Sometimes people laugh when they open my game boxes. Inside they find carefully organized plastic boxes, bags or metal tins, stacked in just the right way to fit into the original game box. Even more humorous for some is when I tell them that by the time I’ve added my storage elements, my ‘cost-per-game’ is sometimes 10-15% more than the purchase price.
Yes there is an extra cost, but I think this is money well spent. There are a number of reasons for this “approach to game-bit-organizing”, but for me the biggest one is setup. When I am setting up a game, I’m often preparing to teach the game to new people and I want to get them involved as quickly as possible. If having a well-organized game can get me up-and-running quickly, it’s worth it.
Protecting game pieces is also important. A number of my games are stored vertically so certain pieces, especially cards and smaller player boards, are prone to wear or warp just through storage. I find that if I have good internal storage trays or boxes, then the risk of damage is greatly reduced.
For some games, certain storage containers also double as draw boxes or even organizers during play. For example, in my copy of Le Havre I use the 0.07L Really Useful Boxes storage box, and sit that right on the game board for easy drawing of the resource chits.
Here’s some links to some of my favorite “Inside the Game Box” organizing items that are pretty easy to find here in Canada:
Really Useful Boxes – the best storage box I’ve ever found. These come in every size from 0.07 Litre volumes to 1.0 Litre and above. And the secure side clips means then never open inadvertently. I graduated to these from small cardboard boxes that I found at my local craft store. These are available at Staples.
Staples 3 x 5 Zip Top Poly Bags – are great, and how can you beat 100 for $5. They also have a write-on label area. Of course, the Zip Loc Snack Bags work too, but the Staples bags use a heavier poly and hold up a bit better.
Lee Valley Seed Containers – these were a pleasant surprise. They come in a variety of sizes, and have secure twist on lids. They remind me a lot of medical and laboratory petri dishes, but because these aren’t made for those applications, they are a lot cheaper.
Tim O'Connor
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