More than 80,000 readers! Thanks to you all, as BoardGameWire signs off for the Christmas holidays

When I launched BoardGameWire at the end of April, I told myself I’d give it six months of hard work to see if what I strongly believed was, in fact, true – that despite the global board game industry growing to a vast size in the last decade or so, there was still a gaping hole for professional, industry-focused journalism that went beyond reviews and the announcement of new games.

I genuinely couldn’t have dreamed that the response would be so strong. More than 80,000 readers have visited BoardGameWire since launch – CEOs, publishers, game designers, artists, marketing professionals and hordes of interested consumers – keen to check in on our breaking news, in-depth features and what I hope is insightful, thoughtful reporting.

Our goal has been simple, if not simple to do: provide the very best board game news coverage that people within the industry – and the general public – want to read. No clickbait, no SEO manipulation – just well researched, professionally reported articles which look to shine a light on underreported parts of the industry.

If you joined us later in the year, here’s a very small snapshot of what I think is some of the best reporting we’ve done so far. I’m proud of every single one of these articles – especially as the vast majority of these stories wouldn’t have seen the light of day without BoardGameWire:

• “It’s too late for us”: CoolStuffInc founder on how Amazon pushed it out of the online board game market
  
• The world’s biggest board game fair is using AI art on its tickets, posters and app
  
• Exclusive: Quackalope’s emails to Aeon Trespass: Odyssey devs offering to scrap ‘frustrating experience’ coverage in return for ‘discounted’ $7,500 sponsorship
  
• “It’s clear there are too many games being published”: Pegasus Spiele’s co-founder talks Dorfromantik, economic uncertainty and how it keeps winning board gaming’s biggest prize
  
• “I began to be a little bored by designing games”: Why launching a board game publishing house has renewed 7 Wonders creator Antoine Bauza’s spark
  
• “I almost lost my lunch” – Earth publisher Conor McGoey on managing one of 2023’s biggest board game successes

I want to thank you as a BoardGameWire reader for helping make the site such a success this year – and to ask for your help to grow our reporting in 2024.

I run BoardGameWire completely solo, in the spare time I can carve out around my business journalism day job and rushing around after two kids. I love doing it, and am elated at the huge interest there’s been in our reporting so far. I’ve got big plans to expand the site in 2024 – with enough support I can transition to full time, bring on other reporters and dig deeper into stories currently not seeing the light of day.

And that’s where you come in. If you value what BoardGameWire is doing, please consider supporting us on Patreon, or becoming a paid subscriber to our newsletter. Tell your colleagues! Your business contacts, your friends interested in the industry – forward them our newsletter and ask them to sign up. If you’re a board game executive, publisher or a service provider, and want to get your business in front of a huge audience of board game professionals – please consider sponsorship or advertising with us!

With your help, I’m confident BoardGameWire will go from strength to strength next year. Have a wonderful holiday period, stay safe, and I’ll see you again here in 2024.

Merry Christmas,

Mike Didymus-True – Editor