Welcome back to my series about the board games tips you need to get started! This time, I’ll focus on where exactly you can find tabletop games, to save money and support more creatives.

Naturally, local board game stores are a fine place to shop. It helps out small businesses, and gives you the chance to join an existing community of players. This can also make it easy to learn and try games in person, and you might even find discounts. So local stores are a great choice, assuming the owners are friendly, but most of this is pretty self-evident.

For convenience’s sake, you probably thought of online markets like the omnipresent Amazon, or Walmart. You can find existing games here, even discounted or from third party sellers. But it’s unclear where to begin, and choices are limited.

So, what do I personally recommend? Crowdsourcing sites. Let’s set financial expectations first.

Pricing

Don’t panic—but board games can get a little pricey, more so than the mass market options you’re probably thinking of. Hobby tabletop games tend to include high-quality “components,” driving up the price.

For example, this may include miniatures, which gamers often enjoy painting. It offers an artistic, tangible way to interact with the game, adding immersion and theming.

Hobby games tend to start around $50 to $60, and larger games (with miniatures, etc.) can range from about $120 to $200. So, it’s important to shop effectively!

Gamefound & Kickstarter

What exactly are these crowdsourcing platforms? Well, you’ve likely heard of Kickstarter. Creatives host a campaign, where fans can pledge money to help the project come to life. Then, when the project is ready, the creatives ship out your game.

Gamefound works like Kickstarter—but it’s built for board games, specifically. This makes it easier to browse, and break things down into the categories that fit what you want to play!

These platforms give you the chance to discover what games are going to come out in the future. While you do have to wait a while for the game to actually ship, often a very long while, you do get to save a lot of money.

Pledging on a Gamefound or Kickstarter campaign usually gives you a discount on the upcoming retail price. It can also give you exclusive, even free content! This is an invaluable way to make the most out of your purchase, even if you do pay shipping.

These campaigns are also a handy place to pick up previous games in a series, new add-ons, and more. Sometimes, older products can be tough to find elsewhere. In fact, you may even get to interact with the designers, voting for ideas and offering feedback in forums.

The Indie Scene

Notably, smaller creatives tend to use Gamefound and Kickstarter as a place to fund their ideas. You can support designers that don’t rely on massive publishers, opening the door to more niche games!

Although bigger companies do still crowdsource, your market is much broader. It’s easier to find small games here, and in fact—some games are only available on these platforms! Such titles never even hit retail shelves.

Investing

Not sure if you want to invest? Most campaigns on GF or KS offer trailers, gameplay breakdowns, and rulebooks to preview. There also tend to be different pledge tiers!

Tiers allow you to spend less if you just want a basic game, or more if you prefer lots of extra content and components. For example, you could pay $125 for a game with miniatures included, or half that for the exact same game, only without the miniatures.

On Gamefound, you may even get to use Stretch Pay. This allows you to pay for the game in small installments, over time!

Board Game Arena

Still hesitant altogether? You can try Board Game Arena first, an online platform that lets you try tabletop games in your browser. Tabletop gaming often benefits from the tactile, sociable feel of playing in-person. But BGA is a broad, quick way to find what interests you.

Support LBR and artists by reading more of our Tabletop and Video Game posts!