Campaign board games have taken hold of the tabletop space, but gamers are getting fatigued. Publishers need to pivot, because the trend of endless play is killing us.
The campaign board game is not a new concept. It takes inspiration from tabletop role-playing games, presenting a unified story arc and character progression over multiple linked sessions. The popularity of this genre has increased with the success of games such as Pandemic: Legacy, Gloomhaven, and Kingdom Death: Monster. Many of these behemoths have been given life due to the success of crowdfunding, which has only further ignited the creative spark and endless appetite for this style of board game. I think we’ve finally reached a tipping point.
There are major obstacles when engaging with these types of games. Foremost, they require multiple players to commit to a lengthy journey. Some titles, such as Greek myth-punk Aeon Trespass: Odyssey and fantasy anime adventure Middara, require hundreds of hours to complete. I find this absurd. Signing on for a board game should not require an officiant and a license. To make matters worse, I’ve had instances where a regular group member couldn’t make a session. The energy and momentum behind the campaign began to fray and it all fell apart. Now, the half-finished board game sits on my shelf, staring me down like a judgmental gargoyle.
Role-players know this pain. But one chief advantage RPGs hold over campaign board games is that their length may be tailored to preference. Additionally, editorial control over the story is held by an individual, and can be refined and concluded with short notice. With a board game, you’re just stuck. It’s rigid and prescribed and you’re either buckled up for the entire ride or you’re missing out on the eventual climax.
The sheer quantity of these campaign board games is overwhelming. The crowdfunding surge has only reinforced such ambitious design work. There’s a new one each week, promising breathtaking story, mounds of components, and enough content to carry you to your grave. I’ve become exhausted. Just as my group began gaining steam in our Middara campaign, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood of Venice arrived and everyone wanted to shift to that.
