The Barmik Challenge
Par Barmik Games
Statut actuel
À venir
Lancement le
15/12/2026
The Barmik Challenge was created with a simple idea: bring people back around the same table, while using technology to make every journey more surprising, dynamic and immersive.
At its heart, it is a physical board game for 2–10 players, designed for families and friends. Players travel across cemeteries, forests, ghost villages, mountains, tunnels, caves and swamps, trying to be the first to reach Barmik’s castle.
But the board is only the beginning of the adventure.
A companion app manages the game and makes the world react to what happens on the table. It introduces unexpected events, decisions, alternative routes, special situations, interactive challenges and minigames throughout the journey.
Players may have to choose between a safer route and a faster but more dangerous one, test their memory in the mountains, overcome the dangers of the swamp, collect useful items or deal with traps and setbacks created by the game — and by other players.
The story begins with Barmik, an eccentric millionaire who has made an unusual promise: his castle will belong to the first adventurer who manages to cross its gates.
Every player shares the same destination, but the journey can unfold very differently. Decisions, shortcuts, objects, events, hidden passages and unexpected consequences constantly change the way each player moves through the adventure.
Technology adds another layer to the experience through interactive challenges and augmented reality, bringing elements of Barmik’s world directly onto the physical board. Each player can unlock and use these experiences individually during the game.
Our goal is not to replace the board with a screen. The board remains at the centre of the table, while the app expands what can happen around it — creating situations that would be difficult or impossible to reproduce with physical components alone.
AI Disclosure.
AI tools have been used as supporting tools during the development of The Barmik Challenge, mainly for visual concept development, promotional compositions, text refinement, testing support and experimentation.
Some illustrations and marketing visuals shown on this page include AI-generated or AI-assisted elements. These are used to help communicate the atmosphere, world and intended presentation of the game.
The game itself, including its concept, rules, mechanics, board structure, companion app, augmented reality features and gameplay decisions has been designed, developed, tested and iterated by the creator.
Where real gameplay, the physical prototype, the companion app or augmented reality are shown, we use actual photographs, screenshots and videos whenever relevant so backers can clearly see the current state of the project.
The road is waiting. Barmik’s castle stands at the end. The question is: who will reach it first?
Fully Playable — Current Development Status.
he Barmik Challenge is already fully playable from start to finish.
The complete game flow is implemented, including events, decisions, minigames, inventory, game modes and augmented reality features. The physical board and companion app already work together as a single game experience.
The project is currently in the testing and validation stage.
Current work is focused on:
- Validating the app across a wider range of Android devices and screen sizes.
- Completing compatibility testing on iPhone and iOS.
- Resolving any issues identified during these tests.
- preparing the physical components for professional manufacturing.
See The Game in Action.
See how The Barmik Challenge works in a real game session.
This video shows the physical board and companion app working together, including player turns, movement, events, decisions, minigames and other gameplay elements.
What you are seeing is the current playable version of the game being used in real conditions.
How It Works
The Barmik Challenge is easy to start, but every turn can change the course of the adventure.
Players choose their characters and get ready for the journey. When the game begins, the companion app randomly selects the first player.
On each turn, the active player rolls the digital die in the app, moves their piece on the physical board and then resolves the space they have landed on.
Some spaces are straightforward. Others may trigger events, decisions, traps, items, alternative routes, interactive challenges or a draw from the virtual card deck. Some cards are resolved immediately, while others can be kept and used later in the game. In certain areas of the board, players can also face special minigames that may help them advance — or make their journey more difficult.
As the game progresses, players may discover shortcuts, lose turns, move backwards, gain useful advantages or find ways to affect their opponents. The companion app manages the situations that need to be resolved and guides players through them, while the physical board remains at the centre of the game.
Each area introduces its own rules, choices and risks, so the journey changes as players get closer to Barmik’s castle.
The objective is simple:
Reach Barmik’s castle before anyone else.
Getting there is another matter.
Explore the Board.
Every region of The Barmik Challenge changes the way the journey is played.
The road to Barmik’s castle crosses very different areas, each introducing its own rules, decisions, risks and opportunities. As players enter each region, the companion app also changes the ambient soundscape, helping every part of the journey feel distinct.
The Cemetery.
Every move can trigger something among the graves. Some encounters are harmless; others may force you backwards, make you lose a turn or confront you with an unexpected apparition.
The Forest.
The forest forces players to make a lasting choice.
Take the safer path and move more cautiously, or risk the faster route for the chance to make greater progress — knowing that a bad roll may send you backwards.
The Ghost Village.
The abandoned village hides both opportunities and trouble.
Exploring its houses may trigger unexpected events, and each player must decide whether the possible reward is worth the risk.
The Mountains.
Progress here depends on more than a die roll.
Players face a memory challenge where concentration can determine whether they move forward or lose valuable time.
Underground Passages & Hidden Routes.
Some paths connect distant parts of the board.
The destination of a passage may remain hidden until someone travels through it. Once discovered, that route becomes known to everyone for the rest of the game.
The Cave.
One of the most dangerous parts of the journey.
Hidden routes, difficult decisions and greater risks can offer significant advantages — but mistakes can be costly.
The Marsh
Movement becomes slower and more difficult, but players may choose to take a different kind of risk.
A special challenge controlled by tilting the phone can allow you to cross the marsh in a single attempt. Succeed and you can make a major leap forward. Fail, and the journey continues the hard way.
Even the spaces between these major regions can contain shortcuts, traps, discoveries and unexpected events.
The closer you get to the castle, the less predictable the journey becomes.
The Companion App.
The app is the invisible game master behind The Barmik Challenge.
From the moment the game begins, it manages the flow of the adventure: it randomly selects the first player, controls turns, handles the digital die and resolves what happens when players reach each space.
During the game, the app can:
- Trigger events and unexpected situations.
- Present decisions and alternative routes.
- Manage special spaces and zone-specific rules.
- Launch interactive challenges and minigames.
- Track coins, relics, cards and other player resources.
- Manage the shop and purchasable cards in Hard Mode.
- Control each player's individual augmented reality progress.
The app also adapts the atmosphere as the journey moves through the board. Each major area has its own background ambience, helping the cemetery, forest, underground passages, mountains, cave and marsh feel different from one another.
Some situations are resolved instantly. Others may affect later turns, reveal hidden routes, unlock new possibilities or change how a player moves through a region.
The app handles these systems automatically, so players do not need to remember every special rule or keep track of multiple effects themselves.
The physical board remains at the centre of the experience. The app guides, reacts and resolves — but the journey still happens around the table.
Augmented Reality
At certain moments, the physical board becomes part of the digital world.
The Barmik Challenge uses augmented reality to place digital characters, objects and other interactive elements directly onto the physical board through the companion app.
When AR is activated, the device camera recognises the board and positions the digital elements within the real game space. Players can then see characters, objects and events appearing directly over the areas where the adventure is taking place.
Augmented reality is not activated for everyone at the same time. Each player has their own individual AR progress meter, which fills during the game.
Once the meter is ready, that player decides when to activate their AR experience. Certain events and game effects can also influence this progress, making access to augmented reality arrive sooner — or delaying it.
This means AR is not simply a visual effect. It becomes another part of the decisions players make during the journey.
Most importantly, augmented reality does not replace the physical board.
It adds another layer to it.
Game Modes.
The Barmik Challenge can be played in two different modes. The board, the journey and the objective remain the same, but the amount of strategy and player interaction changes.
Easy Mode.
Easy Mode focuses on the adventure itself.
Players move across the board, discover new areas, make decisions, trigger events, draw virtual cards, face traps and special situations, and take on the challenges and minigames that appear along the journey.
Some cards are resolved immediately, while others can be kept and used later when the right moment comes.
There is no coin economy or shop to manage, making the game quicker to learn and allowing players to concentrate on exploring the board and reaching Barmik’s castle.
It is the most direct way to experience the game, without removing the surprises, decisions or interactive elements that define the journey.
Hard Mode.
Hard Mode keeps the same adventure, but adds an additional strategic layer.
Players can find and accumulate coins during the game. These coins can be spent in The Merchant of the Mist, where special cards and other advantages become available.
Purchased cards can change the course of the game: they may help their owner, affect another player, modify movement, place traps, remove penalties or create opportunities that would not otherwise exist.
But buying something has a cost beyond the coins: making a purchase consumes the player's turn. Using certain stored cards can also require sacrificing a turn, so deciding when to act becomes as important as deciding what to buy.
Hard Mode therefore introduces more planning, resource management and direct interaction between players without changing the central objective: Reach the castle before anyone else.
Start with the mode that best suits your group — and move to Hard Mode when you want the journey to become more strategic and unpredictable.
What the Core Game Will Include.
The Core Game will include:
- One folding game board measuring 50 × 50 cm.
- Ten illustrated character standees with reusable bases.
- Three flat talisman tokens.
- A rulebook in English and Spanish.
- A box to store the physical components.
The Barmik Challenge also uses a digital companion app. It manages turns, dice rolls, events, decisions, cards and minigames, with optional augmented reality features. Physical dice, cards and coins are not included.
The images show the current board design and a playable prototype. The final materials and appearance of the components may be refined before production.
Why The Barmik Challenge Is Different.
The Barmik Challenge brings the adventure to a real board while the companion app responds to what happens along the way. Players move their own pieces towards the castle, choose between routes, face events and take on challenges tied to different areas of the board.
The choices matter. A shortcut may save time or lead to trouble; a safer route may give another player the chance to get ahead. The app handles the changing events, digital cards and dice, while the board and the other players remain at the centre of the game. Players can also choose when to use their individual augmented reality experience.
With accessible and more strategic game modes, and support for 2–10 players, the adventure is designed for both family tables and groups of friends.
Production & Manufacturing
The game is playable in its current development form. Producing the boxed edition is the next stage of the project.
Before manufacturing, the physical components need final specifications and production prototypes. We will use those prototypes to check print quality, materials, fit and durability before approving the final components.
The box and standees pictured in promotional images represent the intended product design. We will share confirmed production details as they become available. Our target is to deliver the game in December 2027; the project timeline and risks sections explain the steps and uncertainties involved.
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