Diplomacy: The Most Evil Board Game Ever Made
There are great number of truly evil board games. But there is a game that’s the evilest of them all. Diplomacy.
There are great number of truly evil board games. But there is a game that’s the evilest of them all. Diplomacy.
In a world of cynicism and hard financial realities, it’s a rare and beautiful thing to come across a story where love wins. Yet here I sit with a fresh new game in my hands, from the Netherlands with love.
How do you distil all of human history into a game? How do you inscribe all of our knowledge and learning upon 105 cards? How do you condense millennia of scientific progress and technological innovation into a 30-minute-card game called Innovation?
With genius, guile, and a game designer called Carl Chudyk.
I’ve always loved board games. As a poor student, I would walk into Games Paradise on Pitt Street in the city just to be surrounded by shiny plastic-wrapped board games with expensive price tags.
Then one day, I discovered a secret.
Gamers are a funny bunch. Board gamers, doubly so. We treasure our board games. We put plastic sleeves on our cards to keep our games immaculate and pristine. We do not tolerate spilled drinks.
So writing on the board (in permanent marker!), placing stickers, and ripping up cards is both incredibly disturbing, and therapeutically cathartic. Welcome to Seafall.