Tabletop Inc. Components Overview and Impressions

Tabletop Inc., previously released under a name we will not mention here!, is a game about making board games. Anything and everything you would expect of a board game can be found here in some capacity, including components, boxes, box lids, kallax style shelves, and more. While a game about making board games seems like a grand idea, is it? And more importantly, how much attention did the design group pay to components? Let’s take a look!

I’m usually all over when I write these articles, and that’s probably going to be the case here again. There is one thing in this game that blows my mind – the cardboard is so damn thick! That might seem like something not worth mentioning, but not only does this cardboard pop out well, it’s nice and sturdy. I will be talking about the Deluxe upgrades for this game further down in this article, but it’s worth noting that based on my handling of the retail copy of the game, the quality here is so good. This is not a situation where quality was compromised to encourage the purchase of deluxe components.

And without looking at any other game pieces, I knew that Tabletop Inc. was going to be a well produced game before I even dove deeper into the box or looked at the deluxe add-ons. If a company is willing to spend a good chunk of money making nice, thick cardboard components, there likely is no limit to their production quality. And that was definitely the case here.

Some of the cardboard components in Tabletop Inc. don’t have a deluxe equivalent, so perhaps that is why the cardboard is so good. While there are metal coins you can purchase, they did not come in the deluxe box. So, if you didn’t get them as an add-on during the Kickstrater campaign, or purchase them from your local store, you are “stuck” using the cardboard coins included in the box.

Trust me, that isn’t a slight at all as these coins are fantastic, with a unique shape and, if I can say it again, a cardboard thickness you don’t often see in board games! The component and mechanics pieces you put inside the included game boxes are also made of thick cardboard.

Speaking of boxes, it would be hard to create a board game….within a board game….without having game boxes and lids. Tabletop Inc. has tons of these, and while the cover you choose doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of the experience, it’s fun to see knock-off nods to popular games, such as Monopoly, for example.

It was almost as much fun guessing what each box was a knockoff of as it was playing the game itself! There is also an included cardboard (wooden – deluxe) kallax style shelf where you can display games when they are created – it’s a neat feature that definitely elevates the table presence of this game.

Apart from that, you have all the standard board game components you would come to expect – player pieces in all the colours, score markers (cardboard in retail, wooden in deluxe) and resources. The resources you use in the game are cardboard tiles in the retail edition, and really unique 3D pieces in the deluxe version: hour glasses, little white dice, and magnifying glasses. Again, the cardboard pieces are MORE than OK, but the 3D deluxe pieces are a nice way to elevate the Tabletop Inc. experience.

There are other game components we haven’t mentioned here, including easels for displaying your company name – this matters when making predictions so people know who you are – and trophy tiles (little metal trophies as enhancements in the deluxe version) that you will be trying to earn.

What might be the most impressive production achievement in this box, however, is available to all regardless of which version you pick up: a double sided game board, one side with beautiful art and a unique layout, and the other a “plain” experience that over-emphasizes the location of specific actions and removes the fluff that some gamers might not enjoy.

This is not a discourse on how companies display actions and spaces on boards – it is my tipping my hat to a company that just gets it. Providing two sides to a board is something not enough companies do, and it’s something I very much value here. Trust me, teaching Tabletop Inc. with the simplistic side of the board is a million times easier than on the busy, although visually more appealing, side.

Overall, I’m VERY impressed with the production value of Tabletop Inc. Regardless of whether you purchase just the base version of the game, or enhance the experience with the deluxe box, you are getting a quality product that should live up to dozens upon dozens of plays.