In the past 100 years, board games have gradually developed in a diversified direction. Today, a variety of board games emerge in an endless stream, from the theme to the mechanism, to its connection with other products, there is a high degree of selectivity. If you want a board game with your favorite theme, and it also has your favorite game mechanics and high-quality board game accessories, then you will have a great chance to find it on board game crowdfunding platforms. Unlike video games, nowadays, board games are more of a product between online games and ancient tabletop games. It can also be said that it is the physical carrier of video games or the game form of comic books and TV shows. In general, if you have ordered a board game from a crowdfunding platform, you already had a certain level of knowledge about this game before that. So when you get it, the first surprise it brings to you is not the game's theme graphics mechanics, but its outer box. Different board games, different materials, types, sizes, weights, printing, etc. of the outer box will give you the first impression of this board game invisibly. In addition to the outer box of the board game, the express packaging box customized is to ensure the quality of transportation, and the customized box for the classification and placement of various parts in the board game also play a great role in protecting and classifying this board game. This article will walk you through the making of various boxes in Eastar's paper products factory.
The paper board game boxes produced by Eastar can be roughly divided into four types: set up boxes, corrugated boxes, card boxes, and magnet boxes.
Most of the large-scale board games manufactured by Eastar will choose set up boxes, such as the Nemesis series, Tainted Grail, and so on. The main feature of the set up box is that it has high aesthetics, practicality, and is cost-effectiveness. The beauty is that every side of it is flat, so it can fully display the printed patterns. The practicality lies in the fact that the size of its lid and base box can be perfectly matched, and it has a good storage capacity. The high cost-effectiveness is reflected in the material saving when it is made, and it is the most economical when the height of the outer box does not exceed 140mm. The material of the set up box can be divided into two types according to the required thickness, one is thinner, which is composed of two layers of 157gsm C2S and 1200gsm gray board, and the other is thicker, which is composed of two layers' 157gsm C2S sandwiched between 1200gsm gray board composition. When Eastar makes set up boxes, the common process is matte lamination and linen finish. If the overall design of the box pattern is a darker color or hue, we recommend the box utilizes anti-scratch, matte lamination which can reduce the muddiness of colors and bring out some of the details from your art a bit more.
The main features of corrugated boxes are wear resistance and drop resistance. They are generally used in the production of larger boxes, especially transport boxes. The corrugated boxes produced by Eastar routinely use five-layer corrugated boxes, also known as double corrugated boxes, and the thickness can reach 6 mm. Its cardboard structure is composed of face paper, middle paper, lining paper and two corrugated core papers. The ratio of face paper, middle paper, and lining paper determines the burst value of corrugated, and the ratio of 2-layer core paper (corrugated paper) determines the edge pressure value. If you want thinner or thicker corrugated boxes, you can also adjust by different combinations of corrugated types. The outer box of Eastar's Imperial Sample Box this year is also made of corrugated box, and you will be able to meet it at Booth No. 4A117 in Essen Spiel 2022 in October.
The biggest difference between the card box and several other types of boxes is that it is thin and small. It is usually customized for a specific type of card. Its main material will choose different densities of white cardboard according to the different requirements of customers. Eastar recommends leaving fingers on the side of the box when making these regular white card boxes for easy opening.
If you want to customize a high-end box as the outer box of your board game, the magnet box will be a good choice. The magnet box is more convenient to switch, and it can be opened without moving the whole box. The material and structure of the paper magnet box is the same as that of the set up box, the difference is their opening and closing method and weight. Magnetic boxes generally need to be matched with iron sheets and magnets to ensure suction. The magnetic force setting of the magnet is generally recommended to be above N42, and it is recommended to consider the weight range of the product when designing. Usually, we use matt lamination and embossed finish techniques to make it look more advanced. Take Eastar's VIP Sample Box designed by Eastar as an example, we chose a magnet box to make its outer box, making it more conducive to clear display.
Of course, in addition to paper board game boxes, Eastar can also make boxes made of leather, wood, acrylic and other materials. If you want to know more about Eastar's board game accessories, please click here.
