I got a chance to see some great board games at New York Toy Fair this year. The usual big ticket publishers were there like Mayfair, iello, and Asmodee. But, some of the hidden gems were at a booth that house smaller game designers who all had their games published by a company called AdMagic.
AdMagic is a publisher that allows people to get their games made without signing onto a bigger publisher. This gives them an independant feel that immediately grabbed our attention! (We love our indie games here at Engaged Family Gaming!)
The Appalachian Trail Game came about as a bit of “Trail Magic.” One of the game designers was hiking the Appalachian Trail and opened his map. He then thought to himself, “Wouldn’t this be an interesting game board?” He then set about using his time hiking to develop a game that featured the wonder of the trail and could be used to teach newcomers the basics!
Players are dealt a series of gear cards that represent actual equipment that they would need to go on the famous cross-country hike. You then progress along the trail and are presented with challenges like trivia questions or natural hazards that you need to “gear up for.” The Appalachian Trail Game is well suited for scouts, outdoorsmen (and outdoorswomen!), and anyone who is interested in the Appalachian Trail.
It was originally funded through a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign (it funded in less than 48 hours!) It is currently available for purchase directly from their site or through BreakingGames.com. We’ll be following up with a formal review later this year! Keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for more great games!
Guest Writer 
Linda Wrobel