BOARD GAMES 3: What’s in a name?

What It Covers

Planet Money partners with Exploding Kittens to create a board game based on asymmetric information economics. The team navigates the high-stakes process of naming and theming their game for big box retail stores like Target and Walmart, ultimately settling on "Sell Me a Sasquatch" despite international market concerns.

Key Questions Answered

• •Three-Second Retail Rule: Big box retailers operate on a "three feet, three seconds" principle where customers standing three feet from a shelf have only three seconds to decide whether to pick up a game. This constraint makes naming and visual theming the most critical factor in retail success, potentially overriding even superior gameplay mechanics.
• •Target Customer Demographics: The primary big box game buyer is millennial women aged 28-44 who control household purchasing decisions. They buy games for two specific reasons: immediate use at game night that evening or as gifts for others. Understanding this demographic drives all naming and theming decisions for mass market success.
• •International Market Impact: European markets represent 20-30% of game sales and growing, but cultural differences matter significantly. France prefers complex card games, Spain and Italy favor dynamic physical games like throwing foam burritos, while Germany gravitates toward psychology-themed games. A name unfamiliar to European markets can tank international sales.
• •Nostalgia-Driven Design: Targeting elder millennials with themes that trigger 1980s-90s childhood memories (X-Files, Unsolved Mysteries) creates emotional connections that drive purchases. The cryptid theme taps into this generational nostalgia while trending upward in current pop culture, making it both familiar and fresh for the target demographic.
• •Retail Timeline Requirements: Games must be delivered to big box retailers by July to secure shelf space for the following Christmas season, creating an 18-month development window. Missing this deadline means waiting another full year, making quick decision-making on naming and theming essential despite the high stakes involved.