How it started
The journey from a generic calendar app to a Steam-like platform for board games. Learn how tableport.gg came to be and why we're building a direct-to-consumer marketplace for game creators.
Every platform starts with a problem. For tableport.gg, that problem was personal: I just wanted an easier way to organize board game nights with my friends.
The Calendar App That Wasn't
This started as a generic calendar app. I was trying to solve three categories of problems in a single app:
- making it easier to meet up with friends
- making it easier to manage my calendar and coordinate busy family life with my wife
- making it easier to manage my work calendar
Once I had built the prototype and started to pitch the idea, I kept hearing the same feedback: what is your core use case, what is the core audience, what is it that you actually MOST want to achieve with the app? Focus on that thing alone. And figure out monetization early.
For me, the most important and "minimal" feature for the calendar app was setting up board game nights with my friends.
Pivoting to Board Games
So I started from scratch and built an app strictly focused on board games, initially just for my friend group. Once I completed the prototype and felt satisfied with the core features, I once again realized I had no plan to actually monetize the thing. All well and good, not everything is about money.
But the idea kept brewing. I started thinking about adding premium "subscription" features: class systems, abilities, items, loot, achievements, and the like.
At some point during this journey, I realized that I was essentially building some version of Steam, but for board games.
Why Doesn't This Exist?
So I figured, why does a Steam for board games not exist? And I believe it mostly has to do with current traditional retail.
Game creators and publishers to this day make most of their money from traditional retail. After traditional retail takes their 60% cut of the revenue and the game creator pays for the costs, they are usually left with a margin anywhere from 15-20%. Credit where credit is due, the whole app is heavily influenced by the writings of Jamey Stegmaier from Stonemaier Games, which I was consuming heavily at the time. A Price Formula for Your Product (Direct and Retail)
The Solution
So that got me thinking: what if I monetized the app by providing publishers an easier way to sell their games directly to customers and users, cutting out the traditional middlemen? Could this be a win-win for both the platform and the game creators? And the answer I believe is overwhelmingly, yes.
And so that's essentially what we're now building.
Join Us
If you're a publisher and would like to work with us or just want to say hello, contact us at hello@tableport.gg
Vertti
vertti@tableport.gg