Make my own copy of a board game

[birdman2003]

My uncle got a bunch of relatives (including me) hooked on a board game called Acquire.  It involves building and merging hotel chains and trading stocks in companies that you set up during the game.  Each game lasts 40-60 minutes and is more fun than Monopoly because it doesn't involve dice or drag out for weeks on end.  My uncle has an original set from the 1960's with wood pieces as well as a set with plastic pieces from the 1990's (selling for $200 on the Zon).  The version that's retailing today for $30 has cardboard game pieces, is cheap and flimsy, etc...

So I decided to build my own game board and pieces out of LEGO bricks (thank you Denmark).

Has anybody else made their own copies of a board game?  I wonder what I should do for a supply of fake cash and shares for each company?

[phred]

many toy stores sell replacement packs of Monopoly money

[kite]

I made a board game as a final exam project in college, it was a subject specific trivia kind of thing that would function as a learning tool.  Still might turn it into an App.

[CommonCents]

In 7th grade I made my own (unique, not copied) board game for an assignment.  Had issues working with the assigned partner on a project (me = A student, her = D student, for starters) and we just agreed to part ways so I did it all the day before.  Got lucky there was a snow day, giving me more time.  Got to school, realized I forgot a dice, but luckily had learned how to fold a box and other shapes with a couple of sheets of paper so I did that.

[swick]

We buy cheap copies of monopoly at garage sales and thrift stores and reuse the components for game design (Blank boards are nearly impossible to come across)

As for making copies of games - Hubby and I have spent the last year or so working on creating Stargate Catan.

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/fellow-board-gamesci-fi-geeks-please-help!/msg122962/?topicseen#msg122962

We have a working copy as of last week - got a little more involved then I would have ever imagined but Hubby went all out. I'll have to take pictures tonight and update!

[MrsPete]

If it's a game that you're enjoying and would play repeatedly, I'd say buy a "real copy". We're a board game family, and we definitely get our money's worth from our favorites.  If the game is no longer being manufactured, try ebay -- it'll pop up eventually.

If you're sticking with the homemade version, you can buy replacement items as another poster said, but tread lightly:  Those things are very expensive!  Recently I decided I wanted to buy an extra bag of "gold tokens" for a game we've been playing intensely since last Christmas.  If memory serves, a bag of 25 or 30 tokens was $4.95 plus shipping.  I considered setting aside all our gold tokens and replacing them with pennies . . . but, no, the tokens are fun, and it's something we play multiple times a week.  In the end, I searched on ebay 'til I found a very used edition of the game -- and I threw away the box, boards, cards . . . and I just kept the tokes.  It ended up costing less than $5, including shipping.

Similarly, I recently saw a cool desk top -- actual desk, not a computer -- on Pinterest, and I'm interested in making it:  The desk top is covered in Scrabble tiles and covered with a piece of glass.  I've learned that you can buy Scrabble tiles, but they are $$$$$$ . . . so I'm slowly buying Scrabble games at yard sales and Goodwill, tossing the boards and just keeping the tiles.  It'll take me a while to get all I need, but this is a fun project, not a household necessity.

[Thegoblinchief]

I have a few bgg friends that have made and/or commissioned their own copies of long out of print titles that they loved but couldn't stomach paying $200+ for a poor condition used title.

There's a long tradition of handmade chess sets. Why should other board games be any different?

[soccerluvof4]

I have found you can get most any game board at a rummage sale for 1$. Think its most cost effective unless you want to incorporate as a project with kids. Seems like board games and kids clothes are best rummage/yard seller items available imho

[nordlead]

Compared to buying on coolstuffinc or boardsandbits it is almost never worth it (cost wise) to make a game that is currently in print. Even for out of print games, it is typically cheaper to buy on ebay.

However, if you really enjoy the game, and you want premium pieces, then go right ahead. I'm not familiar with Aquire (I know of it, just never played it). Cash can be taken from monopoly or similar games, you could also use poker chips (Target may still have the chips I bought. They were a decent price and are decent quality), or you can go to the dollar store as they'll probably have some play money. For the shares, you could print playing cards on a website like artscow. They typically have codes you can redeem to get a custom deck for cheap. You can also just print them yourself and cut them, but that takes more work.

[nordlead]

I have found you can get most any game board at a rummage sale for 1$. Think its most cost effective unless you want to incorporate as a project with kids. Seems like board games and kids clothes are best rummage/yard seller items available imho

Sure, you can find most any game that is sold at toysRus/walmart/target at a rummage sale. But you won't find many good games there. I've even managed to find some rare gems at the salvation army, but they are very few and very far between (I've been walking there at least weekly for years now). I've found only a single high quality board game at a garage sale (it was a Ravensburger, and I stupidly didn't buy it).

I highly doubt you've ever come across games like Power Grid, Lords of Vegas, Troyes, Railways of the World, or Suburbia, etc... If you ever find anything like those for $1 you should buy it ASAP, as it'll sell for $20-50 on ebay.

[hybrid]

<-----  I play lots and lots of strategy board games, and what I have discovered over time is that while there are some classics that never seem to get old, there is always a new fun game to learn. So I am willing to part with games that go out of print and people will pay good money for. Also, being Mustachian, I don't hoard board games. I keep perhaps 20 in the house at any one time. Once they stop getting played regularly, off to a board gaming convention auction they go. Other friends of mine have been guilty of game hoarding and as they get older they are starting to regret their mountain of dust-gathering treasures.

If someone is willing to shell out $200 for a vintage board game, I will sell it in a heartbeat. I have an old copy of Acquire as well from the 60s, I need to see what it will fetch.

Keep an eye out for after-Christmas clearance sales if you want to make a little cash on the selling side. Several years ago the local Barnes and Nobles were stuck with extra copies of Star Wars Risk that were marked down 75%. Buddy of mine and I bought the eleven copies we could get our hands on (would have bought 100 if I could have found them) and I stashed them away. I've sold them a few at a time in early December on eBay when folks are thinking Christmas gifts, and with all the Star Wars collectors it was pretty simple to put a little cash in our pockets.

And good god, if you have old Magic The Gathering cards....  SELL SELL SELL. Buddy of mine recently got $130 for one third edition dual land cash from a local game store owner. I've sold thousands and thousands of dollars of these cards over the years from buddies collections (I keep 20% of the net for the effort, they get a fistful of cash for no effort at all).   

A friend of mine is very creative and loves pimping out his board games. I did that on a very small scale with Castles of Burgundy recently. The currency in that game is referred to as silverlings, and the tokens are the size of a dime. So I replaced them with actual pre-1964 silver dimes I inherited and have been sitting on for years (and wish I had sold when silver was $40 an ounce....).

A great way to pimp out a board game with lots of components is to get a small hobby tray with all sorts of compartments that pull out to keep the pieces organized. They run about $7 and add a cool factor to your game. Great for games like Castles of Burgundy, Terra Mystica, Agricola, etc.

[hybrid]

We buy cheap copies of monopoly at garage sales and thrift stores and reuse the components for game design (Blank boards are nearly impossible to come across)

As for making copies of games - Hubby and I have spent the last year or so working on creating Stargate Catan.

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/fellow-board-gamesci-fi-geeks-please-help!/msg122962/?topicseen#msg122962

We have a working copy as of last week - got a little more involved then I would have ever imagined but Hubby went all out. I'll have to take pictures tonight and update!

I definitely want to see that!

[swick]

We buy cheap copies of monopoly at garage sales and thrift stores and reuse the components for game design (Blank boards are nearly impossible to come across)

As for making copies of games - Hubby and I have spent the last year or so working on creating Stargate Catan.

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/fellow-board-gamesci-fi-geeks-please-help!/msg122962/?topicseen#msg122962

We have a working copy as of last week - got a little more involved then I would have ever imagined but Hubby went all out. I'll have to take pictures tonight and update!

I definitely want to see that!

Original post updated

[DollarBill]

Has anyone played the game cash flow? It's by rich dad poor dad and all about real estate but it's fun.

[CarDude]

I did this a lot as a kid. It was a lot cheaper than buying them since I didn't have an allowance.

[soccerluvof4]

I have found you can get most any game board at a rummage sale for 1$. Think its most cost effective unless you want to incorporate as a project with kids. Seems like board games and kids clothes are best rummage/yard seller items available imho

Sure, you can find most any game that is sold at toysRus/walmart/target at a rummage sale. But you won't find many good games there. I've even managed to find some rare gems at the salvation army, but they are very few and very far between (I've been walking there at least weekly for years now). I've found only a single high quality board game at a garage sale (it was a Ravensburger, and I stupidly didn't buy it).

I highly doubt you've ever come across games like Power Grid, Lords of Vegas, Troyes, Railways of the World, or Suburbia, etc... If you ever find anything like those for $1 you should buy it ASAP, as it'll sell for $20-50 on ebay.

well what you might consider a good game as opposed to someone else might be quite different!

[LadyStache]

I've never done this, but it sounds like a great idea!

[birdman2003]

I made a board game as a final exam project in college, it was a subject specific trivia kind of thing that would function as a learning tool.  Still might turn it into an App.

Yes, I've thought about turning my version of the game into an app too.

In 7th grade I made my own (unique, not copied) board game for an assignment.  Had issues working with the assigned partner on a project (me = A student, her = D student, for starters) and we just agreed to part ways so I did it all the day before.  Got lucky there was a snow day, giving me more time.  Got to school, realized I forgot a dice, but luckily had learned how to fold a box and other shapes with a couple of sheets of paper so I did that.

Sounds like a lot of assigned partners I had in school!  Good reaction skills on your part.

We buy cheap copies of monopoly at garage sales and thrift stores and reuse the components for game design (Blank boards are nearly impossible to come across)

As for making copies of games - Hubby and I have spent the last year or so working on creating Stargate Catan.

http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/fellow-board-gamesci-fi-geeks-please-help!/msg122962/?topicseen#msg122962

We have a working copy as of last week - got a little more involved then I would have ever imagined but Hubby went all out. I'll have to take pictures tonight and update!

I saw the pics.  Nice work on your board game!

If it's a game that you're enjoying and would play repeatedly, I'd say buy a "real copy". We're a board game family, and we definitely get our money's worth from our favorites.  If the game is no longer being manufactured, try ebay -- it'll pop up eventually.

I agree that a "real copy" would be best although finding a decent condition copy can be hard.  I need to look on ebay more instead of buying new off the Zon.

I have a few bgg friends that have made and/or commissioned their own copies of long out of print titles that they loved but couldn't stomach paying $200+ for a poor condition used title.

There's a long tradition of handmade chess sets. Why should other board games be any different?

+1

For the shares, you could print playing cards on a website like artscow. They typically have codes you can redeem to get a custom deck for cheap.

Thanks nordlead!  I'll see what about using them for the shares (I don't want to laminate and cut out tons of little rectangles).


Thanks hybrid.  Hope you can find a buyer for your copy!  Good thoughts on buying niche extra copies of board games and re-selling around Christmas time.

[somepissedoffman]

I've been wanting to use the laser cutter at work to make Settlers pieces out of not cardboard so the hexes fit together and don't warp.  Haven't done it yet though!