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Ravensburger, maybe the most well known puzzlemaker in the world, centers its North American division in Seattle right in the middle of Capitol Hill. The creative energy above Pike/Pine doesn’t go into jigsaw pieces. Ravensburger North America’s offices in the Odd Fellows Building are focused on bringing joy and delight to game lovers across the spectrum.

Florian Baldenhofer, executive vice president of Ravensburger North America, the Capitol Hill location was chosen to reflect who the company is, and who the company would like to be.

“Like Capitol Hill, we strive to be as inclusive and diverse as possible, and we pride ourselves on encouraging creativity and collaboration,” said Baldenhofer. “Most importantly, since we are a puzzle, games and toy company, we love to play and be playful, and Capitol Hill does a really good job of encouraging that spirit.”

On Capitol Hill, the company develops and designs board games, including Disney Villainous, Horrified, Wizard of Oz Adventure Book Game, and Eye Found It. And the company is currently working on new extensions of worldwide successes, such as Pokémon Labyrinth.

One of Ravensburger’s latest games, Echoes, was developed alongside European game development colleagues. It is also the first game where players can solve a mystery by organizing sounds in the correct order.

“We are fans of pop lifestyle, heritage movies (like The Princess Bride) and children’s games that are so fun that kids have no idea they are learning things as they play,” Baldenhofer said.

Ravensburger, now 139 years old, has been on the Hill since 2017 when it acquired the Pike/Pine-based gamemakers at Wonder Forge. CHS reported on the small game making company’s move from South Lake Union to neighboring McMenamins’ Six Arms in 2010.

“Board games sometimes stay in houses for 20 years,” founder Jacobe Chrisman told CHS back then. “It’s cool to know you’re creating something generations of kids will play with.”

Twelve years later, maybe the best thing for game lovers living on Capitol Hill about having the German company’s offices here? They need help testing the fun. Baldenhofer said Ravensburger recruits locals to assist with playtesting of new games. The office has plans for an expanded game creating effort here and will need more people to help create “the next fantastic game experience,” Baldenhofer said.

You can learn more about Ravensburger and how to contact the company at ravensburger.us.

PLEASE HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE!
Subscribe to CHS to help us pay writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for as little as $5 a month.