Rally racing board game Rallyman: Dirt finds a new home after its publisher's collapse
Back on track.
Roll ‘n’ move board game series, Rallyman, will now park its racing cars in Synapses Games’ garage following the closure of previous owner Holy Grail Games.
Synapses Games, publisher of the upcoming Yokohama: Second Edition and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood of Venice, rescued the popular duo of Rallyman GT and Rallyman: Dirt after the original publisher, the French-based Holy Grail Games, announced that it was shutting down in February 2023.
Holy Grail Games said at the time that reverberations of the COVID-19 pandemic increasing the price of global shipping and production costs left the company in a vulnerable position, then a disastrous relationship with distributor, Bolloré Logistics, effectively planted the final nail in their financial coffin. Holy Grail Games filed for bankruptcy while Rallyman: Dirt was in the middle of fulfillment to Kickstarter backers.
Even though Synapses rescued the Rallyman series from ownership Limbo, the publisher won’t necessarily be able to help previous backers secure their copy of Rallyman: Dirt. Holy Grail Games lost access to their existing inventory and list of backers in the bankruptcy and ensuing liquidation, so any new copies are constructed from spare parts or printed from scratch. Synapses said in a press release that they would pass along any updates or new information to backers when the situation changes.
On a more positive note, Synapses has tapped Rallyman designer Jean-Christophe Bouvier to continue work on the Rallyman board game series in the future. The publisher did not mention what those plans might entail beyond publishing the two existing titles in more international markets, but Bouvier seemed excited to return to his creation of dice-based, push-your-luck rally racing.
“Speaking with Carl [Brière, Synapses president], I recognized his passion and ambitions for Rallyman, which have breathed life back into my biggest dreams, the pursuit of GT’s influence internationally, the launching of DIRT, the animation of the community... all with a desire to maintain the quality and authenticity which have bolstered the Rallyman brand.” Bouvier said. “It is truly a pleasure to see the adventure that began in 2009 carry on in good hands, and in the land of the Villeneuve legacy: a true sign of passion and excitement for the road that lies ahead.”