Laois comedian gets crowdfunder help for fun Irish board game

An award winning Portarlington comedian who is a familiar face from the Flahavans porridge television advertisements, is launching his own hilarious Irish-themed comedy board game thanks to a surge of crowdfunding finance.

Steve Bennett from Portarlington is the creator of Dungeons and Naggins, a drinking challenge role playing game designed for non-gamers.

The prototype game got huge interest when it launched on crowdfunding platform Kickstarter last week. Reaching 300% of its funding goal in just 4 days, over €13,000.

Loyal donors paid for the game, in advance of it going into production, and Steve hopes to have it out to them by June 2024, with extra treats like tote bags if enough people donate.

The acclaimed stand-up who spent years touring Ireland, the UK, and Australia, and has won Irish Comedian of the Year in the past, explained how his idea came about.

“Dungeons and Naggins began as a roleplaying game for a friend’s birthday. Without any knowledge of rules or use of official guides, I just made the game up, substituting rules with drinking challenges.

“We all had such a fun adventure that I decided to keep making more,” he said.

After a few months, Dungeons and Naggins evolved into a podcast starring fellow Irish comedians before becoming an electrifying stage show that sold out the Dublin Fringe Festival in 2019 and entertained a packed crowd at Electric Picnic 2022.

Previous guests have included Justine Stafford, Kevin McGahern, Martin Angolo, and Erin McGathy.

After years of development, Steve has now transformed Dungeons and Naggins into a brand new, board game to be enjoyed at home or even in the pub.

Based on classic RPGs and video games but with a simpler dice-rolling format, Dungeons and Naggins promises booze-fueled fun in the form of 30-minute adventures with plenty of laughs.

IN PICTURES: Joy for Laois third level graduates at Portlaoise Institute

With artwork by Saoirse Kavanagh, and promises endless replayability where everyone plays together to win or lose as a team.

Play as mighty heroes like The Pintman and Muck Savage and battle fearsome enemies like The Cowboy Builders and Margaret Thatcher.

Survive scary Irish encounters such as dodging a compliment or public transport, and gather enough chicken fillet rolls and tasty pints to survive the dungeon.

See the Dungeons and Naggins crowdfund page here on www.kickstarter.com