What Pandasaurus Games does

Pandasaurus Games is a privately held hobby board game publisher founded in 2012 and headquartered in Austin, Texas (legal entity: Pandasaurus, LLC). The company specializes in designer tabletop games spanning multiple genres — worker placement (Dinosaur Island, Shackleton Base), tableau building (Castle Combo, Faraway), set collection (Sea Salt & Paper, Abyss), engine building (Knarr), cooperative (The Mind, The LOOP), and trick-taking (Tricky Kids, Moustache) — with a catalog of 30+ active SKUs priced from $9.95 expansions to $89.95 premium Eurogames. The technology stack is deliberately minimal: a Shopify-powered e-commerce storefront serves as the primary sales channel, supplemented by third-party digital platforms (Board Game Arena, Tabletop Simulator) for online play, and the company does not develop proprietary software or technology. Manufacturing and game design appear to be outsourced or contracted, consistent with the lean 1-10 person team.

The business model combines direct-to-consumer sales through pandasaurusgames.com (with free US shipping over $49.95 and global shipping to 50+ countries), wholesale distribution to game retailers, Walmart exclusive editions, and international publishing partnerships with Lumberjack Studios (Australia/New Zealand/South Africa), Sorry We Are French, and Bombyx for cross-border title distribution. Digital licensing to Board Game Arena generates royalty revenue across four titles. Customer acquisition combines organic channels (BGG community, Discord, blog, multi-platform social media) with event-driven sales at gaming conventions — most notably Gen Con, which the company called its most successful in history in 2025. The company serves four distinct personas: casual/family gamers (small-box quick-play titles), hobby board gamers (strategic Eurogames), party/social groups, and digital/online players, with a horizontal segmentation strategy that targets the broader hobby gaming market rather than a single vertical niche.

Name

Pandasaurus Games

Legal name

Pandasaurus, LLC

Website

https://pandasaurusgames.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Pandasaurus Games is a privately held Austin, Texas-based designer board game publisher (founded 2012) serving casual, family, and hobby gamers through a 30+ title catalog sold via DTC e-commerce, retail, Walmart exclusives, and international publishing partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Tabletop Board Games

NAICS

Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912)

SIC

Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)

akta.pro primary industry

Board Game & Puzzle Specialty Retailers (CRALALAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Hobby Games & Miniatures Retail (Tabletop RPGs, Wargaming) (CRALAFAH)

Keywords

• Board game publishing
• Tabletop games
• Designer card games
• Hobby games
• Family games

Headquarters

HQ city

Austin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Physical Board Game Sales: Direct sales of physical board games through their e-commerce storefront and retail distribution channels. Products include base games, expansions, and accessories priced from $9.95 to $89.95 MSRP.
2. Digital Platform Licensing: Licensing agreements with Board Game Arena for digital adaptations of games like Castle Combo, Knarr, Paper World, and Silver & Gold, enabling players to play games online through the platform.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Pandasaurus Games is a board game and card game publisher that designs, publishes, and sells designer hobby tabletop games. The company produces physical games across multiple genres including worker placement, tableau building, set collection, trick-taking, cooperative, and flip-and-write, sold primarily direct-to-consumer through its own Shopify-powered online store and through retail and international distribution partnerships.

Product overview

Pandasaurus Games is a board game publisher offering a diverse portfolio of tabletop games. Their core offerings include worker placement games like Dinosaur Island and Shackleton Base: A Journey to the Moon, tableau builders such as Castle Combo (their highest-ranked game) and Faraway, set collection games like Sea Salt & Paper, engine builders like Knarr, cooperative games including The Mind and The LOOP, and flip-and-write games like Silver & Gold. They publish partner games through collaborations with studios like Lumberjack Studios and Sorry We Are French. The product line includes digital integrations through Board Game Arena and Tabletop Simulator. Their offerings span family-friendly games to strategic euros, with many titles receiving industry awards and recognition.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dinosaur Island Worker placement game where players build and manage their own dinosaur theme park, collecting DNA to clone dinosaurs, hiring staff, and building attractions.
• Castle Combo Fast tableau-builder card game where players recruit characters from two markets and place them in a 3x3 grid, chaining abilities for maximum combo impact. Plays in 15-25 minutes.
• Dinosaur Island: Rawr 'n Write Roll-and-write evolution of Dinosaur Island where players draft amber DNA dice, collect resources, breed dinosaurs, and draw their park layout on sheets.
• Shackleton Base: A Journey to the Moon Eurogame strategy game featuring worker placement, resource management, and modular sandbox system where players lead space agencies establishing a base at the Moon's South Pole.
• Abyss Underwater-themed set collection and auction game where players win allies, recruit Lords, and seize control of strategic locations to rule the Abyssal kingdom.
• Sea Salt & Paper Small-box set collection card game with push-your-luck mechanic featuring stunning origami-inspired artwork where players collect sea creatures and decide when to call STOP.
• Faraway Tableau builder where players explore a mysterious continent, drafting Region cards and building tableaux scored in reverse order at game end.
• Knarr Viking engine-building game where players recruit crew, build their engine, and spend it to explore territories for glory and riches.
• The Mind Cooperative card game where players must play cards in ascending order without communicating, teaching nonverbal communication.
• Silver & Gold Flip-and-write game where players race to complete island cards by marking off X's in the right configurations using dry-erase cards.
• The LOOP Cooperative game where players travel between eras, destroy clones, complete missions, and manage rifts to stop Dr. Faux from tearing through space-time.
• Paper World Card game where players take or place cards matching by color or value to build personal 3x3 paper landscapes and score points through stacking and objectives.
• Tricky Kids Trick-taking game where players write their own card values each round, creating a fresh puzzle where players navigate playground economics.
• Beacon Patrol Game featuring exploration and patrol mechanics published by Pandasaurus Games.
• Machi Koro 5th Anniversary Edition Celebratory reissue of the classic city-building dice game with updated components.
• Machi Koro 2 Sequel to Machi Koro where players build entire cities on the table with quick, easy-to-teach gameplay.
• The Game Cooperative card game where players must play all cards onto discard piles following simple placement rules.
• Courtisans Card game featuring simple mechanics and engaging gameplay for two players.
• Tulikko Fast, beautiful tile-laying game inspired by northern folklore where players explore mystical forests and race to harness aurora power.
• Gulo Gulo Dexterity game where players carefully remove colored eggs from a nest without tipping an alarm pole to rescue a baby wolverine.
• Kingdom Crossing Strategy game where players help Queen Beavery build a bridge, traveling across forests and islands with helpful animal guilds. Features solo mode with four difficulty levels.
• Hacienda Conservation-themed strategy game where players work as conservationists to restore Patagonian wildlife habitats and welcome visitors.
• Moustache Trick-taking game for 3-6 players featuring animals with magnificent moustaches where teams and rules change every round.
• Sandcastles Drafting and tile-laying game for 2-6 players where players competitively build sandcastles over 15 rounds with drafting pressure.
• Abyss: Leviathan Expansion for Abyss that replaces the threat track with a border board where players fight Leviathan sea monsters to prove their worth.
• Abyss: De Profundis Booster expansion for Abyss introducing 10 Outcast cards with unique powers that can steal Locations from opponents.
• Castle Combo: Out of the Oubliette First expansion for Castle Combo adding 12 new characters, fresh scoring opportunities, and Lock ability mechanism for one-time tactical powers.
• Shackleton Base: Below. Within. Above. First expansion for Shackleton Base introducing game-changing scoring moments and expanded leader abilities.
• Faraway: Under Starry Skies Second expansion for Faraway adding meteor shower scoring mechanics to the base game.

Quantifiable outcome

• Three games on BGG Most Played list simultaneously as of May 2026
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Lumberjack StudioscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 May 2026Partnership with Lumberjack Studios to bring Moustache to the US, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa markets.
• BombyxcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 August 2025Partnership with Bombyx to bring Refuge to the US market. Bombyx develops the game while Pandasaurus handles US publishing and distribution.
• Lumberjack StudioscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 April 2025Partnership with Lumberjack Studios to bring Paper World to the US, Australia, and New Zealand markets. Pandasaurus handles publishing and distribution in these regions for this Lumberjack Studios title.
• Sorry We Are FrenchcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 April 2025Partnership with Sorry We Are French to bring Kingdom Crossing to US players. Pandasaurus handles US publishing and distribution for this internationally-developed game.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Stonemaier Games: Stonemaier Games is an independently-owned board game publisher behind hit titles like Wingspan, Scythe, and Viticulture. Most comparable to Pandasaurus as a similarly-sized designer hobby game publisher with direct-to-consumer sales, digital adaptations, and convention-driven community building.
• Leder Games: Leder Games publishes strategy-oriented hobby games like Root, Oath, and Vast. Comparable as a boutique designer game publisher targeting the same hobby gamer segment with award-winning titles and a similar catalog depth and pricing strategy.
• Restoration Games: Restoration Games revives and re-implements classic board games with modern design and components, similar to how Pandasaurus handles reissues like Machi Koro 5th Anniversary Edition. Comparable target market and design philosophy around accessible hobby gaming.
• Renegade Game Studios: Renegade Game Studios publishes a diverse portfolio of hobby and family games including Clank!, My Father\u2019s Work, and Power Rangers Heroes. Directly comparable as a similarly-sized independent publisher with broad genre coverage and strong retail distribution.
• Greater Than Games: Greater Than Games publishes designer games like Spirit Island, Sentinels of the Multiverse, and Billionaire Banshee. Comparable as a boutique hobby publisher with strong community engagement and award-winning catalog depth.
• CMON (Cool Mini Or Not): CMON publishes thematic and hobby games like Zombicide, Blood Rage, and Marvel United. Comparable as a designer game publisher with convention presence, Kickstarter history, and overlapping hobby game customer base, though operating at larger scale.
• Plaid Hat Games: Plaid Hat Games publishes hobby and family games including Mice and Mystics, Summoner Wars, and Stuffed Fables. Comparable as an independent designer game publisher with a similar focus on quality components and accessible-but-deep mechanics.

Broad incumbents

• Asmodee: Asmodee is the world's largest hobby game publisher with brands including Catan, Ticket to Ride, and 7 Wonders. Broad incumbent with overlapping customer base and similar product categories, but operates at vastly larger scale with portfolio diversification beyond what Pandasaurus offers.
• Days of Wonder: Days of Wonder, an Asmodee subsidiary, publishes hit hobby games like Ticket to Ride and Small World. Broad incumbent in the same designer hobby game space with similar product positioning but larger scale and broader retail footprint.

Others

• Board Game Arena: Board Game Arena is the leading online platform for playing board games digitally, hosting Pandasaurus titles including Castle Combo, Knarr, Paper World, and Silver & Gold. Not a competitor but a strategic distribution and marketing channel partner that drives discovery-to-purchase conversion for the physical games.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Pandasaurusgame
• YouTubeyoutube.com/pandasaurusgames
• Facebookfacebook.com/pandasaurusgames
• Instagraminstagram.com/pandasaurus_games
• TikToktiktok.com/@pandasaurusgames

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pandasaurus Games