I help you get unstuck in your game design.

Get your game to the finish line.

• You might want some help refining your game.
• You might have a core idea that needs exploring.
• You want access to years of experience and game design.

The last 10% is often the hardest.

I am able to help in any of the following ways, based on what’s needed and what you’d like me to be responsible for:

• Importing your game into Tabletop Simulator
• Running playtests
• Developing a game to ensure it hits the targets we’ve set (game length, number of players, complexity, etc.)
• Finding the best version of the game to transform into a product.
• Working around restrictions, such as box size, desired retail price, component count, etc.
• Getting that last 10% worth of work done to find the very best version of the game

Things that aren’t in my skillset

I do not currently offer any graphic design, art, or Kickstarter services.

Timeframes and pricing

Timeframes: I’ve worked with some clients for months, meeting with them once a week to show progress and talk about next steps. Your timeframe and deadlines are really important to understand, so the better we understand the timeframes at play, the more easily I can work to ensure all deadlines are met.

Pricing: while we may find a custom option that works best for us both during our Discovery call, these are the three standard packages that have worked for many clients. A down payment of 25%-50% is expected to start work, and milestones can be negotiated. When we’re done, the balance would be due.

Development only packages

(AKA ‘get my already-designed game to the finish line’)

Package 1 costs £500 GBP, and covers up to 15 hours of development. Let’s call this ‘light development’ – we might tweak some actions, do some brainstorming, or otherwise re-work a portion of the game. I take a maximum of 3 clients at a time for this package.

Package 2 costs £1,000 GBP, and covers up to 30 hours of development. I think of this as the ‘standard’ development package – this gives us lots of time to dig into every aspect of the game, from the core loop to potential expansions. I take a maximum of 2 clients at a time for this package.

Package 3 starts at £2,000 GBP, and covers up to 60 hours of development. This is most appropriate for medium-weight or heavy games with lots of systems, lots of scenarios, or for a game that needs to be completely taken apart and put back together. I take a maximum of 1 client at a time for this package.

Additional time is billed at £40/hour.

Design and development packages

(AKA ‘help me go from idea to final game’)

Package 1 costs £1,000 GBP, and covers up to 30 hours of design / development time. This is most suitable for simple, party, or family-weight games. I take a maximum of 3 clients at a time for this package.

Package 2 costs £2,000 GBP, and covers up to 60 hours of design / development time. I think of this as the ‘standard’ design / development package, as this gives us lots of time to dig into every aspect of the game, from the core loop to potential expansions.  I take a maximum of 2 clients at a time for this package.

Package 3 starts at £3,000 GBP, and covers up to 100 hours of design / development time. This is most appropriate for educational games, games for professionals, games for industry use, or bigger hobby games. I take a maximum of 1 client at a time for this package.

Additional time is billed at £40/hour.

Previous clients and testimonials

“We just hired Chris Backe to consult with us before we start pitching our game to publishers and it was a big help. Chris gave us a lot of helpful advice on focusing our materials more toward what publishers actually want to see. I just wanted to give him a shout out. Highly recommended!”

“…your meeting was extremely insightful and proved to give me tons of helpful pointers making my journey as a developer much more clear. I feel like I dodged bullets and got refined direction from you!”

“Chris has a wide breadth of game knowledge and an excellent eye for quality game mechanics.  He was very comprehensive with me on the feedback he gave.  He’s extremely easy to work with and I was glad I got a chance to have help me on my game.”

“I think direction was the real value. Actions I can take, are always more helpful than ideas. “Define the high level look of the game-play, and focus on creating a polishing introduction scenario experience.” In my situation, with where my head was at before, that advice was incredibly helpful.”