Games & Puzzles - The next move

Locked down UK families turned to games and puzzles in their millions in 2020, resulting in an astonishing year for the category. But with restrictions being phased out in the coming weeks, can the category maintain last year’s stellar performance? Rachael Simpson-Jones investigates, with the help some of the category’s biggest players.

In the weeks and months ahead, options for how to spend our free time are going to increase dramatically. Sports clubs and beer gardens will open once more, kids will be able to meet their friends in the park for a kickabout, and leisure travel will be back on the cards too. After 12 months of being stuck at home, it’ll be interesting to see how the Games & Puzzles category fares as we all start to enjoy our newfound freedom (sensibly, of course) – will the end of lockdown spell the end of games nights and puzzling sessions? Our contributors don’t think so.

“We believe the pandemic has reignited a love for playing games, and we expect to see a spike in sales as households are allowed to mix and start looking for entertainment to enjoy together,” says Emma Weber, marketing and licensing director, Vivid Goliath Group. “Most of our portfolio lends itself to multiple players; as we start to get back to the new normal, the more people who join in a game of Double Ditto or Battle of the Ages, the better.”

Roger Martin, Hobby & Independent Channel director for Asmodee UK, agrees. “It’s always been our experience that, once people discover or rediscover the joys of modern board games, it doesn’t take any convincing for them to keep playing,” he says. “Once lockdown ends, we expect to see people getting together more and playing more board games together. Everyone who’s fallen in love with Catan or Ticket to Ride will want to share it with their loved ones.”

It’ll also be interesting to see if new trends emerge this year that reflect what the end of lockdown means to us all in the same way that the trends of 2020 reflected being locked down. Demand for two-player games such as Asmodee’s Patchwork and Jaipur, and Exploding Kitten’s Tacocat Spelled Backwards, increased as couples sought new ways to enjoy each other’s (constant, never-ending) company, as did demand for family games and educational games that could be played by parents and their kids. Our lockdown viewing habits have resulted in an influx of games based on TV quiz and game shows (Taskmaster from Ginger Fox and The Floor is Lava from Vivid Goliath, for example) and viral social media challenges, as well as escape rooms and detective or murder mystery games which require more immersive, role-playing participation. Games that got us up and moving have been reacquainting us with the joys of movement in a fun way; in fact, Tomy’s Active Snap is one of UK & Ireland GM Mary Wood’s top recommendations for retailers.

“We’re proud that one in every two adult games sold in 2020 was from Drumond Park, and that we were No.2 overall in Children’s Games,” she adds. “Drumond Park and Tomy games are always very well supported from a marketing perspective – we understand the need to invest year in, year out - so retailers should be confident when they select a game from us. From a product development perspective, we have a winning formula with Logo and the ‘Best of’ games, which are part of the Logo family. The new Best of Kids and Best of Sport & Leisure are formats that are already familiar with consumers.”

Familiarity and brand trust remains an important factor in purchasing decisions, so it’s no surprise that classic and traditional games have entered 2021 on strong footing. Asmodee is welcoming a 25th Anniversary Edition of Catan as well as a 15th Anniversary Edition of Ticket to Ride to its portfolio this year, offering committed fans definitive versions of two classics that continue to grow in popularity, while Ravensburger celebrates Labyrinth’s 35th birthday with a packaging refresh and a raft of marketing activity across the second half of the year. Mattel, meanwhile, is marking the 50th anniversary of Uno with a raft of new product launches. The company, which ended 2020 as the No. 3 Games manufacturer, says classics remain an important part of its plans thanks to their unique gameplay and nostalgic feel. Kelly Philp, director of marketing, Mattel UK, adds: “Uno is and always has been the game for everyone, and 2021 will be no different. We have a host of exciting activity planned this year, with the new Uno Iconic line, comprising five retro decks for each decade since Uno first arrived in the market in 1971, a key launch. Last year, beloved word game Scrabble launched the Where Worlds Collide campaign and this will remain a key part in our plans in 2021, supporting the fantastic growth we have seen on the brand already - nearly 200% YTD. Pictionary Air, a modern twist on the classic game, has also performed incredibly well since launch. We will be expanding the range with new Pictionary Air Kids vs. Grown-Ups, with updated clues for adults and new kid-friendly clues, while continuing to support the brand within our media plans.”

Kids’ licences have also played a big part in decision making among parents; Ravensburger saw sales of its kids’ licensed 2D puzzle range increase by 31% in 2020, as parents sought non-screen related solutions to occupy and entertain their children. The company is bolstering its puzzle range this year with new items featuring popular characters including CoComelon, Bluey, Baby Shark and Super Mario.

“We consistently develop new additions to our market-leading licensed portfolio, adding new properties and generic designs every year,” comments Katy Fletcher, head of marketing and product development, Ravensburger. “Ravensburger has been developing market-leading games and puzzles for over 130 years and remains a family-owned company. That family ethos and interest in quality products lies at the heart of everything we do. We continue to invest heavily in consumer research, listening to our consumers and talking to our retailers to ensure we respond to market needs. Our talented, skilled and hugely experienced UK-based PD team works with local artists and designers, crafting unique, specially commissioned puzzle designs for all ages, abilities and tastes. Because more people than ever have turned to puzzles during lockdown, we’ve expanded our range of themes, art styles and formats/piece counts. We lead the market in developing new categories; our unique 3D puzzle range saw strong growth of +31% in 2021. New additions for this year include a 540-piece Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle and an impressive model of Sydney Opera House.”

From one type of 3D puzzle to another, Kidicraft has also seen success with its 3D-effect lenticular puzzles, particularly its Harry Potter, Selfies, Howard Robinson and Animal Planet ranges. The company says the popularity of its puzzles lies in their uniqueness, and the fact they aren’t widely available, making them a novel option. Image quality is also key. Kidicraft is lucky enough to work with several different partners including fantasy artists Lisa Parker and Anne Stokes, both of whom create stunning scenes that lend themselves well to lenticular image technology.

Roy Greenwood, Kidicraft director, continues: “The new range of Plush & Puzzle, featuring Harry Potter, Batman and more, opens up a new area for us and has already received great advanced orders, and the addition of the artist Steve Crisp to our traditional 1,000-piece puzzles range will further strengthen our offering in the traditional jigsaw puzzle market. We’ll continue to expand our ranges within this category throughout 2021 with further releases in the summer for Q3/Q4. We have also launched our first range of Christmas-themed 1,000-piece puzzles which will be available from August. These will be limited and available on pre-order basis, but with a minimum of only six units per design.”

The importance of traditional puzzles, which greatly appeal to older puzzlers, can’t be overestimated – especially when the most recent NPD figures indicate that £30m in value was added to the Games & Puzzles category in 2020, with over half that value on puzzles. In the months ahead, the mental health and mindfulness benefits of puzzles will doubtless play a role in helping some adults readjust to non-lockdown life, offering a quiet moment at the end of a busy day. Ravensburger had identified the rising demand for puzzle relaxation before lockdown, focusing its 2020 Positively Puzzling PR communications around the benefits of the activity, the importance of downtime and mindfulness, and the pleasure that comes from sharing time together with friends and family. Many consumers will also simply have discovered (or rediscovered) puzzling purely as a fun hobby and will be keen to carry on with it even when free time isn’t so free anymore. And while it’s great that kids are returning to school, calls from parents and education professionals for summer catch-up lessons reflect concerns that kids have simply missed too much time in the classroom during lockdown for the short pre-summer stint to undo. As a result, sales of educational games and puzzles may well continue to be high in the coming months.

“Ravensburger’s generic First Learning Fun range of children’s puzzles and games delivers plenty of fun but also offers educational benefits linked to the Early Years Foundation syllabus,” says Katy Fletcher. “Fun Day at Playgroup, Toys Tea Party, Where Do We Live and What’s the Weather help children develop understanding of their own environments, family structures and the world around them. Our generic sensory-based games, 123 Dough, Ready Steady Thread and ABC Sand with Me, introduce number, letter and shape recognition in a creative, gentle way, building lifelong confidence. New titles in these ranges will follow this autumn.” So, kids’ learning is being supported, and adult mental health and relaxation is too, but how are suppliers’ retail partners being supported? Asmodee, which offers a vast catalogue comprising more games than you could shake a stick at, is aware how important it is to make it as easy as possible for retailers to pick out the titles that will work best for their customers. Grouping key games together into specific ranges allows the company to not only do that, but also to support them with range-specific marketing initiatives. This, Roger Martin tells Toy World, helps titles to perform even better as part of a collection than they would as individual products. He adds: “We’ve also recently updated the contents of these ranges for 2021 to ensure that they are as optimised as possible, as well as launching the new Two-Player Games and Brain Games collections in direct response to the trends of the last year. We’re reacting quickly to provide retailers with what they need.”

Kidicraft, meanwhile, has made a commitment to maintain its 2020 prices throughout this year, noting the pressure on prices across all categories due to increasing import freight costs. The company’s low carriage paid order value also allows retailers’ channels to maintain good representation, while not tying up essential cashflow. “We see that we must try and maintain our retailers’ margins, especially as prices are also coming under pressure from the increase in online sales,” explains Roy Greenwood.

Over at Vivid Goliath, the sales team will be working with the company’s partners to curate the best ranges for each retailer’s customer base across TV lines and best-sellers, complemented by a strong FOB offering so each and every account has a tailored range and product mix. Vivid Goliath also invested in a TV campaign over Easter to help maintain the sales momentum it has enjoyed throughout Q1. The marketing campaigns, which also include YouTube, will reach kids as well as parents and gifters by making good use of creative content. Emma Weber says that while this is a vital factor in the company securing its share of voice in what is a very competitive market, these campaigns can only be as good as the games behind them. “We have a strong line up, mixing classics such as Shark Bite, Gator Golf, Don’t Wake Dad, Doggie Doo and Wordsearch with innovation and new formats across Sequence and the Floor is Lava - already a huge best seller in the US – plus our new Escape Room games. We are also excited to grow our stake in crime games with Unsolved Case Files, another massive US hit, as well as There’s Been A Murder.”

When we asked how Tomy would be supporting its retailers this year, Mary Wood pointed out that Tomy is enjoying fabulous support from them, turning the question somewhat on its head. The company’s marketing plans are still evolving, but will combine the strongest elements of TV, social media, digital and PR, with each title in the Tomy and Drumond Park portfolios benefitting from a bespoke programme. However, Mary adds: “The best way to support our retailers is to ensure we have a good supply of stock for our trusted best-sellers; given the current sales forecasts, and the orders we’re taking from our partners, we are going to need to make some big commitments!”