A Unique Strategy for Creating and Crowdfunding Games: 6 Questions
Jamey Stegmaier of Stonemaier Games shares his unique strategy for creating and crowdfunding board games, emphasizing community involvement, transparency, and a six-question framework to guide game design and crowdfunding campaigns. The approach focuses on building trust and engagement with backers throughout the process.
Background
Jamey Stegmaier is the founder of Stonemaier Games, a highly respected independent board game publisher known for hits like *Scythe*, *Wingspan*, and *Viticulture*. Stonemaier pioneered a distinct crowdfunding model: instead of using Kickstarter to *fund* production (the standard approach), they use it primarily as a *preorder and marketing platform*, self-funding manufacturing upfront. This article is part of Stegmaier's long-running blog where he transparently shares business strategy. The post is a Q&A with the German publisher Frosted Games (a distributor partner), explaining Stonemaier's unusual philosophy—such as avoiding stretch goals, manufacturing in China only after a campaign, and prioritizing speed-to-backer over hype. This matters because Stonemaier's approach has become a case study in sustainable crowdfunding, contrasting with the industry trend of ever-escalating, over-produced Kickstarter campaigns that often deliver years late.