The umpteenth family argument over who cheated who in a game of Monopoly made Owen think it was time for a change.
Rather than a game that now celebrates ruthless competition at the expense of friendships, why not a game that reflects the reality of the world we live in, and asks the question where do we want to be?
The idea wasn’t an easy one – how to bring what can sometimes be stuffy, detached, environmental issues down to the ground in a fun and engaging way?
Some years later, Footprint entered production, with the support of the Society for Environmental Improvement, tEC Southampton, UnLtd, and others, along with the many schools, community groups, friends and family that together helped test and fine tune gameplay. 2015 saw the first 100 copies of the Portsmouth edition of the board game go on sale.
In 2017 Owen redesigned the board version of Footprint into a snazzy, more portable, more eco-friendly card-only World Edition of the game suitable for schools and families across the UK and beyond. With the support of Southern Co-op, several hundred copies of the game are being distributed to schools across the south of England.