Game printing techniques: the complete panorama

THE CMJN is a model Subtractive : you start from a white support (which reflects all the light) and you add inks that absorb (undertaken) certain wavelengths. The more inks you add, the closer you get to the black.

In contrast, the RVB (Red, Green, Blue) used on screens is a model addendum : you start from the black (screen off) and add light sources to reach the white.

This fundamental difference explains why the colors seen on the screen never correspond exactly to those printed.

In theory, mixing CMY in equal parts should give black. In practice, the result is a grey brown unsatisfactory because of imperfections of the real pigments.

The black K (Key, "key color") is therefore added as 4th ink for:

• Get a pure deep black in the visuals.
• Print the texts clearly (the text in black K alone is clearer than a black compound CMY).
• Save color inks on the dark areas.

Different CMYK presses make slightly different the same CMYK values depending on paper and technology. To manage this variability, we use ICC profiles which describe how each press + paper combination makes the colors.

Standard profiles across Europe and Europe:

• FOGRA39 Or. FOGRA51 - For standard offset on coated paper.
• FOGRA47 - Offset on uncoated paper.
• ISOcoated_v2 - International ISO reference profile.

Convert your RGB files to CMYK with the correct ICC profile guarantees the best color fidelity. Otherwise, the manufacturer converts for you (with the risk of color slips).

A screen is composed of millions of pixels, each containing 3 subpixels (red, green, blue). Varying the luminous intensity of each one allows to display any color. All turned off = black. All at the maximum = white.

It is the opposite of the CMJN This fundamental difference has one consequence: all colors RVB are not reproducible to CMYK.

The gamut is the set of colors that a system can reproduce. The RGB has a wider gamut than the CMYK, especially on:

• THE deep blue (a night blue RGB often becomes dull in CMYK).
• THE bright green (the fluo greens are impossible in standard CMYK).
• THE saturated red (Intensive reds RGB lose in intensity).
• THE fluos and neon (totally excluding CMYK gamut, requires special inks).

This is the main reason why a visual that makes the screen beautifully disappoints once printed.

Always convert your files to CMYK before printing, ideally with an adapted ICC profile (FOGRA51 for offset Europe lying). Commonly used software: Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign.

When converting, visually check critical areas (bright colors, gradients) to anticipate tint slips. If a brand color comes out badly in CMYK, provide a direct tone Pantone in fifth color.

The quadrichromy is based on the subtractive synthesis: superimposing frames of microscopic points of 4 primary inks on a white support. The eye, at normal reading distance, merges these frames into a color perceived as continuous.

Each colour has its own printing plate or head. The 4 plates are printed in succession on the press, perfectly set to the tenth of a millimetre.

Quadrichromy is used to print all photographic or colour-rich components: box covers, illustrated cards, game boards, rule books. It is the industry's absolute standard.

For solid-dyed components (monochrome logo, single-color flat), one can prefer a print Pantone (1 solid ink per color) that guarantees perfect chromatic fidelity - useful for corporate brand colors.

The quadrichromy does not reproduce all the colours visible to the eye. In particular:

• Fluo and neon - Off gamut CMJN. Requires special inks (5th color).
• Metallic - Silver, gold, copper: require dedicated inks or hot foil.
• Some very bright reds and very saturated blues - Limits of the gamut. Risk of visible difference between the screen and the print.

For these cases, a 5th or 6th Pantone ink is added to the quadrant (printing 5 or 6 colours).

The offset is based on an elegant physico-chemical principle: water and oil do not mix. On the printing plate, the areas to be printed are rendered hydrophobic (reject water, attract oil ink), while the non-printer areas are hydrophilic (guard water, push back the ink).

When printing, the plate is wet and then inked: the ink is only fixed on the hydrophobic zones (the pattern). This plate then transfers the ink to the rubber white, which returns it to the paper. The passage through the white paper (the ink is then transferred to the rubber white paper).offset = "report" explains the name of the technique and allows for a higher printing quality: rubber is more familiar with paper than with a rigid plate.

The offset is the absolute reference in paper printing quality for several reasons:

• Resolution 1200 to 2400 IPR - Ultra-fine details, clean typography, perfectly smoothed gradients.
• Rich and faithful colors - Inks CMJN Or. Pantone sized with optimal densities, covers up to 100%.
• Fine trames - 175 lpi (lines per inch) or more, invisible to the naked eye.
• Stable reproduction - Of 10,000 copies, the first and last sheets are indistinguishable.

This is why offset is still the reference technique for commercialized board games: Asmodee, Days of Wonder, Iello and almost all general public publishers print their cards and trays in offset.

The offset is only profitable from a certain volume because each printing requires the manufacture of dedicated metal plates (1 plate per colour).

For a B2B business game, the typical digital switch point → offset is around 800-1500 copies.

Unlike the offset which requires the manufacture of metal plates for each drawing, thedigital printing The computer file directly controls the press, which deposits the ink (tone or ink jet) on the paper in one pass.

Two technologies dominate the professional market:

• Liquid/dry toner (HP Indigo, Canon imagePRESS, Konica Minolta) - Electrostatic toner transferred to a white paper and then to paper. Quality close to offset, wide range of paper.
• High resolution ink jet - Ink projected by microjets. Ideal for very large formats and special substrates.

• MOQ = 1 copy - The unit prototype is viable, unlike the offset.
• No seeding costs No plates to make, the cost is purely proportional to the volume.
• Short deadlines - From the validated file to the 24-72h printout for the small run.
• Per-unit personalisation (data print) - Possibility to print a different name, number or visual on each card or box. Unable to offset.
• Good value for money on small run - Up to about 500-800 copies, digital remains more economical than offset.

Modern professional digital printing (including HP Indigo) is very close to offset quality, but with some nuances that pros know how to identify:

For a B2B project where chromatic perfection on 5000 copies is critical: prefer offset. For a project < 800 copies where quality must be very good without being obsessive: digital is a big job.

There flexography A rotary press is used with several printing units (1 per colour). Each unit includes: an ink roller (anilox) that binds liquid ink, a flexible photopolymer photoclip mounted on a cylinder, and the printable holder (carton, paper, film) that scrolls continuously.

Speed achieved: 200 to 600 meters/minute. This is one of the fastest techniques in the world, making it economical in very large series.

Flexography is used in the board game mainly for:

• Single or double wave packing cartons - Shipping boxes, overpacks for multi-point deliveries B2B.
• Adhesive labels product - Barcode labels, GDPR labels, sorting statements on boxes.
• Cardboard sleeves around boxes - Printed strip slid around a bell box for B2B customer customization in low volume.

For the decoration of the boxes themselves (cloche, drawer), we prefer Offset which offers superior chromatic quality.

Benefits: very high speed, unbeatable unit cost in large series, possible aqueous inks (low environmental footprint), printing on low absorbent supports (brown corrugated cardboard).

Limitations: chromatic quality lower than offset (less fine on details), MOQ high (10,000+ copies often needed), cost of starting the shots (one moderate envelope per color).

There screen printing The stencil is based on a simple but old mechanical design (originally Chinese, perfected in the 20th century for the industry): a polyester or nylon sieve is stretched on a frame. A photosensitive emulsion is applied to the sieve, then insolated through a positive film representing the pattern. Insolated areas harden, unsolved areas dissolve during washing, creating a stencil.

The ink is then placed on the sieve and spread to the scraper. Under pressure, it crosses the uncompressed sieve areas and settles on the support below. One color = one sieve = one pass. For a 4 colour print, you chain 4 sieves.

Screen printing is essential in the production of board game for several reasons:

• Printed on rigid supports - Wood chips, wood chips, plastic chips, MDF trays: no other technique treats this diversity of materials with the same quality.
• Opaque colors on dark background - A silkscreen ink is 5-10× thicker than an offset ink. It covers perfectly, even a white on a black background remains pure white.
• Timekeeping - A screen-screening layer of 30 to 80 microns is resistant to friction and UV for years.
• Small series possible - Cost-effective from 50 units, allowing for prototype and limited publishing.

Wood screen printing is our main application in game manufacturing: all our custom pawns, dice and pallets are decorated in silkscreen printing after possible laser engraving.

There pad printing The liquid ink fills the hollows of the image, the buffer crashes on it to recover the ink, then deforms itself to marry the surface of the image and place the motif on it. The ink is a solid ink, which is a soft silicone pad, and the holder is a medium for printing.

This machine allows printing on any geometry: faces of a dice, cylinder of a pawn, curve of a hourglass, sphere of a ball. It is the only process that combines precision (up to 0.1 mm) and geometric adaptability.

In game manufacturing, the main purpose of the pad is to:

• Mark the faces of custom dice - The buffer fits each cubic face with perfect precision. 1 to 6 marked faces, 1 to 4 colours per face.
• Customize cylindrical pions - Logo or number on the curved side of a pawn, impossible in screen printing classic.
• Decorate the sandblasters - Mark or symbol on the glass of the bulbs. Ceramic ink cooked for resistance over time.
• Print to 3D plastic components - Cast pieces with relief or angles, special tokens, custom markers.

Like screen printing, the stamping has a cost of booting per color (photo-grazed cliqué: a moderate envelope per color). In series, the unit cost falls rapidly.

Minimum realistic MOQ: 100 units per model/color for a serious B2B project (more about our complete serious game guideUnder 100, the cost of starting the process kills profitability - prefer laser engraving or manual finishing.

Production speed: 1500 to 3000 markings/hour on automatic line. A 1000 dice order to mark on 6 sides = about 4-6 hours of pure stamping.

Unlike the four-color process which simulates the colors by superimposing 4 primary ink frames (CMJN), a direct tone Pantone is a ink already mixed in the exact colour, deposited in solid flat.

Each Pantone color has its blend formula (proportions of pigments) catalogued and reproducible identically all over the world. The code is read on a physical reference colour chart, not on a screen (which does not accurately reproduce the printed colors).

The first use of the Pantone in the game of B2B: to reproduce identically the brand colors of the customer.

Example: The customer charter imposes a specific orange (e.g. Pantone Orange 021). Without Pantone, the printer tries an approximation in CMYK - uncertain result. With Pantone, we print with the real Orange 021 ink: the color on the print is identical to that of all other carriers of the brand.

Cost: Add a 5th Pantone ink to a quadrant project typically adds 8-15% to the serial cost. Virtually systematic investment on corporate projects with strict charter.

Three limitations to be known:

• Limited number of inks per project - We usually add 1 to 3 tones of Pantone direct to the quadrant. Beyond that, the cost explodes and we return to the pure quadrant.
• Not suitable for gradients or photos - Pantone = solid flat. For gradients or photos, stay in quadrant.
• Possible variations according to medium - The same Pantone color makes it different on matt or glossy paper. The Pantone colour chart is available in Coated version (for coated paper) and Uncoated (for uncoated paper).

An offset press prints on large sheets (typically 70×100 cm or 50×70 cm). Print a single small card on an entire sheet would be absurd.taxation Therefore, the maximum number of cards (or pages) on the same sheet, separated by cutting margins.

Example: on a 70×100 cm sheet, you can typically impose 80 to 120 cards in poker format (63×88 mm). One machine pass = 80-120 cards printed at once.

Several patterns by type of production:

• Double taxation - For single-faced cards or trays printed. Maximum number optimization per sheet.
• Double-sided taxation - For common back cards. The back is imposed on the other side of the same sheet with perfect setting.
• Book taxation - For booklets. The pages are arranged in the order that allows, after folding and binding, to have the correct sequence (pages 1, 2, 3, ...).
• Taxation in step-and-repeat - For labels and small cards: the same file is multiplied on the sheet until saturation.

Good taxation can reduce the cost of production by 15 to 40% compared to naive taxation. pre-press, often invisible to the customer but critical for the profitability of the manufacturer.

The customer sees this work through the competitive final price. A manufacturer who does not control the taxation will always have higher prices at equivalent quality.