Pitch your game. Win one of 20 manufacturing sponsorships

In the run up to our 20th anniversary, Panda Game Manufacturing is supporting indie game designers by launching p20. We’ll be picking twenty indie designers and providing sponsorships for their production runs with us.

To enter, submit a sell sheet, video, and rulebook for review by our expert judging panel of Tom Vasel (The Dice Tower), Ben Rosset (Bamboo Design Studio), and the Panda team.

p20 is open to indie designers with two or fewer published games.
One submission per designer. Submissions close May 2027

What is p20?

p20 is a manufacturing sponsorship for indie board game designers.
Twenty designers will be selected, with manufacturing credits ranging from $2,000 to $20,000
towards production of your winning game with Panda.

Top tier judges

The judging panel is the reason to take p20 seriously, and the reason the conversation you’ll have after submitting is worth your time.

How the panel works:
The Panda Team will review and assess each game based on:

Creativity & Engagement
Market Viability
Production Feasibility
Overall Presentation Quality

Shortlisted designers move on to a conversation with our team, then a final review by the guest judges.

Tom Vasel · p20 Guest Judge

Founder of The Dice Tower, and one of the most influential voices in the industry. With over two decades of experience reviewing tabletop games, Tom knows what makes a great game.

Ben Rosset · p20 Guest Judge

The award winning game designer behind such hits as The Search for Planet X, Fromage, Between Two Cities, and Brew Crafters, Ben now leads Bamboo Design Studio.

The Panda team

Panda team members come from various backgrounds all around the globe, but we are all tabletop gamers dedicated to making (and playing!) the best games in the industry.

20 Winning Designers

All prizes are credits toward a production run with Panda Game Manufacturing. Total prize pool: $110,000 in manufacturing credits.

An exciting new prize this year is the factory trip. We will fly the first-place designer to our facility in Shenzhen, China to meet our production team and see their games being made firsthand.

How to enter

p20 is open to indie designers with two or fewer published games.
One submission per designer. Submissions close May 2027.

Submit the form below and include the following:

Sell Sheet (PDF) – A one-page document summarizing the game, including its theme, mechanics, player count, playtime, and unique selling points.
Video Overview & Quick Play (10 minutes maximum) – A short video about you as a designer, your game, its mechanics, and why it stands out. Include a demonstration of core gameplay and player interaction in 1 to 2 rounds.
Complete Rules (PDF) – Blind tested rulebook that allows a new reader to learn and play the game without additional guidance. Must be in English.

Shortlisted designers move on to a conversation with us. Online if that suits you, or in person at one of the eight conventions we’re showing up at across the year (Gen Con, Spiel, PaxU, DiceCon, Diversão Offline, Roll a Games, Unpub, UKGE).

Here’s what we’re looking for in each category:

Creativity & Engagement: Is the game fun? What makes it stand out? What are the gameplay and thematic highlights? What will keep players coming back?
Market Viability: Is there an audience for this game? How does it compare to other games on the market? Will it sell? What is the marketing plan for the game? Has the designer built an audience?
Production Feasibility: Can the game be manufactured? How much will it cost versus how much players will be willing to pay for it?
Overall Presentation Quality: How polished and prepared are the design and the designer? Has the game been playtested? Are the rules clear? Will the game be ready to be produced within eighteen months?

While we happily accept all entries, the most viable entries will present a solid and playtested design that could be ready to manufacture by the end of 2027.
You’ll want to have some idea of your manufacturing cost (use our free estimator) and have given thought to your marketing plan. None of this needs to be perfect or final, but the more complete of a vision for your game that you share with us, the easier it will be for our judges to see that vision too.

Why we built this

Panda has been manufacturing tabletop games since 2007. Indies have been our customers the entire time and we’ve learned where the actual bottleneck is. It’s not the design. It’s not the playtesting. It’s the moment a first-time designer gets their first manufacturing quote and the math stops working.

p20 is us moving twenty designers past that math for the year we turn twenty.
The last version of this we ran was called 25 in 25. It worked. We learned what to keep, what to drop, where designers were getting confused.
p20 is the rebuilt version.

Common questions

Who is eligible to enter?

p20 is built for indie designers early in their journey – specifically, designers with two or fewer published games. We’re defining “published” as commercially released titles, whether through a publisher, self-publishing, or a successfully fulfilled crowdfunding campaign. Print-and-play, prototypes, and unreleased designs don’t count toward the limit. Each designer may submit one game. Co-designed games are welcome, but the lead designer’s eligibility is what we’ll use to evaluate the submission.

Is p20 a publishing deal?

No. p20 is a manufacturing sponsorship. Your IP and your publishing path stay with you.

Is it free to enter?

Yes, absolutely!

Can I enter from outside the US?

Yes. p20 is global. Legal age in your country is the only geographic constraint.

Does the game have to be finished?

Rulebook tested, prototype playable enough to walk a new reader through. We’d like to see your game, even if it’s not fully polished yet.

What if I sign with a publisher during evaluation?

Tell us. We handle it case by case. We’re not in the business of penalizing good news.

How does the sponsorship actually pay out?

As production credits applied towards your Panda manufacturing quote.

p20 sponsorship terms

1. Sponsorship Award

Panda Game Manufacturing (“Panda”) is awarding a total of $110,000 USD in manufacturing credits across twenty (20) winners as part of the “p20 Sponsorship” celebrating Panda’s 20th anniversary.

Credits are awarded as follows:

Place	Manufacturing credit	Additional prize
1st	$20,000 USD	A trip to China to visit Panda’s factories (travel terms below) and “Behind the Board” video feature
2nd and 3rd	$10,000 USD each	–
4th through 10th	$5,000 USD each	–
11th through 20th	$2,000 USD each	–

Winners are selected by a Panda Game Manufacturing committee, with input from confirmed guest judges (see Section 5), evaluated on:

Creativity and engagement
Market viability
Production feasibility
Overall presentation quality

Specific weighting of these criteria is at the committee’s discretion.

2. Eligibility

Open to games and designers meeting all of the following:

Designer

Age: 18 years of age or older at the time of submission (Panda reserves the right to require proof of age).
Status: Self-publishing designers, or designers who intend to self-publish. Designers pitching games to third-party publishers are not the audience for this program (see Section 8 for what happens if a designer signs to a publisher mid-process).
Track record: No more than two (2) prior commercially published or self-published titles at the time of submission.
Authorship: Designer must be the primary creator of the submitted game. Collaborations are permitted if all co-designers are credited on the submission form.

Game

Original IP: Must be the designer’s original creation. Games using licensed or third-party intellectual property are not eligible.
Unpublished: Not commercially released, not self-published, and not under contract with a publisher at the time of submission.
Playable: Must exist in a physically playable state that demonstrates core mechanics and gameplay flow.
Rights: By submitting, the designer confirms they retain full rights to the game and all associated assets.

Submissions per designer

One (1) submission per designer. Updated from the 2025 policy (which allowed two). If a designer enters more than once, only the most recently submitted entry will be considered.

Exclusions

The following are not eligible to enter:

Panda Game Manufacturing employees, contractors, and their immediate family or household members.
Confirmed guest judges (Tom Vasel, Ben Rosset) and their immediate family, household members, and direct teams (including The Dice Tower).

Re-entry from prior cycles

Non-winners from prior cycles (25 in 25 or other giveaways) may resubmit, and are encouraged to do so, provided the entry is a new game or a meaningfully improved version of the prior submission.
Prior winners (25 in 25 or other giveaways) may not resubmit the same game, even if the manufacturing credit from their earlier win has not been redeemed.
Prior winners submitting a different, new game are considered on a case-by-case basis (see Section 11).

Geographic scope

Globally open. Country-level exclusions apply only where legally required (for example, jurisdictions subject to sanctions or local lottery / contest law restrictions). Panda will assess any such case individually and is not publishing a blanket country exclusion list.

Submission completeness

Submissions must include all required materials (rulebook, video, sell sheet, and any other items specified in the submission form) to be eligible. Incomplete submissions will not be reviewed.

3. Submission window

Opens: May 20, 2026
Closes: May 31, 2027
Late submissions will not be accepted. Submissions are considered received at the time they are fully uploaded to the submission platform, not the time the designer begins the upload.

4. Winner notification and announcement

Winners will be contacted via the email address provided on the submission form.
Public announcement will be made via Panda’s owned channels (X, Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, website, email) on or around GenCon 2027.
Format of announcement (single batch reveal of all 20, or rolling reveals over the year-long arc) is at Panda’s discretion. Submission to the program constitutes consent to be named publicly if selected (see Section 6 on likeness).

5. Judging

The selection committee consists of Panda Game Manufacturing staff and confirmed guest judges:

Tom Vasel, The Dice Tower
Ben Rosset

Guest judges contribute to evaluation at the shortlist stage. The exact mechanics of guest-judge involvement (volume of submissions reviewed, scoring format, scope of recommendation) are set with each judge individually and may evolve during the program.

Panda’s committee holds final decision authority on the twenty (20) winners. Decisions are final and binding (see Section 11).

6. Prize conditions

Manufacturing credit

The credit is awarded to the submitted game and is non-transferable to other individuals, other games, or other entities.
The credit cannot be exchanged for cash, in whole or in part.
The credit must be used exclusively for manufacturing services provided by Panda Game Manufacturing.
The credit can only be used for final mass production invoices (and not for deposit payments, or prototypes)
Panda reserves the right to review and approve the scope, game type, and use of awarded sponsorship funds, including production minimums and specifications.

Residual Balance Forfeiture: If the final mass production invoice total is less than the value of the awarded manufacturing credit, any remaining balance shall be permanently forfeited by the winner. Residual balances may not be carried forward, converted into credit notes, or applied toward unrelated future print runs.Expiration Date: All manufacturing credits awarded under this program must be redeemed through a fully executed and binding mass production contract with Panda within twenty-four (24) months from the date of the public winner announcement. Any unused credit remaining after this period shall automatically expire and become void.

Behind the Board video (1st place only)

Format, length, and distribution of the “Behind the Board” feature are determined by Panda. Winner agrees to participate in good faith (interviews, B-roll, asset access) for the production of the video.

China factory trip (1st place only)

Trip includes round-trip economy airfare from the winner’s primary residence, accommodation, and ground transport during the factory visit, to a maximum value to be set in writing at award time.
Travel dates to be agreed mutually between Panda and the winner. The trip cannot be exchanged for cash.
Winner is responsible for obtaining a valid passport and any required visas, vaccinations, and travel insurance. Panda will assist with documentation as needed.
Tax implications of any travel or non-cash prize are the responsibility of the winner.

Liability Release: Panda shall act solely as a corporate facilitator for the China factory trip and disclaims any liability for travel delays, cancellations, health risks, personal injury, or loss of personal property occurring during transit or during the stay. The winner will be required to execute a standard liability waiver prior to flight booking.

7. IP, likeness, and confidentiality

IP retention: The designer retains all intellectual property rights in the submitted game and its associated assets. Panda receives evaluation rights only: the right to review, score, and discuss the submission internally and with confirmed judges for the purposes of running the program.
Confidentiality: Panda will treat submission contents as confidential within Panda and with confirmed judges, and will not share submitted materials with third parties outside the judging process without the designer’s written consent. Submission does not create a formal NDA between Panda and the designer; designers concerned about confidentiality should consider what they share.
Likeness (finalists and winners): Shortlisted designers, finalists, and winners agree to be named publicly and to permit Panda to use their name, likeness, photograph, and recorded video and audio for campaign communications across owned and earned channels, in connection with the P20 Sponsorship, for the duration of the campaign and reasonably thereafter for archival use.
No publisher relationship: Submission does not create any agreement, contract, partnership, or obligation between Panda and the designer regarding publication, distribution, or marketing of the game. Panda is a manufacturer, not a publisher.
Independent Development Acknowledgment: Panda reviews and produces hundreds of game concepts annually, and our guest judges are active industry professionals. By submitting your design, you acknowledge that overlapping themes, mechanics, or components may naturally and coincidentally occur within the industry. While Panda will treat all submission materials with strict professional care and will not share operational files with unrelated third parties, you agree that the independent development of similar concepts by Panda, our clients, or our judges shall not constitute a breach of your ownership or intellectual property rights.

8. Mid-process publisher signing

If a designer signs the submitted game to a publisher during the submission, evaluation, or post-selection period, the designer must inform Panda in writing within fourteen (14) days of signing.

Panda will assess on a case-by-case basis. Continued eligibility depends on factors including, but not limited to, whether the signing publisher manufactures with Panda and whether the manufacturing credit can still be applied to production of the submitted game. Panda reserves the right to withdraw or modify the award in light of a publisher signing.

9. Data collection and protection

By entering, designers consent to Panda collecting and processing the personal data they submit (including name, email address, country of residence, and any other information requested on the submission form) for the purposes of:

Administering the P20 Sponsorship program
Contacting applicants regarding their submission and any next steps
Public announcement of winners (subject to Section 4)

Personal data will be processed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) for designers in the European Union and the European Economic Area, and in accordance with applicable data protection law for designers elsewhere.

Personal data will not be shared with third parties outside the judging process, and will not be used for marketing purposes without the designer’s explicit, separate consent.

10. Disqualification

Panda reserves the right to disqualify any submission, at any stage of the program, where:

Eligibility criteria (Section 2) are not met
Submission materials are incomplete, fraudulent, or misrepresented
The designer attempts to circumvent these rules or manipulate the selection process (including the creation of duplicate accounts, false credits, or impersonation)
The designer behaves in a manner that, in Panda’s reasonable judgment, brings the program or Panda into disrepute

Disqualified individuals may, at Panda’s discretion, be barred from future Panda-hosted programs, contests, and sponsorships.

11. Organizer’s discretion

Panda Game Manufacturing reserves the right to interpret and enforce these terms at its discretion. Panda may, in its sole discretion and at any time:

Modify or clarify any provision of these terms (with notice to entrants where the change is material)
Extend or shorten the submission window
Adjust the announcement date and format
Cancel, suspend, or modify the program in the event of circumstances outside Panda’s reasonable control

All decisions by Panda regarding selection, prize allocation, and program administration are final and binding.

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Pitch your game. Win one of 20 manufacturing sponsorships

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