A simple lesson about cooperation & compassion
I am not a particularly competitive person, so when I came across ‘The Grizzled: A cooperative game’ in a store, I didn’t hesitate to buy it. I was tantalized by the idea of a game where you all win together or all lose together. I want to know how it worked, how designers Fabian Riffaud and Juan Rodriguez managed to build a game based on cooperation rather than competition.
It was some months before we finally had some friends around with whom we could play. The rules were complex and, as is so often the case, made little sense when you just read them. The cooperative aspect began as soon as we opened the box as we determined the best way to go about learning how to play.
For the first round, we agreed we would be flexible and allow a lot of questions and disclosure of things the rules instructed us not to disclose. We would figure it out together, getting comfortable before we followed the rules as they were written down.
The premise of the game is this: You are a group of soldiers in WWI. You have to undergo a series of missions, the number of which will be determined by how well you play together. You will face multiple challenges in the form of fear, self-protection, trauma, and threats.
We boldly set out on our first mission, shakily going about our moves, drawing and playing cards, referencing the rules and checking in with one another. It was hard, definitely, and we recognised that. We joked a little about it, but solemnly, as the creators of the game did not fail in conveying the message that war is not a laughing matter. War is brutal, and a game based on war ought to be too.
Several missions later, we cleared the pile of cards to reveal the peace card, bearing the classic symbol of a dove.
It was hard, but we were confident now. We could do another game without revealing our hands so readily. We even thought we could take on harder missions to get to peace more quickly. We did, however, continue to play by the ‘beginners’ rules. We were confident but not cocky.
Two failed games later, we were humbled. Each time the peace card remained buried as the monument card was revealed. Each time we looked around, saddened that even with the greatest cooperation, the odds were so stacked against us, the game felt nearly impossible to win. Each time we were confronted with a kind of hopelessness. Mistakes were made and it was hard not to feel a bit of resentment when the recommendation of another player failed later down the road. We learned that assuming we were one mission away from ending the war was foolish, no matter how well we’d played our cards previously. Success in one mission was no guarantee of success in the next. However much we cooperated, the other element of the game, the enemy built into the cards, pushed against us.
We all wanted to keep trying to figure out the best way to survive and get through together, but after the third round, we were spent. Winning felt nearly impossible. The game had done its job at delivering a message: Be it war, disease, or climate change, we either die together or survive together.
The choice is ours.
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This blog was originally published on Medium.