Creator Spotlight: Restoration Games Brings The King's Gambit to Middle-earth
From a long-simmering dream project to an unlikely collaboration with Space Cowboys, Restoration Games co-founder Justin Jacobson shares the story behind The King's Gambit, the evolution of his studio, and why community remains at the heart of every Kickstarter campaign.
For nearly a decade, bringing The Queen's Gambit back to the table was an idea that lived in the background at Restoration Games. In fact, when attorney/entrepreneur Justin Jacobson approached board game designer Rob Daviau about starting Restoration Games, in 2016, it was the first game he suggested. They thought it was too ambitious for their first attempt, so they put it off. When the team finally found the right setting in The Lord of the Rings, that dream became The King's Gambit: an ambitious reimagining of a beloved classic set against the epic battles of Middle-earth that will launch soon on Kickstarter (sign up here to be notified when it does).
We spoke with Jacobson about the game's journey from concept to campaign, the surprising collaboration that helped bring it to life, and how Kickstarter has remained a vital part of the company's growth. Along the way, he reflected on building a publishing company from the ground up, the importance of community, and the unexpected path that led him from practicing law to creating games that bring people together.
How did you link up with Space Cowboys? What have you learned from this collaboration?
It was an amazing bit of serendipity. We had finally landed on The Lord of the Rings as the perfect setting for our restoration. We reached out to Middle-earth Enterprises and made a formal proposal. At the exact same time, Space Cowboys approached Rob and said, "Hey, we have a neat idea to bring back Queen’s Gambit with The Lord of the Rings…" The rest is history.
They’ve been a real pleasure to work with. On the one hand, they’re part of the largest tabletop publisher in the world. That comes with a lot of resources, including personnel, experience, and more. But the passion their team has for tabletop games is undeniable. It’s been great seeing other perspectives on everything from game design to graphics to production. In the end, the collaboration made this game better.
Can you tell us a bit about the deluxe version of the game?
Normally, we have to be mindful that we’re making a game that is going to broadly appeal to everyone, from casual gamers to superfans. Because there is a retail release of King’s Gambit coming later, we were freed up to make the deluxe edition everything we wanted it to be. Of course, given the dimensionality of the original, we knew we had to do something even grander, and the idea for a sculpted Minas Tirith and Mount Doom to bookend the battlefields was born. You’ll also see lots of lovely touches to give you a truly epic experience: dual-layer boards, swanky dice, alternate figure sculpts, and a whole lot more. It lives up to the scale of the story, and we can’t wait for folks to see it.
What first drew you to Kickstarter, and why have you kept coming back?
Like a lot of new companies, Kickstarter was a way to get started for us. In fact, it was the advent of the platform that let Rob and I have confidence that we could do this thing. Over the years, its importance in that regard has diminished, but in its place has grown something even more special and more critical: community. For some of our fans, Kickstarter is the only way we really get to interact with them. The feedback and communication we’re able to get from one of our campaigns is invaluable to making the best game we can and also really fuels the team. We also appreciate Kickstarter’s continuing efforts to improve the platform and build the best user experience they can.
For the kind of work that you do, what are the most valuable resources?
The ability to communicate with our fans is the most important aspect of the platform. And so, for us, it’s really just that comment page (and the comments in our updates). Being able to see immediate reactions to what we are offering, address questions and concerns, and build a more personal connection with the fans is invaluable.
What's been the most surprising thing you’ve realized along the way from your first game to now?
We were a small team when we started. We were focused just on making a great game. From those humble beginnings, we began “leveling up” on the business side of things. There is so much to being a publisher that most of the public has no idea about (that I didn’t know about when I got into this thing). Having a diverse team with expertise on these esoteric aspects has made such a huge difference for us in making better games and getting them to more people around the world.
Chris Backe
What do you get out of this work, and what has it taught you about yourself?
I was a lawyer – and miserable about it – for 20 years before I started Restoration Games. It will be no surprise to know that bringing joy to people and bringing them together with games is infinitely more emotionally fulfilling. The friends I’ve made along the way and the people who tell me how our games have brought their family together have literally changed my life.
