If you have not yet been collared by a friend insisting you read Dungeon Crawler Carl, the tabletop world just gave you another nudge. The Dungeon Crawler Carl Roleplaying Game, Renegade Game Studios' official adaptation of Matt Dinniman's runaway-hit book series, pulled in $13.29 million from 55,972 backers on BackerKit, making it the most-funded game campaign in BackerKit's history. It took $4.57 million in the first 24 hours alone.
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Set up your group for freeThe source material explains the frenzy. Dinniman's series follows Carl, a Coast Guard veteran, and Princess Donut, his ex-girlfriend's pampered cat turned sapient after eating an enchanted biscuit, as they fight through an 18-level dungeon that has swallowed the Earth and turned humanity's survival into an intergalactic reality show. It started life on Royal Road in 2020 and has since sold more than six million copies across its first seven books, with audiobooks fans quote like scripture.
The campaign actually delivered two games. The Dungeon Crawler Carl Roleplaying Game gathers a Game Master and one or more players to roll up their own crawler and brave the World Dungeon, playing as Carl, Donut and company or building someone new. Alongside it, Dungeon Crawler Carl: Unstoppable is a standalone card-crafting deckbuilder for one or two players, solo or co-op, that runs the same gauntlet of mobs and bosses without a games master. Both make their convention debut at Gen Con 2026.
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Find events near youBackers start receiving their copies in October, with a retail release following in late November. If the books have been on your list, this is the year Carl finally crashes your table. Want a group to brave the dungeon with? Find one on Backseat Gamer.
Sources: Renegade Game Studios | Wikipedia
