It all began with my father. In his early years, he had plenty of free time and used it to design a boardgame inspired by the Tour de France.
When I was about 8 years old, I started playing the game with my brother and some friends.
Each free day, holiday, etc., was dedicated to playing the game. We were addicted to it and the group of enthusiastic players kept growing and growing.

In 2016, we decided to take the bold steps and contacted a graphic designer.
We launched a company called HulstGames, created a webshop to sell the game, and went to several boardgame fairs to promote the game.
We made a professional batch (produced in China) of 1000 copies.

During a boardgame fair at Spiel in Essen, we were contacted by a large company called JustGames.
The result was we entered into a partnership and produced 20,000 copies of an official board game called “Tour de France“.

In about three years, all copies were sold out.
More info about Linkeballen and Tour de France you can find on www.hulstgames.nl

Meanwhile, during several additional visits to SpellenSpektakel in Utrecht and Spiel in Essen, I kept in contact with several game designers and die-hard gamers. I asked them: Give me something you would really like to see in a boardgame. Tell me what should be in it and what should not.
The result was a large list of Dos and Don’ts. I mixed them all together, and then I realized that most gamers want the same.

Namely:
-A game board that’s not always the same, so the entire field must be made of several different pieces.
-Resource gathering, such as acquiring Money, Gold, Stone, Wood, etc., is essential. “The Settlers of Catan” provides a good example of this.
-People love to build something to see progress. Hint, in “Monopoly” you can build houses and upgrade them to Hotels.
-People enjoy inflicting harm on other players, whether through battles, stealing money, and more. A classic example of this is “Risk“, a board game centered around strategic battles.
-Many players prefer starting with a basic edition, and if they find the game enjoyable, they often opt to purchase expansions. “The Settlers of Catan“, for instance, offers several expansions.
-People are drawn to games featuring detailed 3D miniatures; Warhammer, for example, is widely recognized for its use of them.
-The game should be easy to learn without an extensive rulebook, yet provide enough challenge for advanced players.

I realized that all these wishes, ideas, etc., are combined in a well-known PC game called Command & Conquer.
Would it be possible to make a boardgame edition of Command & Conquer?

Hours turned into days, days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, months into years.
Meanwhile, I kept contacting my list of contacts with ideas I had and asked what they think of it. It gave rise to a lot of discussions and new ideas.

Then in 2022, the magic fell into place. I finally found a good working solution to play the game.
It was graphically still in concept, but playing was fun and rock-solid!
I asked some contacts to start on the design of the 3D miniatures of a list of buildings and units I needed.
Meanwhile, I started working on enhancing the graphics for the dynamic fields, production build queues, and the upgrade possibilities of all units and buildings.

Some pictures of concept editions:

I reached out to EA to explore the possibility of a partnership.
A little background: with our cycling game, we had a royalty deal that granted us the use of the official name “Tour de France” and its logo. In return, they received a percentage of the profit.
Imagine the excitement if I could officially brand my game as a Command & Conquer game?

Unfortunately, EA declined. I intended to send the game for review, but they even refused to provide me with an address.
The kind of deal I wanted to propose seemed to fall on deaf ears. Their consistent response was: “We don’t want to risk damaging the franchise by introducing Command & Conquer into boardgames.“

Feeling dissapointed, I stopped all developments for a few weeks.
However, I soon decided: This is not the end of my game. I began renaming and redesigning all elements to ensure there were no issues with intellectual property, rights, or authorship.

The final decision was to start a new company Bast-Games and name my game:

In June 2023, I finished the game and invited some testers to play. It was a success, with only minor comments that were easy to correct.

I started searching for a manufacturer capable of producing my game from A to Z. Many were unable to handle the 3D miniatures, and I nearly gave up.
Then, I realized I still had many business cards from my visits to Spiel in Essen.
Soon, I had several companies capable of handling all aspects. I contacted them, shared my idea, and requested a quotation.
After comparing the responses, prices, and options, I made my choice. LongPack will be the manufacturer of my game.

Now in January 2024, all designs are finished, and I’ve even added several expansions to provide more strategic options in the game.
Currently, LongPack is revising my designs so they can send me a demo box of the game and all expansions.

Additionally, while the first print of some final 3D designs has been completed (not all units & buildings are shown here), there are still some adjustments needed as not all 3D parts are perfect yet. However, overall, the progress is promising, and it’s starting to look good.

When the demo boxes arrive, I can finally take some nice pictures of the final version, which I can then use to create my Kickstarter campaign.

If all goes well, the Kickstarter campaign will launch at the beginning of Q2 2024.
If the campaign gets funded, all backers will receive a copy about 6 months later.

Update: February 5, 2024:
Sadly, we didn’t manage to finish the demo boxes before Chinese New Year.
Hint: During Chinese New Year, many companies in China are closed for several weeks.
This means I can’t start making the promo video for Kickstarter.

After the Chinese New Year (mid-March), we will resume the final touches on the demo boxes.
In early April, we will also finalize the cost calculations, enabling us to begin creating pictures and videos for the Kickstarter campaign.

I will keep you updated.

Update: March 7, 2024,
The Chinese New Year is over, the Year of the Dragon has started.
I just received a picture of the first print of one of the boxes.

It shouldn’t take long before I receive the demo boxes now…

Update: March 30, 2024:
We’re excited to announce that the first components of the demo boxes have arrived!
Please take a look at the pictures below.

Update: April 3, 2024:
The Kickstarter pre-launch page is online. Click here to see it.

Update: April 12, 2024:
Exciting news! We’ve received the rest of the game boxes, dashboards, hexagon fields, tokens, and dice for our demo boxes.
However, there’s a small delay with the 3D miniatures as some objects are experiencing printing problems. We’re actively addressing this issue.
Stay tuned for updates!

Update: April 15, 2024:
Exciting developments continue! We’ve just received the final calculations for production and shipment. This means we’re now able to dive into the nitty-gritty details and calculate the final price for our Kickstarter campaign, along with any stretch goals we’ve planned.

This is a significant milestone in our journey, as it brings us one step closer to launching our campaign and bringing our project to life. We’re pouring over the numbers with care and precision to ensure that everything aligns perfectly.
Stay tuned for more updates as we finalize the details and prepare to share our project with the world!

Update: May 12, 2024:
We have calculated everything from A to Z, so now we finally know the exact prices of the basic box + expansions. The preparation of our Kickstarter Campaign is almost complete. The last step is to make a video of the actual gameplay. After this, we are ready to launch.

Update: May 25, 2024:
The Kickstarter campaign will start at June 10, 2024.
Early adapters will get a discount.

Update: June 10, 2024:
Our Kickstart campaign is live. Subscribe now to get the game!!!

Update: June 26, 2024:
Dear Backers and Supporters,
I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to everyone who has supported my board game project on Kickstarter. Your enthusiasm and encouragement mean the world to me.
Unfortunately, it looks like the current campaign may not reach its funding goal.
As a solo indie developer, the success of this campaign is crucial for producing the game, and without it, I won’t have the necessary resources to proceed through traditional channels.
But don’t worry, this is not the end! I am already planning to relaunch the Kickstarter campaign in a few months with a new and improved strategy.
I believe that with the lessons I’ve learned, I can come back stronger and bring this game to life.
In the meantime, I invite you to stay connected and receive the latest updates by subscribing to my newsletter.
Just sign up to stay in the loop about the relaunch and other exciting news.
Thank you again for your incredible support. Together, we can make this game a reality!

Update: July 04, 2024:
Dear Backers and Supporters,
I want to extend my heartfelt thanks for your incredible support during my first Kickstarter campaign.
While we didn’t hit our funding goal this time, the experience has been invaluable, and I’m confident the lessons learned will pave the way for future success.
I’m already hard at work preparing for a new campaign, and I’d love for you to stay connected.
Be sure to subscribe to my newsletter for all the latest updates and announcements.
Thank you again for your belief in this project.

Update: September 20, 2024:
Over the past few months, several testers have played the game and provided valuable feedback on how we can make it even better.
We’re excited to announce that in the coming weeks, we’ll be incorporating these suggestions into a new version of the game.
Once the updates are complete, we’ll be launching a brand-new Kickstarter campaign to bring the latest version to life.
Stay tuned for more updates—exciting things are on the way!