About Us
Dice Maestro is a family business. In the picture: Carla Brown, business manager; Antony Brown, games inventor; David Brown, co-founder; and 'Meg' the megalosaurus from Jurassic Wars!
Our Story
It all started during Christmas 2006. As we collected the reams of discarded product packaging from our children's presents we looked at the country of origin. Out of sixteen presents one - only one - was made in the UK. Everything else was made overseas. In fact, 9 out of every 10 toys and games are now manufactured overseas.
We suspected these toys were made under awful conditions (read The Real Toy Story by Eric Clark). But what could we do? Everything seems to come from China and we had to give our kids something; a sentiment that is probably common to many households in Britain today.
As workers in the West we often complain about our own pay, pensions and working conditions, but as consumers we demand cheap goods that require other workers to toil in conditions that we simply would never tolerate. Most of us are aware of this but choose to ignore it, especially at Christmas. We call this the 'China Syndrome'.
But after the festivities we did do something. We set up our own business to manufacture games in the UK using distinctive ethics, including minimizing plastic components where possible.
It's not easy - without sourcing overseas costs are signficantly higher. For more on our story see the article by ToyTalk magazine.
Family business values
Our vision at Dice Maestro is to create board games with a difference and have business values that make a difference. Here are seven reasons to buy a Dice Maestro game:
- Play Anywhere. Our games are played in the box, which is the size of a typical hardback novel, and can be played virtually anywhere: at home, at school, on holiday, on the road. No need for a table.
- Play Anytime. Our games typically last 30 minutes or so - ideal for busy lifestyles.
- Fun For All. Our games are simple enough for children to play but sophisticated enough for adults to enjoy. Virtually everyone enjoys throwing dice but the finely tuned game mechanisms provide subtlety and scope for tactical play.
- Few Rules. There is no lengthy rule book to wade through to learn the rules of the standard game. However, more experienced gamers should visit the resources section for each game to download rule variations, rules for different game versions, strategy tips and probability tables.
- Made in the UK. We do not outsource any manufacturing to countries with poor environmental or health and safety records. Everything is made in the United Kingdom.
- We Give to Charity. Building community value is not inconsistent with growing shareholder value. We give a stated percentage of profits from our games to a relevant charity. With Wildlife Rescue we are donating a percentage of game profits to ARKive. With Jurassic Wars we are donating a percentage of game profits to two children's charities: Make-A-Wish Foundation UK and Naomi House Children's Hospice.
- Environmentally Friendly. The compact size of our games means we use far less cardboard then typical board games and we also minimize the amount of plastic used. All of our components are recyclable.
Board games without a board
The term 'board game' defines a broad category of games that are made primarily from cardboard. Board games are differentiated from other types of game, such as computer and electronic games. Dice Maestro games do not contain a board but combine the exciting themes and interplay assocaited with board games with the flexibility and simplicity of using just custom dice and specialty cards. In Wildlife Rescue, for example, there are six unique wildife dice, each face showing an animal symbol, and a pack of beautifully designed widlife cards. The box is also a component in Dice Maestro games - it is used as a dice arena during play.
Future releases
Wildlife Rescue and Jurassic Wars are the first two games in our range. Watch our website and the media for forthcoming releases, such as Jurassic Wars expansion packs.
Contact Us
To contact us please e-mail 
We aim to respond within 24 hours.