New Board game console blends physical and digital family gaming.

9 hours ago7 min read1 comments

Brynn Putnam, fresh off selling her smart fitness company Mirror to Lululemon for a cool half-billion, found her next big play during the pandemic's peak, trapped in a house with five kids aged 2 to 21. The classic family game night was a mess—Candyland was too simple for the teens, while modern video games turned into a controller-smashing session where the experienced players dominated.This frustration birthed Board, a 24-inch console that’s basically a massive, rugged tablet designed not to isolate, but to gather everyone around. It’s a hybrid beast, merging the tactile joy of physical game pieces with the dynamic, interactive screen of a video game.Launched on October 28 with a holiday price tag of $499 (normally $699), Board comes packed with 12 exclusive games and supports up to 10 players, already smashing initial sales forecasts. The real magic lies in the custom hardware and software engineered by Chief Technology Officer Ryan Measel.Unlike standard Android or iOS touchscreens capped at recognizing ten fingers, Board’s team built a custom driver granting full access to the sensor array, allowing it to track an almost unlimited number of touch points. An embedded AI model, trained on sensory outputs, distinguishes between an accidental arm brush, a deliberate finger tap, and each of the 49 unique game pieces, which are identified via conductive traces etched onto their bottoms.Durability was non-negotiable; with a spill-resistant gasket and a tightly sealed internal structure, it’s been tested to survive submersion, high drops, and the kind of brutal scratching a toddler can inflict. On the creative side, Chief Creative Officer Seth Sivak, formerly of Proletariat, curated a diverse game portfolio.The lineup ranges from 60-second arcade blitzes to a 90-minute escape room adventure, with games like 'Chop Chop' offering layered roles—a two-year-old can joyfully clean the kitchen as a 'sponge' while an adult strategizes over order tickets. Putnam’s vision is clear: leverage technology to enhance, not replace, social interaction, handling rules and scorekeeping so families can focus on connection. The team is now expanding Board’s IP and developing an SDK to onboard external developers, aiming to bring existing games into this new physical-digital playground, proving that the future of family gaming might just be a screen you can all gather around.

#Board

#Brynn Putnam

#family gaming

#hybrid console

#physical games

#digital screen

#featured