Sales at Steve Jackson Games declined for a third consecutive year, but the result was a break-even performance according to the "Report to the Stakeholders" released by the company this week, improving from a loss last year. Sales declined to $5.5 million in 2017 from $6 million in $2016, and continued a drop from $8.5 million in 2014.
The company attributed the 2017 sales declines to a change in the market to “more a periodicals business than one that encourages growing and nurturing single games,” with a “flood of games overwhelming distributor warehouses and retailer shelves” leading to declines in sales of the company’s evergreen titles, Munchkin and Zombie Dice. The increase in the number of releases, in turn, led to "an accelerated release schedule for many publishers as games get less time as a ‘new release’ and get dumped online as fast as they leave the ‘hot and new’ category," Steve Jackson COO Phil Reed wrote. Reed cited our interview with Asmodee execs Christian Petersen and Steve Horvath as reflective of those conditions (see "ICv2 Interview: Asmodee Execs on the State of the Market").
The company noted success, albeit delayed, at achieving its two main priorities for 2017: completing fulfillment for three Kickstarter projects and getting the Munchkin CCG to press. Other high points for the year included regaining rights to company founder Steve Jackson’s first RPG, The Fantasy Trip (see "’The Fantasy Trip’ Returns to Its Designer"), good sales on Munchkin Shakespeare, Walgreens exclusive Munchkin Spell Skool, and Munchkin Gift Pack, which was sold with an abbreviated solicitation cycle.
Weak spots beyond those noted above included slow sales on Ogre Reinforcements and Ghosts Love Candy, and the company’s "Failures," Dungeon Fantasy Roleplaying Game, which will not be reprinted, and Pegasus card game Port Royal, which was hurt by cheaper parallel imports from Europe, Reed wrote.
Company priorities for 2018 include marketing an event support for Munchkin CCG, with the core game and three expansions released in 2018; Kickstarter fulfillment for Ogre Miniatures Set 2, Munchkin Starfinder, Triplanetary, and Conspiracy Theory; a new tuckbox expansion and two or three new base games for Munchkin, and Kicking the new edition of Car Wars.
As 'Flood of Games Continues to Overwhelm Distributors, Retailers, and Shelves'
Posted by Milton Griepp on February 16, 2018 @ 2:24 am CT
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