Matt Paquette & Co.

Good Morning Gamers!
Today is glorious day. Why, you ask?
Because BLOODSTONE is LIVE on Gamefound!
https://zurl.co/Vc5B5
This is been such a labour of love for Druid City Games and everyone involved and we're so excited to share it with you.
Walk, no, RUN on over to the campaign and back it today. You will not be sorry!

What does it take to turn a great game into a standout crowdfunding success? For Wonderland's War by Skybound Tabletop , the goal wasn't just visibility... it was immersion.

We were fortunate to partner with them to create their campaign page visual design, social media advertising and skins, as well as web ad creative. We wanted it to FEEL like the player belonged in this universe.

Every touchpoint was built to feel cohesive, thematic, and unmistakably Wonderland. From the moment backers landed on the page to the ads that brought them there, the experience was designed to pull them deeper into the world.

The result?

8,713 backers
$679,218 raised

Because in crowdfunding, it’s not just about showing your game… it’s about making people feel it before they ever play. Proud to have supported the journey on this one.

Have you ever had to double-check a card because you weren’t sure which text matched which effect? That’s a proximity issue. Proximity is the principle of placing related elements close together to signal their connection. It’s one of the most fundamental ways we organize and interpret information visually.

In board games, players rely on this constantly. Costs, abilities, conditions and outcomes all need to feel clearly connected at a glance. When related information is grouped tightly and consistently, players can process it quickly and confidently.

When it’s scattered or unevenly spaced, it creates friction and forces players to slow down and interpret. With good proximity, your cognitive load is reduced and the game flow is improved. If you have bad proximity, your connections break and confusion is caused more often.

Most people think branding starts and ends with a logo. In reality, that’s only a small part of the picture.

When we worked on the Origins Game Fair rebrand, the objective was not to create a single mark. It was to build a flexible system. One that could move, adapt, and scale across a wide range of applications.

Origins is not a single moment or touch point. It is thousands of tables, thousands of players, and a constantly evolving environment. The brand needed to reflect that energy, that sense of play, and that feeling of discovery.

Every element plays a role. From a responsive logo system, to a versatile color palette, to typography that balances personality with clarity, each piece contributes to a cohesive and consistent experience.

Players do not separate design from experience. They perceive it as one unified whole. That is the true impact of branding.

When executed well, branding does more than create visual appeal. It improves understanding, builds connection, and increases memorability.

We are proud to have contributed to shaping that experience.

Have you ever looked at a game component and something just felt… off, even if you couldn’t explain why?

That’s often an alignment issue. Alignment is the intentional placement of elements so they visually connect and create order. It ensures that text, icons, and graphics line up in a way that feels structured and easy to follow.

In tabletop games, alignment plays a major role in clarity. Players are constantly scanning for information, and consistent alignment helps them process that information faster and with more confidence.

When elements are misaligned, even slightly, it creates visual noise and makes components feel harder to read and less polished.

If you've done great alignment, you will provide structure and trust with your player. If you have bad alignment, you will only create distraction and confusion.

Strong design doesn’t just look organized. It is organized.

We don’t talk about numbers often… but this one felt worth sharing. Up to 2025, we have had the opportunity to support projects that went on to raise over $40M in crowdfunding.

We also collaborated on 220 published and announced board game titles, and the games we’ve worked on averaged in the top 25% on BoardGameGeek, with 4 landing in the Top 500. That's wild!

But the part we’re most proud of? None of this happens in a vacuum. It comes from partnering with incredible designers, publishers, and teams who care deeply about creating great player experiences.

Our role is to help bring clarity, cohesion, and intention to the table… and it’s something we don’t take lightly. Grateful for the trust. Excited for what’s ahead.

Have you ever picked up a game component and didn’t know where to look first? Well... that’s a hierarchy problem.

Hierarchy is the way visual elements are arranged to guide attention and communicate importance. It tells players what to read first, what matters most and what can come next. In tabletop games, strong hierarchy is essential. Players are constantly scanning cards, boards and player aids for key information.

When everything looks equally important, nothing stands out. Through size, weight, spacing, and placement, hierarchy creates a clear path for the eye to follow. With good hierarchy, you can make complex systems feel simplistic, but with bad hierarchy, you can create confusion and slow gameplay decisions.

Design isn’t just about what players see. It’s about what they understand instantly. Next week, we continue our series with Alignment.

Did you know the game Águeda is inspired by a real place? ☂️

Every year, the city of Águeda in Portugal transforms its streets into a vibrant canopy of color through the Umbrella Sky Project. What started as a creative installation has become an iconic visual experience… and now, a beautiful board game.

We had the opportunity to collaborate with 25th Century Games to create graphic design elements for this game, helping bring that same sense of color, movement and atmosphere into the player experience.

It’s always special to work on games that are rooted in real-world inspiration. There’s something powerful about translating a place, a feeling, or a moment into something you can hold in your hands and share at the table.

Big thanks to 25th Century Games for the collaboration… and if you haven’t looked into the story behind Águeda yet, it’s absolutely worth it.

Do you know how important contrast really is in graphic design? 🌓

Contrast is the difference between elements. Light vs dark, large vs small, bold vs subtle. It’s what helps information stand out and be understood quickly.

In tabletop games, contrast plays a critical role in readability and usability. If a player has to pause and search to read text or distinguish elements, the experience is already slowed down.

From card text to icon visibility, strong contrast ensures players can process information instantly, even in less-than-ideal lighting conditions.

By having good contrast in games, it creates clarity and confidence while playing, whereas poor contrast creates hesitation and frustration.

Design should support the game, not get in its way. Stay tuned for our next post around Hierarchy.