Looney Labs

Icehouse Games: predecessor company

Andrew and Kristin Looney previously entered game design and manufacturing with Icehouse Games which was started to manufacture pieces for the formerly fictional IceHouse game in 1989. In 1996, Looney shut down Icehouse Games, Inc. as the cost to create Icehouse pyramid molds would cost $12,000 and to focus on designing a card game.

History

Home based

Andrew Looney soon designed the Fluxx card game. Looney Laboratories was launched in 1996 as a part-time home based design company soon adding a nearby storage unit as a warehouse. Fluxx was licensed out to Iron Crown Enterprises to publish. At the 1998 Origins International Game Expo and Fair in Columbus, Ohio, Looney launched its Aquarius card game.

Iron Crown went into bankruptcy thus the Looney triggered the license provision allowing the rights to revert to the company. Lab then decided to publish Fluxx in house instead of finding another publisher. Kristin Looney by 2000 quit her job to work full-time. released Chrononauts and a new printing of Fluxx (version 2.1). Icehouse sold poorly in stores while selling briskly on the company's website.

In summer 2001, ACMS, later renamed Print Mail Communications (PMC), took over from the storage unit as warehousing and distribution company. In 2001, IceHouse and Chrononauts both won Origins Awards 2000 while Looney Labs published Cosmic Coasters, Fluxx Blanxx, and Chrononauts: Lost Identities. Icehouse pieces were released as monochrome stash tubes in 2001.

Andrew Looney became full-time by 2002. Labs released in 2002 Nanofictionary, Are You a Werewolf? and a new Fluxx primary version. In 2003, the company expanded the Fluxx line with its first themed variant and a licensed German language version.

Looney Labs found in 2004 that an unaware Covenant Communications had published a rip-off of their game, Aquarius, as Search, Ponder, and Play! in 2003, for which Labs reached a licensing deal with Covenant. In 2004, the Zendo icehouse set won Best Abstract Board Game of 2003. while in 2005 the set won the Mensa Select Game Award.

Apartment based

Company offices moved to Janet's Attic, an attic apartment in their friends' house several blocks away in early 2005. By October 2005, EcoFluxx was in play testing while Just Desserts was in prototype, or beta stage.

Robin Vinopal joined the company in early 2006 becoming Chief Operating Officer, Treasurer, and member of the Board of Directors. plus two color schemes and also released Martian Coasters.

With Frane's purchase of a house, Pepperland, in 2008, the company moved into its basement apartment. Product wise that year, Labs released edition 4 Fluxx and The company began using a standard two-part box instead of to-fit tuck box for a consistent look and shelving ease.

In , Looney Labs published one new card game, Are You the Traitor?, another Fluxx variant, new editions of its two other card games and a few expansion sets while starting to use a postcard promo card for marketing. On , Labs launched its Full Baked Ideas imprint with a new edition of Stoner Fluxx and expectations for a drinking variant of Fluxx.

The Back to the Future: The Card Game was released in 2010 along with two Fluxx re-releases in the new box format. Two new Fluxx variants debuted in 2011 that saw the IceHouse pyramids re-released with a new lead game set, IceDice. The company's fan/demo club was restarted in 2011.

The company on reduced the number of distribution companies that they ship through to ACD Distribution and Alliance Game Distributors for the US hobby game market, Lion Rampant for Canada and Publisher Services, Inc. for U.S. mass market and book trade and the international market. ACD and Alliance would also make their supporting material available via subscription.

On August 1, 2012, Looney Labs got a simplified less expensive general market version with redesigned packaging of Fluxx into Target stores. On February 7, 2013, Labs released the 2.0 edition of Nanofictionary as a print on demand product.

Office based

In August 2013, the company moved from Pepperland basement to the top floor of The Sterling Building, an actual office complex. In May 2015, Labs changed its fulfillment company from PMC to Excel. Lab added in mid-2015 GTS as another distributor.

Loonacy was released in March 2014 and won the Parents' Choice FunStuff Award Spring 2014 Games.

In 2017, Looney Labs had multiple releases with three Fully Baked Ideas summer releases of variants of existing games, a revived Nanofictionary version, a few variants of Fluxx including Chemistry Fluxx and Zendo. In December 2017, the company reissued Zendo game separate from the Looney pyramids line for the first time.

Graphic artist Mary Engelbreit was signed to a licensing deal in February 2018 with Looney Labs' for versions of Fluxx and Loonacy games to be released in the third quarter 2018. Two second quarter games were also scheduled, a new Fluxx set and Get the MacGuffin card game.

Games

• Fluxx (1996) designed by Andrew Looney, Mensa Select Game Award 1999
  • Eco-Fluxx ()
  • Oz Fluxx
  • Zombie Fluxx () 2008 Origins Award for Traditional Card Game of the Year
  • Fluxx: The Board Game (2013)
• Aquarius
  • 1st edition ()
  • 2nd edition ()
  • Seven Dragons (2011) Aquarius variant with art from Larry Elmore
• Proton ()
• Q-Turn ()
• Icehouse pieces (see for additional releases)
  • The Martian Chess Set () Origins Award for Best Abstract Board Game 2000
  • monochrome stash tubes ()
  • Treehouse () 2007 Origins Award for Board Game or Expansion of the Year
  • Looney Pyramids ()
• Chrononauts (see for additional releases)
  • 1st edition () time travel themed card game designed by Andrew Looney, Parents' Choice Silver Honors 2001 Games, Origins Award for Best Traditional Card Game 2000
  • Early American Chrononauts ()
  • Back to the Future: The Card Game variant (by ) art by Derek Ring, won 2011 Origins Award for Best Traditional Card Game
  • Star Trek Chrono-Trek (August 1, 2019)
• Cosmic Coasters () Origins Award: best abstract strategy board game 2001
• Nanofictionary
  • 1.0 edition () Parents Choice Silver Honors 2003
  • 2.0 edition () print on demand product via DriveThruCards.com
  • 3.0 edition ()
  • Nanofictionary Blanks (August 2018) pack of blank cards
• Are You a Werewolf? ()
  • Are You a Werewolf? Deluxe edition ()
• Are You the Traitor? () deception party game designed by Andrew Looney, won Origins Award for 2009 Best New Children's, Family, or Party Game
• Choose One ()
• Loonacy: The Maniacal Matching Card Game () 100 double image cards from the Fluxx sets; Parents' Choice FunStuff Award Spring 2014 Games
  • Retro ()
  • Uglydoll () licensed characters()
  • Mary Engelbreit () art by Mary Engelbreit
• Just Desserts
  • Beta edition ()
  • First edition ()
  • Better with Bacon expansion () 10 new cards, 6 dessert, 4 bacon-related customers
• Mad Libs: The Game () variant of the Penguin Young Readers word game and book series
• Zendo (December 2017) 2nd edition
  • Zendo Rules Expansion #1 (August 2018) 10-card set has 5 difficult, 3 medium and 1 easy secret rules that make up to 45 different rules.
• Get the MacGuffin (April 5, 2018)
  • Plan C expansion (announced)
• Time Breaker (February 28, 2019)

Fully Baked Ideas

Fully Baked Ideas is Looney Labs's mature publishing imprint.

• Stoner Fluxx 2nd Edition (November 13, 2009) with 5% of proceeds going to end marijuana prohibition groups; 100 cards
• Drinking Fluxx ()
• Adult Mad Libs: The Game ()
• Stoner Loonacy () uses images from Stoner Fluxx for this version of the company's matching game

References

References

1. (July 9, 2007). "2007 Origins Award Winners". ICv2.
2. (August 30, 2012). "For the Looneys, the game's the thing". Post Community Media, LLC.
3. (August 27, 1998). "The Looneys devise a game plan". Washington Times.
4. (16 September 2011). "History of Looney Labs". Looney Labs.
5. (November 22, 2002). "Looneys working through the serious business of fun". Post Community Media, LLC.
6. "The Looney Labs Experiment". GAMES.
7. (July 7, 2001). "Origins Awards Announced: Pyramid Wins Best Magazine". Steve Jackson Games.
8. "The Covenant Communications Story". Looney Labs.
9. (June 28, 2004). "Origins Award Winners for 2003". ICv2.
10. "Mensa Select Award Winners".
11. (December 17, 2012). "Review: 'Looney Pyramids'--'Treehouse' AND 'Pink Hijinks'". ICv2.
12. (October 26, 2009). "Looney Labs Launches Fully Baked". ICv2.
13. (January 5, 2012). "Looney Labs Cuts Distributors". ICv2.
14. (February 7, 2013). "Nanofictionary". OneBookShelf.
15. (July 20, 2013). "The Sterling Building". Looney Labs.
16. (May 19, 2015). "Thanks PMC!". Looney Labs.
17. (February 1, 2016). "Rolling FOR Initiative--Another Day, Another Distributor Exclusive Ends". ICv2.
18. (February 7, 2014). "'Loonacy: The Maniacal Matching Card Game'". ICv2.
19. (July 27, 2015). "'Retro Loonacy' Card Game". ICv2.
20. (November 23, 2015). "'Uglydolls' Invade Game World". ICv2.
21. (March 6, 2017). "Looney Labs Revives 'Nanofictionary'". ICv2.
22. (November 1, 2017). "'Zendo' Returns". ICv2.
23. (February 7, 2018). "Mary Engelbreit Supplies 'Fluxx' with Upbeat Whimsey". ICv2.
24. (August 7, 2013). "Fluxx: The Board Game". Geek Dad.
25. (June 29, 2008). "2008 Origins Award Winners". ICv2.
26. "Parents' Choice Award-Winning Company: Looney Labs". Parents' Choice Foundation.
27. (August 24, 2011). "Stringing dragons goal of new Looney Labs game". Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc..
28. (May 26, 2011). "Seven Dragons from Looney Labs". Kalmach Publishing Co..
29. "Out Of Print (OOP) Pyramid Products". Looney Labs.
30. (March 30, 2011). "Review of 'IceDice'". ICv2.
31. (September 11, 2010). "'Back to the Future: The Card Game'". ICv2.
32. (June 27, 2011). "2011 Origins Award Winners". ICv2.
33. (May 17, 2019). "'Chrono-Trek' Into The Final Frontier". icv2.com.
34. (February 14, 2019). "'Marvel' and 'Jumanji Fluxx' in the Works". ICv2.
35. (June 14, 2018). "'Star Trek Fluxx' Gets Foil Expansion That Breaks The Timeline". ICv2.
36. (June 8, 2009). "Looney Labs' Demo Kit Program". ICv2.
37. (June 27, 2010). "36TH ANNUAL ORIGINS AWARDS". ICv2.
38. (January 6, 2014). "Review: 'Choose One' (Card Game)". ICv2.
39. (26 January 2018). "Mary Engelbreit Games - Product Announcement {{!}} Looney Labs". Looney Labs.
40. (March 9, 2015). "'Cartoon Network Fluxx' Hobby Release". ICv2.
41. (November 3, 2016). "Looney Labs Declares 'Just Desserts' 'Better with Bacon'". ICv2.
42. (November 24, 2015). "Looney Labs Reveals 'Mad Libs: The Game' Details". ICv2.
43. (January 17, 2018). "'Anatomy Fluxx' and 'Get the MacGuffin'". ICv2.
44. (February 14, 2019). "'Marvel' and 'Jumanji Fluxx' in the Works". ICv2.
45. (January 11, 2019). "Looney Labs Kicks Off 'Year of Time Travel' With 'Time Breaker'". icv2.
46. (February 3, 2017). "Fully Baked Presents 'Adult Mad Libs: The Game'". ICv2.
47. (February 15, 2017). "Fully Baked Ideas Introduces Adults-Only 'Loonacy'". ICv2.