Why I'm Building The Treasured Realm

If you've every laughed so hard during a board game that you had to stop playing for a minute... if you've ever watched someone come out of their shell because of something that happened around a table... if you've ever stayed up way too late, but still have the urge for just one more game, then you probably already understand why I'm building The Treasured Realm.

Growing up, every New Year' Eve meant we were gathering with family for an all night game of Monopoly or Trivial Pursuit. I don't remember who won each year, but what I do remember were the conversations and the laughter. The feeling of spending time together is what I still hold to this day.

After college, friends' lives were getting busy as careers were getting launched. I started hosting regular game nights with friends. Game nights gave us a reason to reconnect, catch up, and simply spend time together.

When my wife was in labor with each of our boys, we packed our copy of 7 Wonders Duel in our hospital bag. While waiting in the delivery room, we played this game over and over again as we waited for our family to grow. This may sound like an unusual idea, but my wife and I love games. We heard other people watched movies as they waited. This just felt more like us.

Now our boys are growing up around the table, too. They've learned to work together through cooperative games. They've learned resilience, because everyone always has another chance to win. They've learned to solve problems through simple strategy games. We even have a "restaurant bag" filled with small, quick games that comes with us whenever we go out. Instead of handing them a screen, we pull out a game and spend that time together.

Board games have become part of every season of my life.

Over the years, I've enjoyed visiting any FLGS (friendly local game store) whenever I could. I love the idea behind them, but I always found myself wishing for something more. I wanted an easier way to discover new games instead of searching through overwhelming piles of shelves. I wanted a space that felt like I was stepping into an adventure and not just another retail store with hobby decoration. Most of all, I wanted to a place that was intentionally designed around bringing people together.

That's what I'm building.

People often ask why I chose the name The Treasured Realm.

Some have assumed the treasure is the collection of games. That's close, but the 1000+ game library or the available retails games isn't the core of it. Others ask if it's the fantasy world that you're stepping into when you walk through the doors. The escape from the real world is certainly a piece of it, but the location wasn't the purpose for this to exist.

The real treasure is the laughter during a game that echoes across the room. It's the conversations that continue long after the game ends. It's the memories that are created around the table. It's the friendships that are formed when strangers sit across from each other.

Those are the treasures I hope to help create. This world I'm building will hold all of those treasures for any new adventurer to discover when they cross the threshold and enter.

That's why I'm building The Treasured Realm, and I can't wait to welcome you to the table.

Until then, I am excited to continue sharing more about this adventure of bringing The Treasured Realm to life.