North Star Games History
The idea for North Star Games began on a stormy night off the coast of Alaska when the electrical circuit of a salmon fishing boat went dead. With nothing to guide the ship but the North Star, company Founder Dominic Crapuchettes trusted the steady beacon to guide his ship through perilous waters. In the same way, North Star Games was founded as a steady beacon to guide people through the perilous waters of a stale and predictable board game industry, and into the calm waters of fun and innovative entertainment!
Although North Star Games did not officially become a company until April 2003, it had long been the brainchild of Founder & Co-Manager Dominic Crapuchettes. An avid game player who had designed board games as a hobby since the age of 10, Dominic decided to attend business school at the University of Maryland to figure out how to start a company. It was at Maryland that he met fellow game fan and Co-Manager Satish Pillalamarri. With several game ideas in hand, the pair began to talk more seriously, but wanted to make sure that their company would do something that they could eventually be the best in the world at. And since coffee and operating systems were already taken, they decided that making the best party games and family games on the market was the way to go.
North Star Games was first incubated at the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship as a summer internship for Satish and Dominic's MBA program. Design options for their first game,Cluzzle, are plastered on the wall behind them.
With their own money already invested in the company, Dominic & Satish raised funds from family, friends, and one remarkably generous professor until they had the $75,000 necessary to fully design and print their first game Cluzzle. Once the game was completed, they printed 2,500 copies to test the market to see if people would like the game.
Luckily, 2004 brought success. Cluzzle began to win awards as one of the best family games and more stores asked to carry it. Dominic & Satish graduated from their MBA program and turned down the high-paying corporate world to pursue their dream of a Cluzzle in every home. By the end of the year, Cluzzle was being carried in about 100 stores across North America and on frequently visited websites like Toys "R" Us Online and Amazon.com. North Star also sponsored the first of its Holiday Game Festivals, events focused on building communities through board games as a great form of social entertainment.
In 2005, North Star Games continued to grow. Dominic & Satish finished design of their second game, Wits & Wagers. The game immediately met with rave reviews during testing, with many buyers describing it as a potential blockbuster game. This led to the firm's decision to partner with leading hobby game publisher Eagle Games in order to print 10,000 copies each of Wits & Wagers and the 2nd edition of Cluzzle for the 2005 holiday season. Both games are set for release in mid-October 2005.
North Star products can currently be purchased at Toys "R" Us Online, Amazon.com, and over 200 game stores nationwide. The company is currently hard at work finishing its third game, tentatively titled Out of Your Mind™, which is set for release during the 2006 holiday season.