Meet the makers
Banded Iron Games started the way most of our best ideas do: together.
We're Ryan and Kate, and along with our five children, we make up Banded Iron Games - an indie game studio forged right here in Tennessee. Around here, everybody has a part in the process. Ideas get thrown around, artwork gets sketched, prototypes get built, rules get debated, and games get played over and over (and over) until we've made something we're excited to share.
We make the kind of games we want to play: clean, creative, joy-filled games that make us laugh, get a little too competitive, make us think and strategize, and have somebody asking to play again as soon as the game ends.
We believe fun can still be wholesome, laughter can still be loud, and community can still be kind. From our table to yours, we're making games with one mission in mind: bringing people back to the table. Because once you find a game your people love, game night has a way of becoming a thing again.
And knowing that something we made here gets to become part of what happens around your table? That's pretty incredible! And something we'll never take for granted.
Founder of Banded Iron Games. Wearing too many hats to count at the moment.
ryan: gamesmith
CAN'T WAIT FOR Rocket Ruckus™ - It's our first game and I'm excited to start getting games in front of families!
MY DREAM FOR BANDED IRON STUDIOS A legacy. To build something that lasts. A family business our children and grandchildren can carry forward, with games people are still playing generations from now.
WHAT I HOPE OUR GAMES ARE KNOWN FOR Being so enjoyable that when someone finishes one, they immediately want to find another game from our studio.
Founding partner. Currently handles art and branding. Making things look good is her specialty.
KATE: catalyst
FAVORITE GAME (NOT OURS!) PIT- brings back so many memories!
CAN'T WAIT FOR Trail of Crowns™ - the book series specifically!! I love that the game evolved into the book series with a story line that really draws you in.
WHAT MAKES IT BANDED IRON It's that feeling when you pull one off the shelf and know you can just put it on the table and play. With your kids, your spouse, your friends - whoever's there. You know you're going to laugh, have a good time, and actually enjoy being together. You're not distracted or just going through the motions. You're just there, in the moment, with your people. It just feels like time well spent!
Rules must be clear. And followed.
Rules lawyer
FAVORITE GAME (NOT OURS!) Settlers of Catan - I love the strategy and building.
CAN'T WAIT FOR Trail of Crowns™ - I can't wait for the book series!
FAVORITE PART OF THE PROCESS Making the rules and components, and of course, playtesting.
WHAT MAKES IT BANDED IRON No bad content or artwork.
WHAT I'D LOVE TO BUILD AT BANDED IRON STUDIOS A video game department and digital assets. I really like coding.
Ensures games are refined and ready for marketing.
Game Breaker
WHAT I BRING TO THE TABLE I find ways to break games when testing the rules.
WHAT I'D LOVE TO BUILD AT BANDED IRON STUDIOS Blacksmith replica armor and weapons from our games.
ONE THING I'D CHANGE In *REDACTED I would swap the ratings of the tank and warship.
Judgy, and in charge of marketing.
Critique Clown
FAVORITE GAME (NOT OURS!) Happy Little Dinosaurs. It's absurd and funny.
CAN'T WAIT FOR *REDACTED - It's hilarious and has fun gameplay. Also Trail of Crowns™ - It's so intricate and layered.
MY BANDED IRON DREAM GAME A bluffing game where you get smacked if you're caught.
WHAT MAKES IT BANDED IRON Family friendly, fun to play, nothing questionable.
WHAT I BRING TO THE TABLE PIZZAZZ!!!
Making sure we use quality components.
Durability Tester
Too young for the official interview. Not too young to put our components through some very unofficial testing.
I might be a distraction sometimes, but I'm a cute distraction.
Our most dedicated playtester.
Playtest Princess
CAN'T WAIT FOR The Catch:22™ - It's really fun to fish and see if you get the Kraken.
ONE THING I'D CHANGE Take the Cosmic Chaos card that doesn't let you talk out of Rocket Ruckus™ - less people trade with you when you can't talk.
MY DREAM FOR BANDED IRON STUDIOS To play games with other people and teach them how to play.