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Brandon Byars of Board Room Game Co. has been producing a variety of wooden board games in his Murphysboro workshop for the past several years.

Admittedly, Brandon Byars was too cheap to pay to have a wooden board game shipped from England.

“It was going to cost like a bazillion dollars,” he exaggerated, but stressed it would be costly.

There was just one other option. A lifelong woodworker, the Murphysboro resident decided he could make his own version of Babinga, a game where players try to use an elastic cord to shoot wooden pucks through a small hole and onto their opponent’s side of the board.

He didn’t realize that his woodworking skills and his miserly ways would lead to a new venture.

“I made it and took it to a Christmas party where everybody loved it,” Byars recalled. “At that moment, I realized I might have something. I decided to start making the game for others.”

Several years and many games later, Byars’ Board Room Game Company continues to produce a variety of wooden board games and pocket dice games.

“These are wooden board games that you would want to have sitting out in your living room, just waiting for someone to play,” he explained. “They are not only fun, but they are really nice to look at.”

The company’s offerings now include seven hand-made wooden board games and a line of dice games.

“Most of the board games are variations of old, ancient games. Some of them were even placed by Roman soldiers. Others have roots that go way back, too,” he explained.

Byars said all of the games are very simple to play, perfect for the whole family. His own children, ages 7 and 13, serve as in-house game testers.

“I make them where they can play and adults will enjoy them, too,” he added. “My kids can play them and they tell me whether they think they are dumb or not.”

Construction of the each of the wooden game boards takes several hours. Most are sold through local retailers, but Byars said he does ship the games as well.

 He said the business began “as an accident,” but has grown into an endeavor he enjoys.

“At first, I just liked the challenge of figuring out how to build a game for myself, but also, I’ve always wanted to have a business for myself. This is just that – and something that people could get excited about,” he said.

The games, which run $10-$50, are available online as well as at Muddy Roots Collective, Brews Brothers Taproom and Cold Blooded Coffee all in Murphysboro.

Byars, who works in information technology at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, said he wants to grow his game business, and has a very specific goal.

“I would love to really see this thing take off and be able to cover every single state as far as the dice games go. I want to see them in as many places as I can and I think it would be really cool to be on vacation somewhere and see a family playing one of my games. That would be really cool,” he said.

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Brandon Byars of Board Room Game Co. has been producing a variety of wooden board games in his Murphysboro workshop for the past several years.

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