Cascade Games LLC

What Cascade Games LLC does

Cascade Games LLC is a Portland, Oregon-based boutique firm that designs and manages tabletop gaming events and community programs for game publishers and brands. Founded circa 1996 by Tim Shields, the company has operated for nearly 30 years, specializing in trading card game (TCG) organized play, tournament execution, and convention activations. It has designed and run tens of thousands of events across the United States and Europe, with a recurring presence at major pop culture conventions including San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC), where it has occupied the Marriott Marquis Grand Ballroom 20 for the past eight years, and TwitchCon.

The company's core offerings comprise three service lines: Event Design and Management (tournament design, on-site execution, player registration, prize distribution), Program Design (systems supporting Organized Play programs for publishers), and Brand Experiences (convention activations and branded experiences for pop culture and gaming brands). Cascade Games also operates a Judge Program dedicated to Star Wars: Unlimited, the TCG published by Asmodee/Fantasy Flight Games. Named enterprise clients and partners include Wizards of the Coast, Asmodee, Fantasy Flight Games, UltraPro (prize wall sponsor), Tier 1 Games, and local game store Cardboardia. The company is privately held, operates as an LLC with no disclosed external funding, and remains founder-led with a small (1–10) employee base.

Cascade Games monetizes through two revenue streams: professional services fees charged to publishers for event design and execution, and consumer-facing entry fees ($15–$60 per event) collected from players participating in standard sealed deck ($25–$55), prerelease league ($40), convention commander league ($40), and specialty format events. Distribution is event-driven and direct: tournaments are run on-site at conventions, and league events are delivered through publishing partnerships and local game store channels. The model is structurally constrained by the annual calendar of major gaming conventions and the capacity of a small operations team, which limits throughput but also keeps the business capital-light.

Name

Cascade Games LLC

Legal name

Cascade Games, LLC.

Website

https://cascadegames.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Cascade Games LLC is a Portland, Oregon-based boutique firm that designs and runs trading card game events, organized play programs, and convention activations for publishers (Wizards of the Coast, Asmodee) and brands, with a 30-year track record at US and European conventions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trading Card Game Event Services

NAICS

Spectator Sports (71121), Amusement Arcades (71312)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Non-Sports Trading Cards Retail (TCG/Entertainment) (CRALAGAB)

Keywords

• Tabletop game event management
• Trading card game tournaments
• Organized play program design
• Convention brand experiences
• Community event program development

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Event Management Services: Fees charged for tournament and event execution at conventions and for publishers. Services include event design, on-site management, player registration, and prize distribution.
2. Event Entry Fees: Players pay entry fees to participate in tournaments and events (ranging from $15-$60 per event). These fees cover event execution and prizes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cascade Games designs and runs trading card game tournaments, leagues, and convention activations for publishers and pop culture brands. It also develops organized-play support systems and delivers convention brand experiences across the United States and Europe.

Product overview

Cascade Games LLC is a boutique community design and development firm specializing in trading card games (TCGs). The company offers a unified service portfolio comprising Event Design and Management (designing and running tens of thousands of events), Program Design (creating Organized Play systems), and Brand Experiences (delivering convention activations). They also operate a Judge Program for Star Wars: Unlimited. Rather than a software product, Cascade Games provides professional community and event services for game publishers and players.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Event Design and Management Designs and runs trading card game tournaments, leagues, and convention activations, including event design, on-site management, player registration, and prize distribution.
• Program Design Designs systems that support player engagement and organized-play programs for game publishers.
• Brand Experiences Designs and delivers branded experiences at pop culture and gaming conventions or wherever a game's players gather.
• Judge Program for Star Wars: Unlimited A program for training and managing Star Wars: Unlimited game judges who support organized play at gaming events.

Quantifiable outcome

• Tens of thousands of events designed and run across US and Europe

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UltraProcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerUltraPro sponsors the prize wall at the TCG Hall at SDCC. They also suggested and sponsor the sleeving contest at TCG events. UltraPro provides prizes including playmats and other accessories for event participants.
• CardboardiacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCardboardia is a local game store that partnered with Cascade Games to bring Magic: The Gathering prerelease events to SDCC. They handle the sponsored Magic events when Wizards of the Coast was not sponsoring.
• AsmodeecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAsmodee publishes Star Wars Unlimited and other games. Cascade Games runs events for Star Wars Unlimited at SDCC and likely other Asmodee games at conventions.
• Wizards of the CoastminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWizards of the Coast previously sponsored Magic: The Gathering events run by Cascade Games at SDCC. In 2025, Wizards indicated they would not sponsor events, transitioning to store-run prereleases.
• Tier 1 GamesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTier 1 Games helped add Magic PreRelease League and Prerelease sealed deck events at TwitchCon by providing additional event support.
• Fantasy Flight Games (FFG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFantasy Flight Games publishes Star Wars Unlimited. Cascade Games runs SWU convention exclusive promo card distribution and league events at conventions.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• UltraPro: TCG accessories sponsor (playmats, sleeves, prize-wall sponsor at SDCC TCG Hall). Adjacent ecosystem participant that sponsors and enables Cascade's events rather than competing directly, but intersects at the player-engagement layer.

Emerging players

• N3rd Street Gamers: Gaming event and esports tournament operator running events at conventions including PAX. Comparable to Cascade in organizing competitive gaming tournaments at pop-culture conventions, but with a broader esports/tabletop mix.
• The Game Crafter: Platform for tabletop game creators that also supports community and event tooling. Adjacent to Cascade's community-building services for tabletop games, though more focused on production and marketplace than live event execution.
• Local Game Store Partners (e.g., Cardboardia): Local game stores like Cardboardia partner with Cascade to run prerelease events at SDCC. Comparable in executing publisher-organized TCG events at the local level and represent both collaboration partners and potential substitution risk.

Broad incumbents

• ReedPop: Large pop-culture convention organizer (NYCC, Emerald City Comic Con, etc.). Broader incumbent providing similar convention event infrastructure and brand-experience services that Cascade provides, but at much larger scale and with broader entertainment scope.
• Asmodee: Major board game and TCG publisher (Star Wars: Unlimited, Fantasy Flight, etc.) and existing Cascade customer. Operates some organized play in-house, making it both a buyer and a long-term competitive substitute.
• Wizards of the Coast: Publisher of Magic: The Gathering and a current/former customer of Cascade. Important peer because WotC's own organized play team is both a buyer and potential competitor to Cascade's event-execution services.

Direct peers

• CFB Events (ChannelFireball Events): Dedicated event operations arm of ChannelFireball producing major Magic tournaments and conventions. Most direct comparable in TCG tournament execution services, including Grand Prix scale events.
• Star City Games: TCG retailer and major tournament organizer running events for Magic and other card games. Overlaps with Cascade on TCG event execution at conventions and local game stores, with combined retail and event-service model.
• ChannelFireball: Major Magic: The Gathering tournament organizer and content platform. Operates large-scale competitive events and prize structures directly comparable to Cascade's organized-play tournament business, though at significantly larger scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cascade-games-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Cascade Games LLC