch in the 1970s, RPGs have immensely evolved. Basically, RPGs feature compelling video gaming content in which the player controls a virtual character while undertaking various quests in an imaginary world.
An ideal example of a table top RPG is Dungeons and Dragons. In this game, gamers get a chance to impersonate their characters by describing their thoughts and actions. The game features a game master as the referee and narrator. The game master operates through automated controls while the game’s incorporated AI assigns actions to various Non-Player Characters (NPCs) and enemies. The game comes complete with a set of rules concerning how characters ought to relate to the environment plus other procedures.
If you would like to test RPGs, plenty are in the market. E.g. the Aventure RPGs (Divine Divinity), MMORPGs like the World of WarCraft, and Strategy RPGs like the Dungeons of Moria.
