Consulted on the record-breaking Kickstarter campaign for Boss Monster, the first deck-building card game for new tabletop game publisher, Brotherwise Games. Inspired by a love of classic video games, Boss Monster pits 2-4 players in a competition to build the ultimate side-scrolling dungeon. Players compete to lure and destroy hapless adventurers, racing to outbid one another to see who can build the most enticing, treasure-filled dungeon.

Knowing that their game could resonate with the geek community, Brotherwise Games teamed up with us to design and promote their Kickstater campaign. First, we tackled their brand identity and market positioning, identifying the right touch points and solidifying their voice as a brand and a publisher. We then addressed their Kickstarter campaign, crafting their description copy and designing their reward tiers and fulfillment strategy. Once the campaign was launched, we drafted and dropped a press release promoting the new game and its Kickstarter campaign, directly soliciting over 100 news outlets, bloggers, and influencers. We also coordinated their West Coast grassroots program, coordinating in-person game demos throughout California, Washington, and Oregon during the 30-day campaign.

By the end of their 30-day Kickstarter campaign, Boss Monster and Brotherwise were a pop cultural phenomenon. The commercial high concept, innovative game mechanics, and inspired artwork struck a nostalgic chord with geek media and gamers alike, achieving wide-scale acclaim from Nerdist to Geekdad. Even Wil Wheaton twitted about it. Buzz skyrocketed as Brotherwise reached their initial funding goal in one day, ultimately raising $215,056 from 4,689 backers as the #1 highest-grossing Kickstarter campaign for a card game at the time.

Best of all, the brand awareness, credibility, and fan community garnered from Kickstarter continued to feed Boss Monster‘s success for years to come. The game became an overnight retail success, earning $450,000 in sales during its first six months alone. With such a supportive Kickstarter community, Brotherwise returned twice more to fund Boss Monster 2 and a digital version for PCs and smartphones, raising $500K more across those two successful campaigns. Now one of the most popular card games in the industry, Boss Monster conquered Kickstarter and set a bold precedent for indie gamemakers.