The back or bottom of your game box should feature key elements of your game but more importantly it should include a hook that will entice potential customers to buy.
In my case I've included in the Millennium game 4 custom artworks featuring 3 female action heroes from the Playing Cards. Since most gamers are male, you can't go wrong including several "hotties" if for no other reason than just to confirm that guys are pigs.
That's the lead image and lead offer, or the hook that pervs like me, you know, males prefer. It's simply an offer we cannot refuse. Imagine grown men going gaga over manga style artwork. Ridiculous but true.
Okay, enough of that. You get the idea. After all it's not like any women are reading this blog post. But it did cross my mind to include a black female hero for a change. And in fact they all are an important part of the game's ending. Especially Andrea, the half Cyborg, platinum-haired heartthrob.
All these chicks kick ass and look good doing it. What would an Apocalypse be without them?
Okay, back to the box. Here's the back of
Ticket To Ride, which happens to be a popular game with global reach. It's a good strategic game and I see the romanticism in it and the nostalgia it evokes. This is the Europe version of the game.
As you can see the back of this box is also very busy with graphics and text. There's just no getting around that. There's so much to say and so little room to fit all of it. Here they've maximize every square millimeter of space.
The back doesn't have to look as pretty as the front of the box but it must pack all the important details about the game or at least a general overview of the story plus plenty of graphics.
The
Ticket To Ride box displays the game board and most of its bits and cards. This is something I'm still considering for my box. It's almost a no brainer to include the board but I don't think it's as sexy as female super heroes.
If Millennium gets any traction I'll make room for the board because it is an interesting board. But for now I'm counting on the custom artwork to attract some attention and hopefully work as a flashpoint for sales.
You never know but changes can easily be made with on-demand digital production so it's not a big deal to replace or reconfigure the artwork, which essentially translates into a soft sales pitch.
Always focus on your story and the hero's goal. It's all about that every time. Otherwise you're just playing with little trinkets like clueless children.
That's one reason I like the Apocalypse theme because even children can relate to it without freaking out over it. Let's face it, these days kids grow up hearing and experiencing some of the scariest news we 've ever heard or seen. So for them a game like Millennium is not such a stretch or something out of touch with reality. In fact it's more of a learning experience than anything else.
I know my two boys (11 and 13) get it. They might know more about the
End of Days than I do. Which is why they are very important consultants for the game and why Millennium is such an engaging and fun game.
And yes, I've tinkered with the box cover once again. No worries, it only gets better. I'll post the new box cover in a few days. I've been really busy finishing up the board and some playing cards and a bunch of tokens too.
I don't think this work ever ends but I am on schedule to order the prototype in July and improve it from there until November when I go all out with marketing just in time for Christmas.
I also decided to forego Kickstarter. It's just not for me or this project. I'm pretty much developing and funding this project on a shoestring budget with mostly free artwork and while I would like to take Millennium to another level, that will take more time.
Right now I'm just testing the waters by myself to see if the game gets any traction through blogs and limited advertising on social media. If it does, I'll certainly consider tooling up with more customized artwork and game pieces.
As it stands right now, I think that for the retail price of about $39, Millennium is a great deal and a really good quality game at that price-point.
Play on, folks.
Freedom - From the Millennium Board Game. Love the hair and boots!
Andrea from the Millennium Board Game. Meow!
Penelope - Very hot!
