Jumping Turtle Games is getting ready for Spiel Essen!

It's that time of the year again! In just a few days, the Messe in Essen will transform into the absolute mecca for board game fans worldwide. At Jumping Turtle Games, we have been in overdrive over the past few weeks getting everything ready. While last year we were gnashing our teeth waiting for containers stuck in customs, we have a tighter grip on things this year.

The truck is meanwhile loaded to the brim with our booth, furniture, and - naturally - lots of games. The truck leaves for Essen today to arrive on Monday. Our setup team will follow on Monday and Tuesday. Because even though the doors only swing open to the public on Thursday, the real marathon behind the scenes naturally starts much earlier! We are doing everything we can to have booth 2-D130 ready for you in perfect condition!

🚛 Bad day at work for Steven (but worthy of a compliment!)

 
Loading a truck might sound very light and organized, but in practice, it mostly means: sweating, lifting, shifting, and more lifting. Steven has worked his fingers to the bone over the past few days to make optimal use of every cubic centimeter of the truck. For him, it was quite a "bad day at work," but thanks to his muscle power, everything is securely fastened!

Steven will of course also be traveling with us as a familiar face of our demo team. So, are you visiting our booth this weekend? Make sure to give Steven a well-deserved pat on the back (or a drink) for all the hard work!

👕 New polo shirts & a premiere for the webshop

When we head to Essen, we do it in style. Our old team polo shirts were truly due for retirement after many fairs and demonstrations (according to Steven). We have therefore kitted out the entire team in a fresh, brand-new look!

Additionally, this year we are bringing flyers with the address of our own webshop for the first time! It is the very first time we are heading to Spiel since the Jumping Turtle Games webshop went live. This way, after the fair, everyone can easily find their way to our games from the comfort of their own armchair.

🎲 The stars of the fair: Rival Seas & Dino Chaos

This year we are unveiling two brand-new releases that we are incredibly proud of!

⚓ Rival Seas – Build your maritime empire & dream of "Sold Out"

In Rival Seas, you take charge of your own maritime trading company. The oceans are your market and your competitors are ruthless. You not only navigate efficient shipping routes to meet the fluctuating demand of coastal cities, but things really heat up on the financial front! Buy shares, seize the CEO position at companies, and cleverly funnel company capital into your own private portfolio.

A crucial element is the strict distinction between company capital and your personal wealth: the money you invest goes into the company to fund operations, but you only win the game if you become personally wealthy (via CEO salary, dividends, and clever deliveries). A streamlined, accessible rule system with an ingenious time track where every action costs time, but in which every choice has a hard, strategic impact.

After last year's customs woes, we absolutely wanted to play it safe: we air-freighted a limited stock in advance to ensure there were enough boxes in Essen. Based on our historical sales figures, we thought we had more than enough stock... until the pre-orders opened.

The pre-orders went so spectacularly well that we have now had to close them to prepare all orders tightly and smoothly. We are now secretly dreaming that by Sunday afternoon, Steven can hang a "SOLD OUT" sign at the booth! A huge thank you to everyone who has already reserved a copy!

Don't panic if you missed out: The large new stock will arrive halfway through November. The games will then head straight to the board game stores and to everyone who ordered via our webshop for home delivery. By the way, you can still do this now!

🎨 Meet & Greet with author David Ausloos!

For fans of Rival Seas, we have more fantastic news: author David Ausloos will be at our booth for a large part of the afternoon from Friday through Sunday! You are very welcome for a demo, a signed box, or just a nice chat. We are incredibly proud that we get to work with such a passionate author.

🦖 Dino Chaos – The family game full of surprises

Not in the mood for the heavy, strategic economic battle of Rival Seas? Then Dino Chaos is exactly what you are looking for!

During the testing phase, this game already provided hilarious moments for many families. Who is the saboteur? Who is just messing things up due to their own clumsiness? It always leads to surprising twists, and honestly: it never stays at just one game. It is invariably: "Again, again!". Children absolutely love it, but adults can't stop playing it either.

We are enticing Dino Chaos fans this year with our striking new roll-up banner! The booth itself is decorated entirely in a Rival Seas theme, but we’re keeping exactly what that looks like a surprise for now. (We weren't going to set up the booth quickly just to take a photo and then take it down again... Steven looked very angry when we even asked! 😉)

🍻 Will we see you in Essen?

Our demo tables are ready and our enthusiastic demo team can't wait to welcome you with open arms.

Whether you are coming to test if you are an economic shark ready to try out your latest tactics on Rival Seas, hoping to sabotage a project where we try to resurrect dinosaurs with dino-DNA, wanting to soak up the atmosphere, or just looking for a friendly chat: you are more than welcome at Jumping Turtle Games in booth 2-D130!

See you in Essen!

The Jumping Turtle Games Team 🐢