Killer Bunnies Blast Off
By Karyn M. Peterson -- Playthings, 9/1/2008
THE GLEEFUL BUNNY has a lot to be happy about—and so does Dan Rowen. As president of Playroom Entertainment, he has 6 years of funny, furry and furious fandom for the Killer Bunnies brand to be proud of, and which he hopes will expand significantly in the coming months through some key retail partnerships, as well as a brand new game title.
The Van Nuys, Calif.-based game maker began distributing its first Bunnies title, Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot (Blue Starter Deck), in 2002, and it immediately garnered an obsessive fan base in specialty toy, game and hobby stores.
The satirical non-collectible card game invented by Jeffery Neil Bellinger and designed by Jonathan Young tasks players with eliminating their opponents’ bunnies (Blue Gleeful, Green Timid, Orange Lumbering, etc.) via an incongruous and hilarious mix of weapons (such as Kitchen Whisk, Flame Thrower, Green Gelatin with Evil Pineapple Chunks and Roaches) while keeping alive their own bunnies through special play cards (like Free Cabbage, The Magic Spatula and Containment Suit).
The cult phenomenon includes 10 booster packs, the first of which now comes with the starter deck, and dozens of limited edition cards that change up game play and are distributed through retailers, at conventions and at special events to fans.
“We do a lot of promotional cards, as well, that we send out in tens of thousands, so people can add these cards to their decks and mix things up a little bit,” Rowen says.
This type of fan interaction has been critical to the game’s success, and Playroom has nurtured it through its PlayMasters demo program. “We’re always trying to get [PlayMasters] in cities across the nation so they can go into a local store and run events to gain popularity for the game and for our entire line,” Rowen says. Playroom also hosts national and world championships.
Starting this summer, a specially packaged version of Quest’s starter deck is being distributed at Barnes & Noble, marking the brand’s first foray into a wider market. The starter deck as well as two booster decks also began appearing in a limited number of Target stores.
Bunnies gone wild“We’re just letting the market determine whether or not it’s right for a store such as Target,” Rowen tells Playthings. “We feel that the concept has the ability to cross over to the mainstream even though it is a little more complex than your everyday game, but we’re going to let the market determine that for itself.”
Rowen is also gearing up for the launch of a second game, Killer Bunnies and the Journey to Jupiter, this month. It’s a more complex adventure with cards as well as a game board that Rowen calls “one step up” from Quest. So far, it has had “an overwhelming response” from fans that previewed it at gaming events like Origins and Gen Con.
As for licensing, the brand already has T-shirts of some of the special bunnies (such as the Star Wars and Matrix spoof characters), and on the horizon, Rowen hopes to have figurines and other products.
“We’ve always had interest in the brand because there is a large storyline and a large background to the characters and to the world,” Rowen says. “What we’re trying to do is make sure we don’t rush this and that we build up the storyline. We truly believe that we’ll be seeing other Killer Bunny products out there shortly.”
And in 2010, Rowen plans to debut “a totally different type of business model” for a third release: “We try to focus on what we’re doing at the present time and not get too excited about the future, but with what we know is coming, it’s kind of difficult to do that!”
