I was recently asked about a rumor that the digital version of Ticket to Ride has outsold the tabletop version by 2x or 3x. If so, kudos to Days of Wonder and Asmodee, as that’s a lot of games. The Ticket to Ride box advertises copies sold in the millions, so that would put digital sales in the tens of millions (if the rumor is true).
It made me curious how our digital sales compare to tabletop sales. We license several of our games to digital developers, and I reached out to them to get the latest numbers.
Before I share those numbers, I want to be perfectly clear in saying that our goal in enabling the creation of digital versions of our games isn’t revenue. Rather, it’s the following:
- Digital ports can help people learn the game more easily than reading a rulebook.
- Digital ports allow people to play a game a lot more often than the tabletop version because it’s faster and easier to set up.
- Digital ports help people play with friends and strangers around the world.
- Digital ports invite people to a world they may not otherwise experience if they don’t play tabletop games.
- Digital ports allow for easier data collection and analysis.
I’ll return to those motivations in a moment, but I just wanted to clarify those goals up front. Here are units sold to date for our primary full-AI digital games (along with units in print of the tabletop versions of these games):
Viticulture (Digidiced)
- Steam: 9,876
- iOS: 11,476
- Android: 7,092
- TOTAL: 28,444
- Total tabletop: 234,826
Charterstone (Acram Digital)
- Steam: 17,351
- iOS: 10,676
- Android: 6,281
- Nintendo Switch: 3,405
- TOTAL digital: 37,713
- Total tabletop: 97,500
Scythe (The Knights of Unity)
- Steam: 460,000
- mobile: 75,000 (they estimate 55% iOS and 45% Android)
- TOTAL: 535,000
- Total tabletop: 544,102
Wingspan (Monster Couch)
- Steam/consoles: 562,000
- iOS: 77,000
- Android: 37,100
- TOTAL: 674,000
- Total tabletop: 1,688,037
So we have one game where digital sales are 10% of tabletop sales, one where it’s around 36%, one where it’s almost exactly 100%, and another where it’s around 40%. Definitely no games where digital games are outselling (or significantly outselling) tabletop games.
That said, I’m not factoring in BoardGameArena, where both Viticulture (190,286 plays) and Wingspan (539,325 plays) are available (and more of our games will be available in the future), nor Tabletopia, where you can find all of our games.
***
As a gamer, I now host two regular game nights on alternating weeks: one in person and one virtual. The virtual game night started during the pandemic, and I kept it going because I get to play with friends around the US who can’t attend my St. Louis game night.
This virtual game night has made me better appreciate digital games, yet it’s also made me realize that the availability of digital versions of games has rarely–if ever–inspired a tabletop purchase for me. Our 2022 demographic survey indicates that I’m not alone in this–only around 5% of people said that they’ve bought “many” tabletop games as a result of playing the digital version.
That’s totally fine–as I mentioned above, there are many reasons for a tabletop game to be published digitally. But I’m no longer convinced that one of those reasons is to help sell tabletop games. For that reason, I’m more inclined to support older games through digital partnerships (rather than new games that we have in stock and want to reprint), and I’m more inclined to focus on the core games for digital versions, leaving expansions for the tabletop experience (given the goals stated earlier).
What do you think? Do you play digital board games and tabletop games for different reasons? How is your buying behavior influenced by the existence or usage of digital ports?
Also, unrelated to this post but still timely, I was on the Crowdfunding Nerds podcast recently to discuss growing and fostering tabletop communities. The episode is here.
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57 Comments on “Do Digital Board Games Outsell Their Tabletop Counterparts?”
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With the recent news that Scythe Digital is not going to get expansions beyond Invaders from Afar anytime soon, I think it’s worth noting that I purchased the digital editions of Scythe (on both iOS and steam) to play more frequently and against better players than my local group, as it was hard find Scythe players as good in person as online. I also expected to play with expansions, in particular Airships, Rise of Fenris, and the modular map, because again, despite owning hundreds of dollars of Scythe it is rare to find people who will play it. I like the automa fine but having an online option is something I was anticipating. With my discovery of BGA in the last couple years, I was excited to play any Stonemaier game I could online. But not including expansions artificially limits the experience that I can have with better players. Yes, that comes with a trade off of potential sales, but the other risk is that players don’t play the games they have and sell them because they lose interest. I just had someone at my game group comment that playing Maracaibo in alpha on BGA made them want to play the physical version at game night again.
I hope you reconsider your position on BGA expansions as I would very much enjoy playing Tuscany, Arts and Architecture, and Rise of Fenris again against players who have the same familiarity with these games.
Just for context, Scythe itself isn’t on BGA (yet), and while the Scythe Digital folks are certainly taking their sweet time implementing expansions, that is something they’re working towards doing.
The update yesterday seems more dire than that.
“Two different teams of veterans took on the project and admitted that the entire game had to be rewritten. This is a years-long task that needs to start from scratch – it exceeded our financial capabilities.”
“We were looking for publishers willing to invest in Scythe: Digital Edition, but unfortunately, there were no willing ones. As a result, all our previous efforts were wasted. The airships have been created, but they will not take off because the current version of the game cannot support them. Scythe: Digital Edition will not receive any major changes or announced DLCs in the near future.”
“Development of DLCs is impossible to take, and as we said above, we have to halt it.”
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/718560?emclan=103582791461163558&emgid=3902996144653636072
That’s correct, notably “in the near future”. There’s some information we can’t disclose yet that makes that phrase particularly relevant.
Thanks for the context you were able to provide.
I know it would be difficult to provide a candid response, but perhaps you could provide your assumptions as to why some games have sold better digitally (% digital sales vs. tabletop)?
Do you feel that maybe people are more inclined to buy a digital version of a more complex game? Perhaps, those digitally translated board games that resemble a traditional video game appeal more to those who purchase digital games? Do you identify any “issues” of some digital versions that can contribute to lower sales- not for any technical reasons, but perhaps the experience itself is different when in a digital format? Or, perhaps, the digital version of one game just doesn’t have quite as much exposure as others?
I think part of it’s the quality of the games and of the marketing support they receive from the publisher. Part of it is also the success of the analog version of the game.
That’s an interesting query about the complexity level. Maybe? Though there are many successful digital games that work well because they’re short and not complex.
Thanks Jamey. To answer your closing questions, 1. Yes. I play digital games so I can keep playing w/ my friends from previous posts…our core BGA group is Kazakhstan-Mali-DC right now so the sun never sets on our games :-) 2. I would say yes, once I’m able to find people to play tabletop again I would say my BGA plays will influence me in purchasing some additional really solid smaller games that I didn’t have: Barenpark and Nidavellir. I’ve grown to love some older classics like Castles of B., Russian Railroads, and Viticulture on BGA but am content to enjoy them there.
I’m currently doing an MIT “MicroMasters” in Statistics and Data Science/Machine Learning and I follow the daily barrage of AI advances. I have no problem believing that soon people will be able to speak into their remote and have a book, TV show, or movie generated for them on the fly. And the obvious question becomes “Aren’t boardgames also a type of content that will soon be generated for users as well?” I think the answer is yes. Maybe not instantaneous at first…there will need to be a generation phase, then a debugging/play-testing phase. But the advances that are happening are exponential and it’s simply just a matter of time.
I’m wondering how you feel as a designer about this and also as a businessperson. I’ll check your other blog posts to see if you’ve talked about this yet. Take care,
Rob
Thanks for your comment, Rob! I haven’t talked much about AI on the blog. I agree that there is most likely a future in which AI can generate content on the fly, but will people care? Or will they continue to gravitate towards human creations? I lean towards the latter.
Hi Jamey, it’s such a fascinating question. I told my aunt, who is a sculpter, the other day that I (like you) think that all this AI-generated art, music, content, etc. will lead to a world where we ultimately value verified human creations all the more. I treasure the local crafts and art I get in each country where I’m posted more for their imperfections and reflection of the local culture than anything else.
For the sake of talking about boardgames, I want to backtrack and set aside digital games and think about tabletop games, though. And to put the bottom line up front, I think it’s likely that people will care about AI-created tabletop games and here’s why. I think that, given the right data–some of which are already available in the form of BGG rankings, some of which would consist of people self-reporting what they love about their favorite games–a GPT-4-style AI would be able to identify the ‘magic’ that the truly great games possess. What is the special sauce in a Brass Birmingham, Ark Nova, Spirit Island, or Scythe? And then, if it took a certain 5-person gaming group and got their BGG ratings and asked them a few key questions, could easily come up with a set of parameters to maximize the delight of that group. Given almost limitless compute that’s going to be available, it would run through hypothesized game designs–doing millions of play tests, validating that the game was balanced while keeping the secret sauce all the way through to the end product–and then present us with the most successful of its creations. It would deliver instructions for 3D printing the pieces, game board, and rulebook to you to do at home or your local Kinkos. And with all the deep fake stuff going on right now I don’t even want to go into how easy it would be to generate a video where Rodney tells me how to play the new game :-D
Does it matter if it was human-created? It all depends on how big is that niche-within-a-niche segment of gamers who know all the designers and artists and connect with their individual styles enough to where it affects their enjoyment of a game. For me, I want a physical boardgame that looks nice on the table, brings me together with friends, and delights me with its challenging choices. I think I would still like it if it was the product of a digital natural selection process vs. the physical one we have now where thousands of designers expend their blood, sweat, and tears, only to have 1% rise to the top each year and even fewer to have year-on-year staying power. And I think the technical challenges to achieving the digital version of the process have been solved, with the human interview data-collection process being the last remaining hurdle.
Thanks for considering these ramblings. It would be interesting to find out who agrees and disagrees.
I don’t play digital versions of tabletop games ever. I play chess once in a blue moon on mobile, and I played Onitama a couple of times (since I had a free download). I had considered buying a digital version of Scythe to help learn the game, but I haven’t yet.
I typically don’t play mobile games. If I’m out and about, I’m usual already busy running errands or whatnot. And, if I’m waiting around somewhere while I’m out, I’ll likely be reading something.
The digital games I play are strictly video games- those designed from the ground up to be a PC or console game (not a digital adaptation of a board game).
I’m okay with app-assisted board games for the most part if they feel like the core of the game is played using practical/physical/analog components.
I do also want to add, that I’m the type of consumer that prefers to own physical versions of games over digital copies. I still like to buy movies and games on disc. There’s something about just opening a media cabinet and seeing your collection there instead of worrying about what digital platform houses your ownership of a game or movie.
[…] they help drive the hobby forward or so Stonemaier Games’ data would suggest. You may find a more detailed breakdown of these numbers at Stonemaier Games’ offcial […]
Honestly, I’ve purchased the digital AFTER buying the tabletop games. My Hubby isn’t able to sit for more than 15 minutes anymore, but loves board games. So, I buy our favourites for my iPad Pro (nice big screen). We do pass-n-play. He can walk around while making his moves and hand me the tablet when he is done.
A digital game is a great way for me to enjoy a game that friends own live (so I can’t really justify buying my own copy). UI and AI are everything for digital games, and I also want them to support everything the live ones do – willing to pay a lot and/or buy games I already own physically when those are good. Often due to lag time there’s an annoying decision – do I buy the digital hoping for an expansion? If nobody does, it won’t happen, but if it doesn’t happen, I don’t want the base game! Viticulture is a good example – glad Tuscany is out so I will get that digitally shortly.
I personally bought a couple of games after trying the digital version (last one was Spirit Island).
The problem I often run into, when playing the same game physically and digtally: I have more experience that my game group, thus lessening the physical appeal. I tend to only play the digital version to freshen up some rules then.
I have played Scythe a lot as a digital game on because i wanted to learn the game and then i enjoyed it and kept playing :)
On flipside there were a few games i own but wanted to learn so i bought the digital versions, however their implementation felt clunky. So it depends how well made the digital counterpart is.
Some games like Star realms for example are better played digital & a joy to play on a repeat mode.
I don’t usually play digital board games – I’m lucky enough to be able to meet in person with my regular partners and love the feeling of handling board games (which includes pre-setup stuff like sleeving cards, upgrading components, tweaking storage options, creating appropriate soundscapes, etc). I’m also a huge video game fan, so I’ll usual go for regular video games if I’m playing on console on my own. For these reasons I’d still prioritise trying out a board game in its physical form (or take a chance after watching playthroughs) over a digital port.
I did buy Wingspan’s digital edition to try it out and to have a backup plan. Gotta say it’s amazing, and while not as immersive as the original it adds a lot to the experience (love the bird calls especially), and the convenience factor is priceless; having everything automated also made me notice I’d been playing some bird cards wrong and I’d overseen a few details in the rules. Ultimately, right now my dealbreakers are not having access to every expansion and being unable to apply house rules, but it’s still a very enjoyable experience in its own right.
I own many tabletop games and have bought a few digital versions of them, mainly to play when I don’t have someone else to play with. But I haven’t bought a digital copy of a game I don’t own. They’re okay but lack the in-person social interaction that I appreciate in tabletop games.
The big difference is boardgamearean.com. I discovered it early into the pandemic and quickly became a premium member. Besides playing games I love, I tried out many new games there, and I ended up buying the tabletop versions of at least a half dozen of them because I was able to try them out first on BGA.
I avoid playing digital versions, and much prefer the tactile experience and the in-person environment, and I avoided digital versions even during our 100s of days of COVID lockdowns here. I feel the play of digital versions detracts from the tabletop play, diminishing the shared evolution of the gaming experience. But this appears to be a very minority opinion, most of my gaming group loves to play digitally.
Another reason to purchase a digital version is so that you can play in non normal gaming situations. My wife and I play Wingspan almost everyday at work during our lunch break. If we don’t finish the game, that’s ok. We’ll just pick up where we left off. We also play when we’re out waiting at a restaurant or the like. We haven’t purchased Scythe yet, but I’m sure we will. Someone told me the other day that a digital version of Tapestry is in the works. I’m sure we’ll get that one too haha.
I play digital only when (a) it’s too hard to find people to try a particular game with me or (b) the game has way too much upkeep that digital helps to automate.
Otherwise, I find that tabletop is far superior to digital for making and growing friendships, which is my main reason for playing. (I’ve got a blog post on this subject today fwiw.) Digital doesn’t promote conversations at the level that tabletop does, at least for me, largely due to the opportunity for serendipitous “hanging out” and conversation during, before and after the game.
BTW, I’m talking about playing, not playtesting. Digital tools are also useful for getting access to a broader range of playtesters than physical prototypes can achieve.
I avoid playing digital versions, and much prefer the tactile experience and the in-person environment, and I avoided digital versions even during our 100s of days of COVID lockdowns here. I feel the play of digital versions detracts from the tabletop play, diminishing the shared evolution of the gaming experience. But this appears to be a very minority opinion, most of my gaming group loves to play digitally.
Interesting! Thank you for being transparent! FWIW, for Wingspan and Scythe, your PC digital board game stats include a large number of copies distributed by Humble (in Humble bundles and Humble Choice) which are redeemed on Steam but aren’t all necessarily played (and are also bundled at approx $1 per title or less) – so I’m not sure I would call that a 1:1 comparison. But it’s still very helpful to see it – so thank you.
That’s true. Like I said, it isn’t about revenue (at least not for us)–it’s the companies that license these games that need to make decisions that determine the financial sustainability of the digital games.
I play Tapestry exclusively digital and I really enjoy it. I do think one day I would like to purchase a physical copy but right now is not the right time. Two little ones in our life really limits table time but that time will come back. I play Wingspan a lot on BGA as well and it’s only grown my enjoyment of it! It’s my favorite game to play on that platform. I will buy Asia in the future as well.
Do you feel pretty firm on expansions not being available on BGA or would you consider that in the future as a possibility? Maybe there are some data points you haven’t seen or collected yet that would help make a decision like that.
I would personally still buy the physical copies :)
I have bought a handful of games as a result of playing on BGA. It would actually be more if some weren’t out of print.
We have really got into board games over the last 4 years or so and never considered wanting to play the digital versions of the games. I think we really enjoyed the experience of having the game out, the feel of the pieces, not being on a screen and just taking time to enjoy a totally different experience.
Then, very recently, my wife was scheduled for an operation with a long recovery and we wondered, firstly, how to enjoy that experience whilst she is recovering in hospital. Secondly, how to enjoy playing our games whilst she is in recovery at home. The answer for us was to sign up to BGA. We have found it a really good experience as a substitute in this scenario. Being able to play a game with my wife whilst I was at home before being able to visit has been a great way to help with her recovery.
Suffice it to say that BGA Wingspan is one of our more popular games but it has also meant that we could try out other games that we don’t have physical copies of. Trying Parks for the first time has meant it is on our list to (physically) purchase and I recently tried the walk through for Tapestry so this is another one to play digitally too.
Having so many great games on BGA is brilliant and been a pleasure to experience over the last few difficult months.
I play digital board games for 2 reasons: 1, to connect with friends who live a long way off and 2, so that I can try out a lot of games I wouldn’t normally get an opportunity to try.
I’ve had a bi-weekly games night on BGA for a couple of years now and in all that time, I’ve bought 2 physical games on the basis of a first try online (The Crew and Parks).
There are a few other’s which I’d also like to get having tried online, but I also have a few physical games which I suspect I wouldn’t have bought if I’d tried them first… so, it probably evens out. Also, for some games it’s very hard to assess the impact of the digital version, e.g. I’ve played Sushi Go a fair bit in person, but never owned it. Over the last couple of years I’ve also played it a fair bit online. Recently I got my own copy. Was that purchase influenced by my increased familiarity through online play? Maybe, but hard to be sure, I already knew I liked it before playing online.
On 3 occasions I’ve bought a game for someone else as a present, then not been able to play with them in person, but played (or even taught) the game with them online. I think it’s reasonable to say that I specifically chose those games as gifts in part because I knew that there were digital versions available for me to do that with.
Very interesting post.
I agree that from what I have seen digital versions rarely make me or other interested in buying the physical copy (in fact they can make me want to get rid of the physical copy, as in the case of Through the Ages).
But I do think the opposite is true. A good physical game will make me want the digital version for two reasons: 1) I can play quickly and solo, and 2) for some bigger games the only way to get my wife to play them is for her to learn them a bit digitally. I bought digital versions of both Wingspan and Scythe for these very reasons.
As always thanks for the great content.
Digital board games are often able to be on sale for quite different margins than board games are too.
I have quite a few friends who bought Scythe during large steam sales.
I agree with most points, including that the board game sells the digital version, more than the other way around. However I would say BECAUSE of this, and because of point 2 and 3, “Digital ports allow people to play a game a lot more often” (because both quicker to setup, and easier to get friends together online than in person, and also because there might be one person in the group who wants to play the game a lot more than their friends), That expansions should be developed into the digital versions (at least for the popular games).
When only relying on in person game nights, it can be difficult to get expansions to the table, especially if you can’t get the same group of people together every week. Playing online allows for many more games to be played (for those who are the most keen), and therfore players can become ‘ready’ (desire) for expansions much quicker than in person.
I agree that the digital expansion may not help sell the physical expansion much.
I think I’m in the 5%. I’ve purchased somewhere between 16-20 games I’ve played on BGA over the last 2 years that I did not own previously, some directly from suppliers in Europe because they are only available that way. And I would likely purchase more except for them being out of print currently and out of my price range on the collector’s market. I know that may not be a lot but it is exposure for games I knew nothing about that are now games I play regularly with my family on our table.
Same
Sample size one, but I do consider the broad support of a digital version of a tabletop game in whether I buy it – if I see no support for expansions, etc (particularly key ones, where they exist), I’m less likely to support the digital version. For me, digital versions are also frequently about solo play, for when I don’t have a group to play with.
Thanks for sharing those figures. It’s a fascinating look behind the curtain for a major successful publisher which you don’t get to see very often.
I personally prefer physical board games and the in person experience. I not only love the social aspect of playing with people in person but I love to have the tactile experience of the physical components and to appreciate the craft and art that went into the creation of the game which can be lost in the digital experience.
However to your point, I do have a remote board game group and that is the one situation where digital does have an advantage but…..what I have found for me is that unfortunatley alot of the games we end up going to are on TTS because often times I can’t convince my other players to make the financial investment in the full priced digital version of a BG. Which is unfortunate because some of the full digital app conversions are brilliant. It took forever for my group to embrace paying for Gloomhaven (as one example) for instance over doing TTS but it was well worth it because when a digital version is done right then it can be the best way to experience a game remotely whereas other BG conversions it either doesn’t make a difference or they lose something of the experience (if you have the physical version to compare it to).
Overall though the most important thing to me is to just get to play the games you love and if there are equally compelling mediums to play them then that’s what is most important to me if I can’t get my preference of an in person game.
I find this really interesting, but I feel that you’re not quite comparing apples to apples. For Viticulture, I imagine the digital game came out years after the Tabletop version. So I think it’s better to compare how many tabletop games sold in the same time frame since the digital game launched, or within the past x years. It would probably mean digital Scythe sales have outpaced tabletop since the app launched.
Similarly it wouldn’t totally surprise me if over the last 3 years there have been more digital versions of Ticket to Ride sold then tabletop versions. But lifetime would be more surprising.
Love your transparency, as usual. Many of the games I play online are games I already have in my collection. I agree that conversion from digital to tabletop is hard to measure and predict, but remember that we also pay for the digital copies (on Steam and the app store at least plus I assume publishers get some profit share from BGA). I would think that the profit margin on digital is a lot higher and the total profit dollars might actually rival a tabletop release. For core games, would love to see more expansions available.
I asked publishers that question during the pandemic and they didn’t know how to answer. In fact, to my surprise, they didn’t care much for it. I suggested we explore that data, whether it be to maximize profits or for curiosity’s sake; to make well-informed business decisions and better sales projections. The publisher I was working with at the time thought they could improve hard copy sales by making full games free on Tabletopia and I said: “Based on recent trends, this strategy may not be working as intended. There is no correlation but, I would recommend we create full digital adaptations alongside our free versions to be made available via Apple and Google, even Steam as there is a demand for it.”
Where did I get my data? The same way: I asked people at digital cons and came to a similar conclusion, less than 2% had decided to purchase the game. After so many digital cons, I was able to predict sales out of the con based solely on attendee behavior.
Those who stopped by quickly to see how it was and left without a full playthrough were trying to determine if the game was for them before making a purchase. We got along pretty well for me to ask them and they were frank enough to tell me: “yes, I just bought it on your website” or “No this is not for me”.
Those who stayed for the entire gameplay and were focused on winning, they just wanted to play and, with the same approach, they’d be honest: “Na, we aren’t looking to buy, we just want to play.”
I concluded whatever was causing the uptick in sales was not people attending the digital con, I hypothesized it was either Facebook ads or the Newsletter that had been sent during the same time. We’ll never know.
But here’s another thing I discovered: there was a percentage that already OWNED the hard copy and stopped by to learn how to play it; this is particularly true for Kinesthetic learners (like myself). These folk even told me they often bought digital versions to learn how to play it, and it was good that now our games were free so they didn’t have to buy to learn. Now, we had an accessibility consideration to incorporate into our planning. Is making games free an accessibility issue? In fact, I even had attendees who were blind attend these cons because they couldn’t learn how to play otherwise.
A similar behavior is seen at physical conventions but, the difference is the game is there to purchase and people are more likely to complete a purchase if they can touch the product (old-school selling tactics); plus people going to cons already have a purchasing mindset: the HAUL. On the other hand, online sales are different. Unless you facilitate the checkout or provide an incentive to shop during the con, it may be a lost sale. Issues like poor coordination, no incentives, buggy websites, excluded regions, expensive shipping, can make someone abandon their cart.
But, what do I know? An education in tax accounting and law, with over 10 years of experience in data, sales, logistics, project management, and client relations? My voice and efforts barely ever matter…so we’ll never know. Maybe someday, someone will notice what I am capable of and value me. Perhaps I’ve been a fool willing to work in this industry for half of what I am professionally worth…Why? Because it makes me happy? I need to reconsider my life again. 😅
It always cheers me up when you post stuff. It’s like I think it and it comes out through your blog a later. It makes me feel less…intellectually alone in this world. Thank you.
I appreciate you sharing these, Anja! Your voice and efforts definitely matter!
Very sad to hear about the focus on core games on digital versions. My disability mostly leaves me housebound and restricted to digital sessions in most cases. I’ve been hoping to explore the Tapestry expansions at some point in the future, oh well.
Playing the basic digital versions on the iPad helped me learn Summoner Wars (1st Edition), Pandemic and Scythe.
I then bought the physical tabletop versions plus all the expansions and many upgrades for each of these games.
So, for me, I can confirm your first aim – digital versions can help teach a game easier than a rulebook – as well as another advantage you didn‘t mention: digital versions can confirm that a game I was interested in, is also a great gaming experience.
I play a ton of games on BGA and have purchased several digital games for either iOS or Steam. I rarely play anything on those that I don’t own the physical copy. I love having digital copies of these games so that I can play quickly and with people remotely. My frustration is the lack of expansions, especially on BGA. I would pay an additional premium or find some way to register my physical copy in order to have expansions access. With Stonemaier games specifically, I’m looking at Tapestry and Wingspan as just more enjoyment. For Viticulture, I don’t like playing without the expansions. I wish there was a way for your company to better benefit from putting out the expansions. But I’m just being greedy.
Almost all of the digital implementations of board games I have purchased are games I already had. Usually, I buy a digital game so I can easily play solo, play it on the road, or play an asynchronous game with others. I have thought of buying games to try in a digital format first, but I have yet to actually do that. I also have a variety of digital games that don’t have a printed tabletop counterpart. With the exception of Wingspan, I play digital games on my own and tabletop board games with others.
Jamey, a bit offtopic question. Are the numbers of sold tabletop versions only for english games or does it include all languages? Almost 2M for Wingspan is impressive.
Obviously a very personal and subjective experience but my online play of Wingspan (on BGA) led to my physical purchase of the game.
I was obviously well aware of the game being in the hobby but had never played. The online version made it easy to learn and enjoy the mechanics
For me, I usually buy the digital game after playing the tabletop version. There are exceptions to this though. Each medium also has its pro’s/con’s.
I was recently gifted Gloomhaven digital. I had always wanted to try it out. My cousin and myself started playing through the campaign. As another commenter stated, it’s takes the hassle out of the game in general and the visuals are excellent
I played Wingspan at a friends and noticed that I also got it previously on digital thanks to humblebundle. I enjoyed playing it but it was a little troublesome due to not having the full visual of the board and I couldn’t find a way to have that.
Overall, there are numerous games that I own in both mediums because they were just that good and being able to even have a slight chance of playing them eitherway is just too good to pass up.
I rarely play digital board games. My day job is as a software engineer, and for most of us our lives are now surrounded by screens and digital devices. I actively try to get away from that.
Part of the reason I love board games so much is the tactility, the in-person socialization, and time with my friends and family without devices. The only time I play digital games is when a friend who lives far away wants to play. I do like that I get to play with them, but it doesn’t feel the same. I find the UIs cumbersome and clunky and take away from the experience of the game. (In fact, I would much rather play a video game than a digital board game.)
So much of the way a game feels, to me, is impacted by the people around me – how they react, their expressions, the laughter and chatter – and the actual feel of the game itself.
For buying, I find that I have a much better track record finding games my family will like based on recommendations from others when they say how a game makes them *feel*, rather than playing it digitally myself.
And for rules…I love rulebooks and it’s the best way I learn. I want to know all the details and be able to internalize all the intricacies of how the game is setup and works (maybe my software engineering background likes codifying the logic). I don’t learn as thoroughly by playing digitally. Reading books digitally has been shown to affect our reading comprehension and memory differently than reading a physical book, and I’d be curious if that also holds true of learning something complex like board game rules.
Reading through other comments, it looks like I’m in the minority here in not playing or liking digital as much. I can see some differences in that I don’t mind the time and effort of setting up a game, calculating things, or having to figure out the possible options I have on my turn. I don’t find tedium in that, sometimes it’s cathartic, and most of the time I’d rather do it myself. Those sorts of efficiencies aren’t even in my purview, and pale in comparison to the tradeoff I get with physical games – the social interaction, family bonding time, and the like.
This is going to be a weird analogy, but I also wonder if it’s a bit like how sending someone an email apology feels different than telling them to their face. Telling someone to their face is hard because it’s vulnerable, and it also takes more time and effort. We value that more because of those things. Sending an email or text, although nice and sometimes the only way to do it, just isn’t the same. I think I find the same with the time and effort of a physical board game. There’s an intrinsic value that comes from that which is lost when everything is done for you. (See Simon Sinek and his talks on leadership.)
I was also thinking more about the clunkiness of digital ports and I believe that happens when digital ports try to replicate physical objects and physicality. That skeuomorphism exacerbates the problems for me because I know how that should feel and it never feels the same. Almost like an uncanny valley for board games.
I didn’t realize I was in such a minority in this regard, but a board game having a digital version makes me MUCH more likely to purchase the physical version, especially if I like it. I would have completely missed Carnegie, Earth, and None Shall Pass without their BGA implementations. When a publisher is willing to put their game on BGA, or other digital means, it means they value accessibility, and that makes them a company I want to support with my money and time.
I’m probably in the 5%, but I’ve often used BGA and Tabletopia to determine whether I want to buy a game, which has led to the purchase of quite a few games: Architects of the West Kingdom, Tapestry, Villagers, and Champions of Midgard come to mind in particular. My biggest thing is that I don’t buy a game if I’m not really sure I’m going to love it, so even after I’m convinced I usually sit on the purchase for a long time and/or ask for the game for Christmas or my birthday.
Conversely, I usually buy a digital port of a game that I already own that I want to be able to play on my tablet or computer–that’s why I bought Scythe on both Steam and Android. It’s really a supplement to my physical gaming.
I used to play digital games due to lack of local friends to play with. But over time developed a group of friends who would play tabletop games – and I left digital play entirely! Our group meets once a week, whereas I could play digitally daily. However, digital play, for meat least, leaves me bereft of the social interaction I find in tabletop gaming. As for decision-making regarding purchases, I look at 1) the Title of the game; 2) the theme; and 3) the publishing company. If these three are compelling enough, I will then check out 1) the BGG rating; 2) video reviews and play throughs on BGG. Often, I will become a subscriber to a game and ‘follow’ conversations until I ultimately decide if a game is for my family, my group, and my own personal tastes. All of this to say – didital gaming does not figure into my purchase decisions
As an enjoyer of both board and digital games, I tend to look for digital versions of games that have tedious setup or admin that I know could be easily automated by the computer. You can pay then much faster with much less annoyance.
My prime ongoing example is Gloomhaven. I play an online session with friends. I have never had to set up or tear down, never had to run an enemy AI, never had to remember a status effect or buff or calculate damage. Really, never had to look up a rule once learned. The contextual help is useful enough.
But there are other examples. I enjoy Carcassonne more because the possible plays are highlighted. It lets me pass through to the interesting part of the game (who shall I collaborate with? what is the next big opportunity?). Dominion online has a great randomizer and removes a lot of tedium.
Conversely, I tend to shy away from digital games that try to closely replicate a tabletop experience (for example, with simulated dice throws). I’m grateful that they exist for online play, but I tend to fill my digital game time with digital natives that don’t transplant in-person mechanics.
Fascinating metrics!
I’m surprised you didn’t comment more specifically on the use of BGA to playtest proposed Tapestry civ adjustments and rapidly collect data on them for Tapestry. This seems like it’s been hugely beneficial!
It’s been fine–I mention data collection in the post. It’s easy for the dev to implement little changes to the civs, but not the bigger changes impacting many of the civs.
Sometimes, digital play makes me less likely to purchase a physical game. I get so much more skilled at the game than any of my face-to-face opponents would be, I think it would lead to bad experiences.
One “job” a game should do for it’s customer is to make it easy to find opponents who will enjoy the experience with you.