Asmodee Entertainment’s Catan steps into footwear partnership with Plainview Shoes

Asmodee Entertainment has struck up a partnership with  Plainview Shoes to take its popular Catan brand into the world of fashionable footwear. The new range, spanning flip flops and trainers, is scheduled to launch to the North American market in 2021.

Plainview has made a success of licensed footwear in the past, having previously partnered with Capcom to launch footwear based on its portfolio of video games. Under the Asmodee partnership, the firm will channel the Catan board game’s themes of trading, building, and settling into a new range.

 “We are excited that we can add Catan to our portfolio of gaming footwear,” said Lyndon Tucker, president of Plainview Shoes.

“After partnering with Capcom for footwear based on various videogames, Catan was the logical choice for us to expand into tabletop games and its huge fanbase. Catan is the premier boardgame of our time. It truly is a modern classic and many of us let this quirky German boardgame into our lives in our twenties.

“Catan is both full of nostalgia and very current, with its central element of cooperative competition for the good of all and the stewardship of natural resources. Gaming Properties in the licensed footwear space are greatly underrepresented and we know there are a great many fans out there who look to express themselves with gaming-inspired footwear.”

 David Harris, creative director of Plainview, added: “When Lyndon first talked about adding a boardgame brand to our portfolio, I had one hope: please let it be Catan!

“Catan has a unique design language and within the fan community there are many in-jokes around trading, building and settling. Concept works are already on the way and we are looking forward to the day when we can show more.”

 Since its creation in 1995 by Klaus Teuber, Catan and its many expansions have sold more than 32 million games around the world. The game is published in more than 40 languages and is sold in more than 70 territories.

As the world’s pre-eminent boardgame, Catan is a global phenomenon that enjoys growing success as a lifestyle brand through Asmodee Entertainment’s strategic partnerships with carefully selected premium brand licensees. The collaboration with Plainview is one of several announced in recent months.

“We know how important Catan is for its fans. Trading, building and settling is an integral part of many of their social lives, be it through their regular gaming nights or through Catan tournaments. The game is a regular social anchor for many and with its elegant, nature-focused design elements it has already become a lifestyle brand,” said Alexander Thieme, licensing manager at Asmodee Entertainment.

“It is great to see Plainview coming on board as one of the first apparel licensees in the US, following Hot Topic.”

Asmodee’s licensing game: “It’s about time this happened, the fans out there are starving for stuff”

“The world is going to look very different now that Asmodee – one of the biggest players in the board gaming sector – is very actively pushing into licensing,” Alexander Thieme, manager of licensed publishing and consumer products, Asmodee Entertainment, promises.

The board game giant kicked off October with a show of force when it entered Festival of Licensing’s European leg with a tranche of partnership announcements covering both its hobby gaming portfolio and publishing imprint Aconyte Books.

Tapping into a fanbase and core audience of gamers and pop culture fans that are “positively starving for Asmodee licensing,” all of a sudden, the international hobby gaming specialist was landing graphic novel deals with CMON, bringing its artwork to the fore in pop culture collaborations, and partnering with the major entertainment studio, Ubisoft, to develop novels based on some of the largest video gaming IP on the planet.

Alexander Thieme, licensing manager of publishing and consumer products, Asmodee Entertainment

Yet while it may seem there’s not been a day over the last two weeks that a new development hasn’t emerged from Asmodee Entertainment, Thieme confidently informs us this is just the beginning.

“It’s about time this happened,” he tells Licensing.biz. “The fans out there are hungry, they are starving for stuff. Whenever I talk to fans and tell that I do the licensing, I ask them what they are looking for – is it comics, is it this, or that? And they bite my hand off. They are really crazy for it right now.

“But it’s the truth to say that we are just getting started.”

And that must be music to the ears. As dedication to a cause goes, you’ll find few more resolute than the tabletop gaming audience and the connection they have with their favourite titles. Yet, for so long, this has been a vastly under-served, if not, unrecognised market. With tabletop, hobby, and board gaming reaching new global heights, Asmodee Entertainment is on a mission to change all of that.

“I was part of the inventory at Games Workshop for many years, and I know the fanbase and the depths of their immersion,” says Thieme. “But I was surprised at how strong the connection is here, between fans and their board game titles.

“Arkham Horror is one of those that I am just super fascinated with how positive or how engaged the fans are when we announce something. It is incredible, they just pour out their love. The trick now is to find the right partners that are willing to jump into the boat with us.”

This will be Thieme’s remit. In the ten short months since he joined the board gaming giant, he has already seen this side to the business begin to flourish. The formation of Aconyte Books last has been an ace up the sleeve for the games publisher, having given the company a swinging door through which to license in and license out. It’s allowed the company to align itself with major entertainment companies such as Marvel and Ubisoft, as well as a platform from which it can propel titles like Twilight Imperium or Arkham Horror outside of the board game space.

“For me,” says Thieme, “as much as Asmodee’s statement is that there is a game for every gamer, I believe that here, there is a brand for every licensee. It’s about finding the right commercial endeavours.

“Dobble behaves very differently and has different opportunities to Arkham Horror. Catan is a beautiful hybrid of a mass market casual game and a super-ingrained hobby game. All of this produces very distinct audiences and very distinct opportunities.”

It’s just a matter of unearthing them. And that is what excites Thieme the most. His is a vision for Asmodee Entertainment unburdened by limitations of the IP. His is a belief that the opportunities are boundless, and that the success can be big. Bigger even than video gaming.

“How far can the medium be taken into licensing? That’s a simple answer,” he says. “Look at other media, such as video games, and how they are branching out. We have three licensing managers here at Asmodee; me for publishing and consumer products, a licensing manager for interactive games – so we can do interactive licensing next to us having our own publisher, and we have someone in Los Angeles talking television and film.

“There is no segment or category that won’t work. Of course, it won’t be everything for all of it. Dobble as a movie will not work. Dobble in a TV show… that can work. Dobble in apparel? Absolutely. Dobble in publishing? Oh yes. Comics or a Dobble Kids’ magazine? Hell yes.

The chances that Asmodee has as a licensor are gigantic. But it is early days right now; we are getting the first people in the boat and getting the market used to the idea that there is more to a board game than just rolling a dice. Customers and consumers are emotionally linked to them.”

What is intrinsic to Asmodee’s output is its storytelling. The board gaming scene thrives off its immersive storytelling; it’s ability to bring an audience one level deeper into a narrative by having them play a role within it. Of course, you can argue that video games do it just as well. Thieme will argue back that what analogue gaming delivers, however, is a social, shared-experience of living a narrative together.

“There’s a social story happening with every board game,” he explains. “I and many others find stories in board games that we remember for the rest of our lives. These social stories are extremely strong, and strong for licensing because what you want is a brand that someone will wear in their heart.

“Board games are in the home, on the table and a part of your life, more so, I would say, than digital games. You see the people around you. You have a drink with them, it’s a shared experience and it creates social fabric, and this is the canvass that we paint the licensing programme on.”

It’s with this that Asmodee Entertainment can start to have fun with the licensing endeavours it embarks upon. Over the coming months or years, promises Thieme, fans will begin to see what he calls ‘licensing with secret handshakes,’ or ‘guerrilla licensing’; the kind that will nod to the internal jokes or idiosyncrasies found in individual gaming titles.

“I call them the secret handshake of the geek, the kind where you’ll have just a symbol on a hat or something subtle,” says Thieme. “Of course you’ll have more obvious ones, but games like Arkham Horror or Pandemic are good for those idiosyncrasies.

“I think this will all be very welcomed. I think there has been a media fatigue in licensing and people are looking to break the monotony and be more dynamic. It’s why I can assure you, Asmodee Entertainment has plenty more to come.”

Asmodee’s Aconyte Books details publishing plans for hit board game IP Zombicide and Terraforming Mars

Aconyte Books, the fiction imprint and publishing arm of Asmodee Entertainment, has detailed a raft of new partnerships with some of the leading names in tabletop gaming to develop a series of novels set within the worlds of a selection of the most critically acclaimed board games.

Kicking off the latest signings, the publishing arm has secured a multi-year agreement with CMON – otherwise known as Cool Mini Or Not – to create a new series of novels set in the worlds of its popular Zombicide range of games.

Having made its debut back in 2012, Zombicide became the first of a wildly popular series of tabletop games that pit players against the walking dead. Featuring detailed miniatures and fast-action gameplay, the games have since picked up legions of players around the globe.

As well as the modern day original, CMON has also developed versions set in medieval times (Zombicide: Black Plague) and far out in the depths of space (Zombicide: Invader). Aconyte now plans to publish novels based on all three settings with the first title expected to hit shops in time for Halloween 2021.

Aconyte publisher Marc Gascoigne, commented: “We love Zombicide, for the all-out mayhem of the game, the passion of its dedicated following – and the lovingly detailed (and incredibly deadly) worlds that its designers have created. There are a whole bunch of stories we want to create, to explore their secrets further.”

CMON’s COO David Preti, added: “We designed the Zombicide games to tell exciting stories populated with iconic characters who had unique personalities that came through in the gameplay.

“We wanted each play session to feel like its own pulp novel. We’re so happy to have a great partner in Aconyte, who understands the world and tone of the game, and is going to put these stories in prose for the first time.”

Continuing its ambitious mission to set up new content platforms for its own and third-party properties, Aconyte has also detailed a multi-year agreement with FryxGames to create new novels set in the world of its own Terraforming Mars games.

Since its launch in 2016, the original Terraforming Mars has been a firm favourite with gamers, and currently sits at number four in the all-time best games list on Boardgamegeek.com.

Designed by Jacob Fryxelius and published by the Swedish games company set up by him and his brothers, the game has grown in scope with several expansions, and is now available in more than 25 languages. Set in the early 2400s, Terraforming Mars explores the many challenges facing mankind as rival corporations attempt to open up the inhospitable surface of the Red Planet to make it fit for human settlers.

The underlying spirit of the game is one of optimism and scientific progress, qualities the novels will embody.

Aconyte’s Gascoigne, said: “We’re big fans of the Terraforming Mars games, and we’re looking forward to telling epic tales of science fiction exploration and adventure in this exciting setting. We may have our problems down here on Earth, but these novels will provide a much needed escape to a different world.”

FryxGames’s CEO, Enoch Fryxelius, added: “Terraforming Marsis a game of bold and innovative ideas to take on the hostile environment of an alien planet, and turn it into a living, breathing biosphere and a vibrant human civilization.

“We are excited to see some of these ideas come to life and become the backdrop of inspiring stories. Through these novels we hope that more people will be dreaming about Mars and the future of human exploration.”

The first Terraforming Mars novel is expected to hit shops in summer 2021, with several further volumes being planned.

Asmodee Entertainment brings board game art work to life in Artovision partnership

Asmodee Entertainment has signed a new licensing partnership with Artovision to bring to life several of its tabletop gaming properties through Artovision’s innovative multi-dimensional art collectables. Under the deal, Artovision will develop pieces inspired by the artwork of Catan, Arkham Horror, Twilight Imperium, KeyForge, and Legend of the Five Rings.

Each property is known for their use of high quality illustrations throughout the game. The move is the latest in Asmodee’s ongoing assault on the pop culture licensing space as the board game giant continues to mine its IP portfolio for partnerships in the wider consumer products and entertainment space.

The development is reflective of the growing popularity of the tabletop gaming scene with many of the Asmodee titles going mainstream or finding new audiences throughout the lockdown period.

The partnership with Artovision will see boardgame artwork now produced as shadowbox and desktop artwork, bringing some of the brand’s most iconic pieces of art to life with a three-dimensional depth. Artovision’s shadowbox artwork combines four layers of full-colour art, each printed on optical grade cast acrylic and assembled within a durable frame.

“It is absolutely fantastic to see what Artovision is doing with iconic art pieces from the  worlds of pop culture. Bringing them to a multi-dimensional medium brings out details  and perspectives in a fantastic new way. I can’t wait to see the fans react to some of the  designs that the guys at Artovision are preparing at the moment,” said Alexander  Thieme, licensing manager at Asmodee Entertainment. 

Stuart Sandler, CEO of Artovision, added: “To work with such an immersive artwork portfolio  is truly amazing for us. Through our friends at Asmodee Entertainment, we are currently  working with the renowned Catan Studio and Fantasy Flight Games studios, creators of  the game franchises, to bring all of our experience in the medium to bear and create  some multi-dimensional art pieces to truly delight the fans.”

Klaus Teuber’s Catan is recognised as a highly visual and engaging game, known for the compelling art style of its box covers, board and other game components. Developed by Asmodee’s  Catan Studio, the modern classic celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2020/21 and enjoys a  great and growing audience all over the globe. 

Meanwhile, Twilight Imperium is a genre-defining strategy game set against the backdrop of a  sweeping, epic space opera with awe-inspiring, epic art to match. The cyber-noir setting  of Android sees mega corporations battling for dominance in an AI-enhanced future and  is, like Twilight Imperium, KeyForge and Legend of the Five Rings, a product of Asmodee’s  renowned Fantasy Flight Games studio.

KeyForge is the world’s first Unique Deck Game,  known for its deep, immersive melting-pot universe where anything is possible, with stunning card art central to its appeal.

The world of Rokugan, home to Legend of the Five  Rings, offers an epic fantasy vista and provides the backdrop for a range of beloved tabletop games.

The chosen properties stand out as some of the most beautifully  illustrated brands to be found anywhere in world, traits which make them a perfect fit  for Artovision’s innovate, ultra high-quality shadowbox and desktop artworks.  

The first products of this collaboration are due to launch in fall 2020. 

Asmodee Entertainment brings board game art work to life in Artovision partnership

Asmodee Entertainment has signed a new licensing partnership with Artovision to bring to life several of its tabletop gaming properties through Artovision’s innovative multi-dimensional art collectables. Under the deal, Artovision will develop pieces inspired by the artwork of Catan, Arkham Horror, Twilight Imperium, KeyForge, and Legend of the Five Rings.

Each property is known for their use of high quality illustrations throughout the game. The move is the latest in Asmodee’s ongoing assault on the pop culture licensing space as the board game giant continues to mine its IP portfolio for partnerships in the wider consumer products and entertainment space.

The development is reflective of the growing popularity of the tabletop gaming scene with many of the Asmodee titles going mainstream or finding new audiences throughout the lockdown period.

The partnership with Artovision will see boardgame artwork now produced as shadowbox and desktop artwork, bringing some of the brand’s most iconic pieces of art to life with a three-dimensional depth. Artovision’s shadowbox artwork combines four layers of full-colour art, each printed on optical grade cast acrylic and assembled within a durable frame.

“It is absolutely fantastic to see what Artovision is doing with iconic art pieces from the  worlds of pop culture. Bringing them to a multi-dimensional medium brings out details  and perspectives in a fantastic new way. I can’t wait to see the fans react to some of the  designs that the guys at Artovision are preparing at the moment,” said Alexander  Thieme, licensing manager at Asmodee Entertainment. 

Stuart Sandler, CEO of Artovision, added: “To work with such an immersive artwork portfolio  is truly amazing for us. Through our friends at Asmodee Entertainment, we are currently  working with the renowned Catan Studio and Fantasy Flight Games studios, creators of  the game franchises, to bring all of our experience in the medium to bear and create  some multi-dimensional art pieces to truly delight the fans.”

Klaus Teuber’s Catan is recognised as a highly visual and engaging game, known for the compelling art style of its box covers, board and other game components. Developed by Asmodee’s  Catan Studio, the modern classic celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2020/21 and enjoys a  great and growing audience all over the globe. 

Meanwhile, Twilight Imperium is a genre-defining strategy game set against the backdrop of a  sweeping, epic space opera with awe-inspiring, epic art to match. The cyber-noir setting  of Android sees mega corporations battling for dominance in an AI-enhanced future and  is, like Twilight Imperium, KeyForge and Legend of the Five Rings, a product of Asmodee’s  renowned Fantasy Flight Games studio.

KeyForge is the world’s first Unique Deck Game,  known for its deep, immersive melting-pot universe where anything is possible, with stunning card art central to its appeal.

The world of Rokugan, home to Legend of the Five  Rings, offers an epic fantasy vista and provides the backdrop for a range of beloved tabletop games.

The chosen properties stand out as some of the most beautifully  illustrated brands to be found anywhere in world, traits which make them a perfect fit  for Artovision’s innovate, ultra high-quality shadowbox and desktop artworks.  

The first products of this collaboration are due to launch in fall 2020. 

Asmodee’s Aconyte Books strikes UK distribution deal with Simon & Schuster

Aconyte Books, the fiction imprint of the global games company, Asmodee Entertainment has entered into a distribution agreement with Simon & Schuster for the UK book trade.

Under the new deal, the publishing house will handle sales and distribution when the Aconyte portfolio launches in the UK this October. A partnership with Simon & Schuster is already in place for the US market.

Aconyte’s mission it to create deep tie-in fiction set in the fantasy world’s of much of Asmodee’s game portfolio, as well as those of other partners including Marvel.

Sarah Anderson, client publishing director at Simon & Schuster, said: “We are delighted to welcome Aconyte to the Simon & Schuster family, and we look forward to a long and fruitful partnership over the years to come.”

Aconyte’s publisher, Marc Gascoigne added: “This is lovely news. We’re doing something a little different with fantasy fiction, and the experienced team at Simon & Schuster are a perfect fit. With their impressive track record handling tie-in books based on world-famous properties, Simon & Schuster are the ideal partners to help launch our novels into the British book trade.”

Asmodee Entertainment stikes deal with Dark Horse Comics to develop tabletop art book series

Asmodee Entertainment is secured a new partnership with Dark Horse Comics to create a series of licensed art books for three of the tabletop gaming titan’s leading gaming properties.

Under the new deal, Dark Horse has tapped into Asmodee’s portfolio of over 300 gaming IPs to curate a collection of unique art books showcasing the artwork from the worlds of Android Universe, Arkham Horror, and KeyForge through a collection of never-before-seen art and commentary.

Delving into the games from the renowned games studio, Fantasy Flight Games, the first of the three art books will debut at the end of this year, or early next year. Dark Horse’s art books have been billed as ‘the perfect companion piece for fans of these beloved game universes.’

“With their amazing range of top-quality art and background books, Dark Horse is a natural partner for capturing the richly detailed and very stylistically different worlds of Arkham Horror, KeyForge and the Android Universe through this first series of artbooks,” said Andy Jones, head of Asmodee Entertainment.

Dark Horse Comics editor, Ian Tucker, added: “As a tabletop gamer with many an Asmodee product populating my overflowing shelves, I’m beyond excited to be working with Asmodee and the rest of the Dark Horse team to bring these books to life.

“Our goal is to showcase these diverse and exciting properties in all their glorious detail, and we can’t wait to share the fruits of this partnership with readers, players and fans.”

Asmodee Entertainment appoints Games Workshop’s Christian Dunn as interactive game licensing manager

Asmodee Entertainment has appointed the 20 year licensing and publishing veteran Christian Dunn to the role of interactive games licensing manager.

Dunn joins the team from Games Workshop and will principally be focusing on interactive licensing opportunities across Asmodee’s gaming brands, including Catan, Ticket to Ride, Dobble, Arkham Horror, Keyforge, and Legend of the Five Rings.

Based at Asmodee Entertainment’s head office in the UK, he will be forging ahead with many opportunities in PC, console, mobile and VR gaming, working closely with Asmodee Entertainment’s LA-based SVP of business development Darren Kyman.

Kyman himself is currently is focusing on developing Asmodee’s wealth of intellectual properties for TV, film and other media opportunities, while Alexander Thieme – who has recently come on board – focuses on merchandise, apparel, consumer products, publishing and other core licensing categories.

Andy Jones, head of Asmodee Entertainment said: “Recently we made the truly exciting announcement that, together with our partners at Asmodee Digital, we are opening the doors for more of Asmodee’s amazing IPs to be available in the interactive gaming space through licensing partnerships across a wide range of exciting opportunities.

“I am really pleased that Christian has joined the Asmodee Entertainment team as another key recruit to help us take this initiative from vision to reality. Christian brings years of experience plus an unparalleled enthusiasm for the opportunity, so it is a pleasure to welcome him aboard.”

Asmodee Entertainment and Hourglass Escapes unleash the Arkham Horror Files franchise on experiential licensing

The Seattle-based puzzle room specialists, Hourglass Escapes – renowned in the pop culture circles for its licensed Evil Dead 2 escape room, has partnered with Asmodee Entertainment to unleash a new brand of horror to the experiential genre.

Working with the board game publisher-turned-entertainment studio, Hourglass Escapes has constructed a new Escape Room experience inspired by the Arkham Horror Files tabletop gaming franchise.

The launch will mark the first of its kind for Asmodee Entertainment and Fantasy Flight Games as it delivers “Lovecraftian monsters in the first official Arkham Horror Files escape room in the US.”

Hourglass Escape’s officially licensed Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn Escape Room has become a hit with pop culture fans, having received over 100 five-star reviews.

“It was such an amazing experience developing and opening the Evil Dead 2 Escape Room,” said Hourglass Escapes’ founder and creative director, Seth Wolfson. “We feel so lucky to have a chance to create a new experience based on the iconic board and card games set in the Arkham Horror Universe published by Fantasy Flight Games.”

The concept will launch this summer and will transport participants back to 1927 where the owner of the Gilman Hotel on the coast of Innsmouth has died under mysterious circumstances. Players will have 70 minutes to solve the unnatural mystery or fall prey to its horrors.

As an added level of geekdom, the voice actor of Spider-Man from the PS4 game Marvel’s Spider-Man, Yuri Lowenthal will star as the in-game narrator. Players will also be able to download their characters and costume ideas, as well as receive a special item on arrival that will help their chosen character within the game.

“This new game is going to blow both Arkham Horror and Lovecraftian fans away,” said Wolfson. “Based on A Shadow Over Innsmouth, this will be a story driven escape room with the classic Arkham Horror Files game mechanics woven in.”