Back when I first started playing board games, I was always the one among my friends who hyped out the group on how good a board game is and they all should try it.
So when it came to game night, my hyped up friends would gather round the table and I would proceed to set up the table. “This is gonna be fun.” I thought to myself while searching for the components required for the game.
10 minutes passed and I barely finished setting up the table. But by then, the hype that I have spent weeks building up among my group has died down and they are just slouching on the couch catching some Netflix by then.
If only there was some easy way for me to store components after each game and some easy way for me to set up too. Hmm..
Broken Token Organizer
The Broken Token Organizer is probably the most well known in the board game community. With laser cut precision, each organizer will fit nicely into your board game box of choice. And also because every single piece is laser cut, the wooden pieces fit nicely upon assembly, creating a wonderful solution for board game enthusiasts.
The problem was, Broken Token items are mainly catered to US residents, they are expensive and shipping costs from Broken Token are rather high. For example, a Dead of Winter organizer can easily set one back by about 45 USD after shipping, or about 65 SGD. That’s almost the cost of 1 Dead of Winter set!
A Cheaper Alternative
Recently, I got a sample from a gaming company that has started their own line of board game organizers. To say I was excited is a bit of an understatement. Will it be better than Broken Token or at least on par with the quality from Broken Token? Let’s find out!
The many components
The sample I got was an organizer for one of my favorite games, Dead of Winter. My first impression was that the wood used feels solid though I wouldn’t say it’s on the same quality wood used by Broken Token.
The pieces were all laser cut nicely, which gets a big thumbs up from me. However, the burnt marks left by the laser are usually quite visible on at least 1 side of the wood. But I found this to be quite useful (more on this later).
With Glue or Glue-less?
One thing I personally like about these organizers is that they fit nicely into board game boxes that they are designed for and this fits into my Dead of Winter box perfectly. As long as you align the joints together, they will fit snugly like a jigsaw puzzle. Amazing!
In fact, the whole set up can be completed by aligning the parts together without glue if you are not planning to remove the organizer from the box anytime soon. The only things that I would recommend to glue together are the card holders since you will be taking it out and placing it on the table during game play.
Snug fit without glue!
BUT..
I’m not sure if this is intentional or it was missed out during shipping but where’s the assembly guide? Maybe I am too pampered by IKEA. With that being said though, it is rather easy to figure out which piece goes where during the assembly. (Hint: Biggest piece is base, long pieces are sides, short pieces are usually card holders or dividers)
Another thing that I am not sure if it’s intentional are the burnt marks left by the laser cuts. While assembling, I found this surprisingly helpful though as I realized that most of the burnt marks are supposed to face outwards, which means you should be able to see a very clean organizer upon completion.
And boy, do I love the precision of every single laser cut wooden piece.
15 Minutes of Work for your Hyped-Up Game Night
Yes, you can get your organizer assembled in 15 minutes. You may add another 5 to 10 minutes for the gluing process but what you get after is an astounding organizer that will help you out in the long term, whether it be keeping organized or a fast set up for a game night. No more excuses for your friends to be binge watching Netflix anymore.
Setup with card holders
All in all, I recommend getting an organizer for yourself if you do not mind slight burnt marks and taking some time out for a DIY assembly session. The good thing is that some parts of the organizer can even be re-used, such as the card holders. (Also, I’m pretty sure it fits into quite a few other board games as well, such as Small World, Five Tribes etc..)
And of course, the last reason to get it is that each organizer probably costs half of what a Broken Token organizer costs. We will be retailing it from tomorrow onwards, with an organizer like that as low as $29.90. There will be organizers for other popular board games as well, such as Scythe and Arcadia Quest:) Excited much now?
So much space
PS. I’ve taken a picture and send to the distributor. My final setup wasn’t exactly correct but that is what is amazing about organizers. Even with the wrong setup, you still can get the job done 🙂