The Pendulum Swings: What the Tabletop Gaming Community Can Teach All Marketers About Long-Form Content

For years, the conventional wisdom in game marketing was to chase the fleeting glance.

We were told to get snappy, to show off a cool miniature in a 15-second TikTok or a single, vibrant component shot on Instagram. The goal was to capture attention in an attention-starved world. But as we move deeper into 2025, the pendulum is swinging back. The game has changed, and it's time to play by a new set of rules: the revival of long-form content.

That short, snappy stuff isn't working as well anymore—not because it’s bad, but because it’s everywhere. Our feeds are flooded with quick videos and pretty pics, so it’s super hard for any single post to stand out. Plus, brevity used to be awesome, but now it can strip away what makes a game cool—like the deep mechanics, rich stories, awesome art, and the feelings it sparks. People are smarter and more into substance; they want more than just fluff.

This isn't a temporary trend; it's a systemic shift. Platforms like YouTube, blogs, and even podcasts are now actively rewarding longer, more substantive content. The new metrics for success aren't just impressions and likes, but sustained attention, completion rates, shares, saves, and return visits. For board game marketers, this is a golden opportunity to leverage what makes our industry unique.

While everyone else was all about micro-content, we’ve been doing the long game. People have always loved detailed reviews and full "How to Play" videos—they weren’t a contradiction, they were proof this trend was coming. A good "How to Play" isn’t just content—it’s a solution. It helps people understand a game with complex rules and bunches of components, building trust and making them feel confident to finally get the game to the table. Similarly, in-depth reviews from trusted sources like Watch It Played or a comprehensive written review from Board’s Eye View are the equivalent of a detailed test drive. They provide the nuanced perspective a gamer needs before committing to a purchase, covering the highs and lows, the unique mechanics, and the player count issues—all of which are impossible to communicate in a 15-second clip. This detailed content leads to higher conversion rates and, crucially, more satisfied customers who know what they're getting.

If board games proved the value of long-form content as a marketing tool, the tabletop RPG (TTRPG) community—led by the Dungeons & Dragons ecosystem—demonstrated that long-form can be the product itself. The success of Critical Role is a masterclass in this philosophy. What started as a group of friends playing a game has become a multimedia empire built on multi-hour, multi-year campaigns. Their content isn't a quick advertisement; it's a deep, immersive narrative that viewers are willing to invest hundreds of hours in. This type of narrative-driven marketing, which thrives on character development and a long-running story, creates a deeply invested fanbase that eagerly consumes merchandise, supports crowdfunding, and eagerly anticipates the next episode. The D&D community's embrace of this shows that audiences are not just willing to watch long-form content—they are actively seeking it out.

Now, the entire marketing world is catching up to what our community has known all along: depth and value-driven content are what truly engage an audience. We can now apply this philosophy to all our marketing efforts. Instead of a quick unboxing, create a video that delves into the game's core loop. Walk through a full turn, explain a key strategic decision, and showcase how the different components work together. For a complex euro game, a long-form playthrough could showcase a full season of play, highlighting the engine-building mechanics and the strategic card-play. For a sprawling thematic game, a video series could break down each faction's unique play style.

Board games are all about stories. Long-form content allows you to tell those stories in a way that micro-content simply can't. A blog post can explore the lore behind your game's world, a character spotlight can give players a reason to care about the meeples or miniatures on the board, or a designer diary can reveal the fascinating journey from a scribbled idea to a final prototype. As publishers and designers, this allows us to build a deeper connection with our audience and transform a product into a shared experience.

That doesn’t mean ditch the short stuff altogether. Use quick clips as teasers—show a sick dice roll or cool card combo, then say, “Want to see how we got this epic victory? Check out our full gameplay video!” or “Read the full designer story in our latest diary!” Short content becomes a hook, a trailer, a way to draw people into your bigger stories.

Long-form content isn’t just a trend; it’s a total shift in how we connect. For us in the board game scene, it means transitioning from fleeting impressions to genuine, lasting bonds. When we focus on depth and storytelling, we can stand out, build a loyal group of players who care about our games, our brands, and the stories we tell. The time to go deep is now.