Geeknson “The Megan” Board Game Tables Leveling Up the Way We Play Games

Dedicated gaming tables are a popular topic nowadays among all sorts of wargame, card game, board game and even poker players. They boost the fun you get from games, and make playing more comfortable. Sadly, it often comes at a cost. So far we’ve seen tons of campaigns with huge shipping problems, tables nearly impossible to assemble or simply cheap looking and easy to damage gamer furniture.

Last week, a quite unique project was launched on Kickstarter and has already attracted plenty of backers while unlocking a healthy dose of stretch goals with valuable freebies. How do The Megan Board Game Tables look, work and how did the designers avoid the most common problems with board game table campaigns? Let’s have a look at the project.

400 Years

Let’s start with a history lesson… Just kidding, just a bunch of facts. Wild European Oak is a tree known for its incredible density and thus sturdiness, durability and resistance to dozens of factors. Around 400 hundreds years ago European craftsmen set their eyes on this piece of flora and it immediately got popular among them (and their clients). Since then, all sorts of furniture made from said type of Oak was popular and the material itself got mastered by the crafters of the old continent. Oak trees used to make The Megan Board Game Tables are over 100 years old (cutting younger ones is forbidden by European law).

A company named Geeknson has started their work with Wild European Oak about 20 years ago and have since then delivered tons of furniture to all sorts of UK and abroad clients. Nowadays, they switched a lot of their focus to making board game tables, and The Megan table family, previously crowdfunded in Europe, has finally made its way across the Oceans to North America and Australia.

Megan, Assemble!

Does assembling furniture make you have nightmares? Who doesn’t know these legendary manuals from certain companies? Some of them are cute (hello Scandinavia) but sometimes can turn your day into a living hell. In the case of Geeknson’s The Megan, assembling is not a problem. The table you receive is already ready for your game nights and dinners. All you need to do is attach its legs. That already makes it incredibly user friendly, something most board game tables have been missing since the beginning. Oh, and being transported this way the table is highly resistant to any sort of shipping damage.

Need to see how this works? Check out the video below:

Core Features

We’ve already had a number of board game tables on Kickstarter and the most common thing with all of them is an insane number of add-ons. While we love the idea of customizing the thing to your taste (more on that later), the basic piece of furniture you got was rather on the bare side and considering the pricing: not really worth it. 

The case of The Megan tables is pretty different. Each of them, no matter if it’s the coffee table or colossal Megan Wing, has a number of built-in so-called “ Pro Features” that backers would usually have to pay far. So…

So What Are They?

First: the wooden leaves. Playing vault can be covered with these to turn a gaming table into a dining table. You can remove them all anytime to continue playing, or just a bunch to create a set-up for some more unique games that would benefit from it. The way you can use these is limitless and fits plenty of games which would for example require a square shaped play area (hello X-Wing!) or benefit from a “bench-like” structure. 

The leaves come equipped with something that the designers call “Keep Dry System”. Each leaf is water resistant and constructed in a way that prevents liquids from dropping below, even if someone spills a drink or two during a family dinner. Another solution called “ESC” (Easy Cleaning System) allows easy removal of every single table element and cleaning the thing in a quick and simple manner.

Another feature that we really like and that comes with every table is the 360-degree card rail where you can place your cards to see them all at the same time. This one is really helpful in games like Wingspan when you need to constantly compare all your available cards.

Each backer can choose one of three table finishes: No Stain Varnish, Natural Oil and Walnut Stain with Varnish. Wooden floor comes in the same color as the table.

Talking about core features there are (so far) two more unlocked thanks to the stretch goals and available for every single backer for free. You get 2 acrylic bins for game components and a “Pro Fabric Gaming Inset” that’s thick, easily removable, helps with picking up cards and makes playing games much smoother. This one also comes in a few color variants.

Finally, each table is encircled with a Pro Aluminum Rail System that allows attaching optional add-ons, and there’s a pretty wide variety of these.

If You Want More

There are plenty of add-ons which backers can get on the campaign and use them with their table. Some connect to the rail system mentioned above and others are just things you put on your model of Megan while playing. Here’s what can you enhance your table with:

First there are chargers for your mobile devices coming in 2 varieties: an USB one and a wireless one. You can also order attachable Counter Holders for your tokens, eggs, gems or whatever kind of components you’re using in your game. 

To avoid spilling drinks Geeknson has also created Cup Holders attached to the outer rail system as well as Wine glass holders. You can also get neat Acrylic Bins, although 2 of these are already included thanks to stretch goals. Next there’s an iPad Holder if you need it while playing to read a manual or do research in mystery games like Portal’s Detective. 

Not enough? How about a player desk where you can put virtually everything or a flip desk that can either work like a regular desk / laptop holder or a spot for placing your tokens. There’s also a D&D Bench, box for all of the topper leaves, a strake board useful when you want to elevate some parts of the table and need a place to store them. 

Additional options include dice towers, benches, poker inserts, counter leaves, playmats side desks and a… cat holder. That’s right, a special spot for your feline friend to cuddle in and play with a rope based toy.

What to Choose

The Megan comes in 7 shapes, all playtested endlessly. Same with add-ons that are all well established and tested models used by the company for years. 

Backers can get a small but space saving Megan Coffee table, the Megan X with a TV and adjustable legs, two sizes of Megan HEX (guess there’s no point in mentioning their shape), a bigger Megan for 4-6 players and even a huger one for 6 to 8. Finally there’s Megan Wing – a large model sized at 39.4” x 67” (100cm x  172cm)

The Megan Tables on Kickstarter

Megan Tables by Geeknson look like a great way to enjoy our games more. At first they may seem a tad pricey, but the amount of stuff we get for free with each of them is unmatched and makes the competing products look rather barebones. Each Megan table gets a £ 296 ($ 396) worth of accessories, and certainly more will be added before the campaign finishes in 4 days. 

Backers will get their tables as soon as May 2021. The campaign can be backed by board gamers from all of Europe and for the first time: North America, Canada and Australia.

>>> Visit the Campaign Here

Now on Kickstarter!