Wise Wizard Games, LLC, the company behind the Star Realms and Hero Realms deckbuilding games designed by prominent Magic: The Gathering legendary players Rob Dougherty and Darwin Kastle, is launching a new studio that will instead dedicate itself to building family-friendly board games.
The studio aptly and perhaps a touch derivatively called Wacky Wizard Games, has already announced a trifecta of family-friendly titles that will be hitting the market in the coming months. Wise Wizard Games COO Debbie Moynihan has shared her excitement in an official press statement, outlining the new studio’s launch, and outlining its long-run goals. Moynihan explained:
“We are super excited to be adding this new family-friendly product line to our catalog. We wanted to maintain the focus of Wise Wizard Games on strategy card and dice games with geeky themes, and have created Wacky Wizard Games as an umbrella for lightweight games with a more whimsical, cute vibe.”
In other words, Wise Wizard Games wants to create rules-light games that are still enjoyable to the board gaming community, but that are deliberately intended towards players who are not in the mood to go through the competitive crucible of a game of Hero or Star Realms.
A Family-Friendly Future for the Toughest of Gamers
The first three games have already been announced. Fittingly, the first title is Star Realms: Academy – Deckbuilding Game, which is a sort of onboarding experience for the larger Star Realms and its many iterations. The game can be played solo or with 2 players.
Dougherty is confident that this new version may go on to become a fan-favorite title as well. There is no age group listed for this title, but it will most likely be easy to play from an early age and share with even the youngest members of the family.
The second title in the lineup is Caution Signs which is a fast-paced party game where you have to warn your friends about certain hazards that can lead to some funny situations for the unaware player. The goal is to avoid a certain peril that is hinted to you by the other player.
The game is co-designed by Scott Brady and Danielle Reynolds who have had a lot of fun with it and have already shared it with a tight community of testers who have been eager to get a copy of the prototype. Caution Signs will not be hitting retail for “many months” just yet, Brady cautions, but the game looks promising.
Not least, there is Pack the Essentials, where players will take the role of travelers who want to get all the polyomino-shaped cats in their suitcases before they depart. The game can be played solo against Cat Lady, or it can be shared between 1-4 players.
The title is designed by Jacqueline Atkins who is very excited about the game she daringly describes as a “purrrrfect fit.” In the meantime, the parent company, Wise Wizard Games, has continued to do well.
Wise Wizard Games – A Crowdfunding Success
The crowdfunding campaigns of the company for title such as Hero Realms Dungeons, Sorcerer Endbringer, and Star Realms Rise of Empire legacy board game have accumulated significant backing from fans of the franchises. The company as a whole has raised more than $6 million from crowdfunding campaigns so far, and a Star Realms Deluxe: Colonial Collection is currently ongoing on Kickstarter.