Escalation

Escalation is a family board game designed around a vision of the winner being the last person standing because everyone else got so angry that they left. I scaled that vision back a bit for that sake of making a product that people might actually purchase and play, but the basis is the same. The rules and actions are derived from a list of variables that make people frustrated, particularly in the context of politics.

Many people I with whom I spoke about Escalation really wanted it to have a positive purpose. They would ask: “But then it brings families together to talk about their anger, right?”

In its current incarnation, it does not. It was designed as an evil game, and that is what it is. Play-testing it confirmed its ability to get people rather riled up and frustrated with each other. The Name-Calling tile, in particular, proved to be surprisingly infuriating. At the same time, it’s actually pretty fun to play.

However, as a thought experiment, Escalation did enable me to explore these forces that push people to the edge and how we might use the edge to help players learn and grow. In team-building, we often devise activities that we know will frustrate and challenge groups. By getting groups to confront real issues through arbitrary activities, facilitators can help groups better prepare for the real situations in which these issues might arise.