I always see pictures of people’s collections with boxes stored vertically on their edge. Looks nice, but when I do this the pieces inside tend to get jumbled around.
What’s the general consensus on the best way to arrange boxes on the shelf?
I always answer ‘tetris’ to this. Whatever maximises shelf space
I 100% agree with this. Although my answer is more along the lines of “If it fits, it sits”.
Horizontal keeps the games better organized, but vertical keeps the shelf better organized.
The true way is modular shelving so you are eable to store them horizontally but each has their own shelf so you can take them out easily and no stress is on the bottom boxes.
Is there a particular product that you have in mind as an example?
The only one I’m aware of is a Kickstarter solution called LaxRax (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cloudpunchergames/lax-rax-the-board-game-shelf-insert-for-ikea-kallax)
Ooh this is neat. Unfortunately my shelves aren’t divided into cubes like a Kallax, but I do like the idea.
The problem with horizontal is that the cardboard of the boxes on the bottom of the piles will eventually bend and tear over time. Permanent damage is worse than jumbled components so I think the concensus is vertical is best.
Vertically. Pieces don’t get jumbled because everything is bagged well. You can buy a box of hundreds of bags on Amazon.
Mostly horizontal, but for games with lots of little pieces (I’m looking at you Wingspan) we put the pieces into little ziplock bags so they don’t get jumbled.
This. I use little ziplocks a lot. I have even 3D printed things to keep pieces secure in the box regardless of orientation.
I have a bit more of a fancy solution to this problem. I usually design and 3D print organizers for my games that should keep all the components nicely in position even if put vertically.
I would love to put them horizontally but it is much harder to find a good shelving solution for this. I also enjoy 3D designing solutions that are not super common.
Horizontal of course, we are not savages!
Horizontal, I have my games to play with, not for decoration. I don’t mind a little scuffing or denting of the box, and it never damages it so much that the box doesn’t function as a box. And then the upside is I don’t have to reorganize everything every single time, and I don’t have to keep them packed in there to avoid them falling over
Vertical with the GeekOn Box Bands.
I use the GameGenic Token Silos, Arcane Tinmen sleeve and tuck boxes, and soon the GameGenic Token Holders to keep things from getting messy inside
I would do horizontal if it weren’t for the weight on the boxes lower in the stack and the difficulty of taking a lower game out.
Pretty much always horizontal. The only exception is small games of mainly cards
I prefer the aesthetic of vertical. There’s just something about it that makes it look like a “proper” collection to me. Of course one downside is that it’ll definitely mess up the components if they aren’t in baggies or some type of organizer.
I’m predominantly vertical, but it depends on the game and where it’s going more than anything else. Those Ticket to Ride type boxes that are large squares almost exclusively get set horizontal because I don’t want to move the brackets on the shelf up. My Agricola/euro game boxes are all stored vertically. Regardless, I bag everything inside anymore which largely solves the pieces moving around aspect for me.
It’s fairly trivial to clean up the game in a way so the components don’t spill around. First, ditch any vac-formed insert or at least don’t rely on it to ‘hold’ anything. Then basically just pick whichever edge will become the ‘bottom’ on the shelf and stack all the components against it. Start with the heavier things like decks of cards on bottom and lighter bags of tokens on top. A full shelf allows games to hold their neighbors closed. When taking a game from the shelf you can rotate a neighbor on its Y-axis fill the gap and press against the other boxes (if needed). For particularly troublesome games, silicone x-bands are a good option. (edit) Perhaps I should clarify that we store all components in small ziplocs or food storage containers.
My main grip with horizontal storage are the hassle getting games in and out of the stack. There’s also the issue of dishing and split corners from the weight of the boxes on top pressing on the boxes below. And, if they’re stacked ziggurat style, then it’s not efficiently using all the storage space available.
