Around 2021
The playground
Benjamin and his friends made the monsters up in the playground: Hungry, Thirsty, the Hymotyzer and Rope Guy. The rules and the cards came after, at home.
OUR STORY
From early prototypes to the first production run, and now a video game.
Our Story · Chapters
How it started
The monsters started in the playground, around 2021: Benjamin and his friends made up Hungry, Thirsty, the Hymotyzer and Rope Guy. The board game started at Christmas 2023, after a lot of Monopoly, when we asked: how are board games made? And then: could we make one?
We set out some basics: a board with around 40 spaces, two types of cards, some penalties, trading, and a clear goal. The first prototype was as homemade as it gets, with stickers on a wooden board, handwritten rules, and early characters like Hungry for Tea and Thirsty for Stuff.
"Could anyone create a game?"
The short version
- The playground: Benjamin and his friends imagined Hungry, Thirsty, the Hymotyzer and Rope Guy before the rules were written.
- Stickers on a wooden board: the first prototype gave the game a shape and a goal.
- The Hobbycraft upgrade: better pieces, better cards, and a game that started to feel real.
- Manufactured, for real: the first proper production run became six copies to play and learn from.
- UK Games Expo at the NEC: the game went out into the world and we learned what mattered most.
- The browser MVP: a fast prototype helped us test the idea before building more of it.
- The video game, in early access: the same world, rebuilt as a game you can play with friends.
- Next: keep testing, keep improving, and keep asking what the game needs next.
- 1
- 2
2023
The first drawings
Benjamin's original cover drawing set the look and spirit of the game.
- 3
2023
Stickers on a wooden board
Handwritten cards, sticker spaces, and the first playtests at home.
- 4
2024
The Hobbycraft upgrade
A sturdier board, better components, and a game that started feeling real.
- 5
Dec 2025
Manufactured, for real
Research, manufacturers, and the first run: six physical copies.
- 6
May 2026
UK Games Expo at the NEC
Meeting players and creators in person sharpened the next steps.
- 7
Oct 2026
The browser MVP
First browser prototype pass while systems and monsters are still being tuned.
- 8
Now
The video game, in early access
On sale on Mac and Windows. Families and friends are playing and sending us bugs.
- 9
Next
Next
He's already planning the sequel.
Where we are now
- The board game: six production copies made and played.
- The video game: in early access on Mac and Windows, with Steam next.
- Next: fixing what players find, getting ready for Steam, and something new we can't talk about yet.
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