SHASN (transl. Governance) is a multiplayer political strategy board game created by Zain Memon, and published by Memesys Culture Lab,[1] where each player takes on the role of a politician contesting elections and is required to take a stand on various political and ethical issues.[2][3] The game was launched on the global crowdfunding platform, Kickstarter on 16 July 2019,[4] and raised $339,045 from 4,209 backers.[5] SHASN was inspired by the documentary An Insignificant Man, on the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party politician and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.[6][7]
 Board game | |
| Designers | Zain Memon |
|---|---|
| Publishers | Memesys Culture Lab |
| Publication | 16 July 2019 |
| Genres | Board game, Political strategy game |
| Players | 2–5 |
| Playing time | 90–180 minutes (2 player); 4-6 hours (5 player) |
| Skills | Strategy, Negotiation, Area Control, Resource management |
| Website | shasnthegame.com |
Gameplay
editSHASN is a competitive strategy board game played between two and five players which gives players an opportunity to influence the maximum number of majority voters in the 9 zones (or constituencies) on the game board. Voters are influenced via combinations of resources such as funds, clout, media, and trust.[8] These resources are gained by answering questions on the Ideology Cards which are about real-world political, social, and ethical issues. The game ends when a majority has been formed in all possible zones on the board.[9]
There are 4 ideologies in the game including The Capitalist, The Supremo, The Showstopper (originally called The Showman), and The Idealist. Players gain Ideology Cards by answering questions.[10][11]
The type of ideology card players gain depends on which ideology their chosen answer falls under. Within the game, The Capitalist focuses on free trade, The Supremo focuses on identity politics, The Showstopper focuses on gaining media attention through shock tactics, and The Idealist focuses on making the world a better place. If the players gain 2, 3, or 5 cards of one ideology, they gain powers specific to that ideology.[6]
Development and release
editThe development of the game began in January 2018[10] and continued over the course of one and a half years.[11] Anand Gandhi is the executive producer of SHASN. The game was also produced by Vinay Shukla and Khushboo Ranka
SHASN released to widespread critical acclaim. Stephen Gulik of Everything Board Games said, "They nailed American politics better than any other game I can think of.” Dan Thurot of Space Biff called it “one of the most unhinged, perceptive, outlandish, and timely games… simultaneously laugh-out-loud funny and… disquieting..” Jeremiah Slack of g33k-HQ said, “The game reels you in from the start... once you start playing you cannot help but get excited about your next turn.” Jessica Fisher of gameosity commented on the “Razor-fine aesthetic that drew me in instantly."
SHASN has a huge player base internationally and is now played in over 60 countries.
As of September 2021, three editions of SHASN have been launched- Standard Edition, Essential Edition, and the Founder's Edition. Taking players across many nations and eras, SHASN launched with 5 campaigns - India 2020, USA 2020, UK 2019-20: Brexit, Fall Of The Republic: Rome 40 BCE, and The Future Of Humanity: Earth 2040.[12][13]
Standalone expansion
editSHASN: AZADI, co-designed by Abhishek Lamba and Zain Memon was launched on Kickstarter on September 8, 2021.[14] It met its funding goal within an hour, and went on to raise over $200,000 over the course of its campaign.
AZADI brought stories of revolution from across the world to the fore. It launched with 5 campaigns - South Asian Independence 1947, Russian Revolution 1917, American Revolution 1776, Egyptian Revolution 2011, and Mars: 2165.[15][14][16]
Since its launch, campaigns for the French Revolution, Indus Valley Revolution, and an undisclosed campaign depicting an ongoing struggle have been made available as additional campaigns.[14][17]
Awards
edit| Year | Award | Category | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | IndieCade Europe 2019 | Social Impact Award | [18][19] |
| 2019 | TENTACCOLADE Award 2019 | Best Campaign Video | [20] |
Tournaments
editIn 2019, the first Shasn tournament was organized by the game creators. Subsequent tournaments were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tournaments resumed again in 2023.
Season 1
edit
For the first official Shasn tournament, 8 semi-finalists were selected from the following 4 cities (2 semi-finalists per city): Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. These 8 semi-finalists then played against each other in two tables; each table having a semi-finalist from each of the 4 cities. The semi-final winners were as follows:
- Table 1: Adil Aziz (Mumbai) and Sahil Parsekar (Delhi)
- Table 2: Austino Paul (Bengaluru) and Viraj Kaoshal (Delhi)
These 4 semi-final winners then had a final match in Mumbai on August 15, 2019. The winner was Austino Paul (Bengaluru).[21]
| Rank | Name | City/State | Score | Voters | Ideology cards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Austino Paul | Bengaluru | 20 points (3 zones) + 3 points (coalition zone) | 23 | 4 capitalist, 1 supremo, 5 showstopper, 0 idealist |
| 2nd | Viraj Kaoshal | Delhi | 20 points (2 zones) | 22 | 0 capitalist, 5 supremo, 5 showstopper, 0 idealist |
| 3rd | Adil Aziz | Mumbai | 6 points (1 zone) + 8 points (coalition zone) | 16 | 3 capitalist, 3 supremo, 3 showstopper, 0 idealist |
| 4th | Sahil Parsekar | Delhi | 12 points (2 zones) | 18 | 2 capitalist, 1 supremo, 2 showstopper, 4 idealist |
Austino won by taking control of the central zone (5/9) while holding majorities in the 6/11 and 9/17 zones and being in a coalition majority with Adil in the 11/21 zone. The coalition scoring was split 8 points to Adil and 3 points to Austino.
Note: the ability to create majorities using a coalition has been cut from subsequent versions of the game.
Season 2
edit
The second official Shasn tournament took place in India from November to December 2023. Five semi-finalists were chosen from the following 5 cities/states (1 semi-finalist per city/state): Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Delhi, Goa, and Mumbai. The only returning finalist from last season was Sahil Parsekar. The finals happened on Friday, December 15, 2023 in Doolally Taproom in Mumbai using the new India 2022-23 campaign deck. The prize for first place was a golden trophy and a 10,000 INR cheque. The prize for second place was a 5,000 INR cheque. The results were as follows:
| Rank | Name | City/State | Score | Voters | Ideology cards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Dhruvie | Bengaluru | 24 points (3 zones) | 27 | 0 capitalist, 0 supremo, 5 showstopper, 4 idealist |
| 2nd | Anant Lamba | Delhi | 17 points (2 zones) | 19 | 3 capitalist, 3 supremo, 2 showstopper, 0 idealist |
| 3rd | Jay Jarosz | Goa | 16 points (2 zones) | 19 | 2 capitalist, 0 supremo, 1 showstopper, 5 idealist |
| 4th | Sahil Parsekar | Mumbai | 12 points (2 zones) | 15 | 3 capitalist, 0 supremo, 0 showstopper, 5 idealist |
| 5th | Arsheya | Ahmedabad | 0 points (0 zones) | 7 | 4 capitalist, 1 supremo, 3 showstopper, 0 idealist |
The tournament was won by Dhruvie by holding the 6/11 and 9/11 zones and completing the last 3 remaining majorities in a single turn. He did this by buying 9 voters and taking over the second 9/17 zone, gerrymandering Sahil into a majority in a 6/11 zone, and using Anant's "Cult-ivating Obedience" conspiracy card against him. The "Cult-ivating Obedience" card protects one of the majorities of the owner, but it also allows any other player to convert 3 of their voters as a cost to take the card for themself. Dhruvie converted 3 of his voters into Anant's voters, giving Anant a majority in the 11/21 zone and ending the game.
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References
edit- ^ Deodhar, Neerja (21 April 2019). "Taking Indian politics to board games: How 'Shasn' and 'The Poll' place players in the shoes of politicians". Firstpost.
- ^ Sathe, Gopal (3 August 2019). "Parlour Games And Dirty Tricks: Can Board Games Help Young Indians Engage With Politics?". HuffPost.
- ^ Venugopal, Sruti (23 November 2019). "Indiajoy 2019: Understanding politics through board game". Telangana Today.
- ^ Malik, Ektaa (24 July 2019). "A new political strategy game is trying to make politics and policy-making trendy for the apolitical". The Indian Express.
- ^ Sibal, Prachi (11 October 2019). "We the Players". Open.
- ^ a b Tanwar, Sangeeta (21 July 2019). "The cacophony of Indian elections and politics has inspired another board game". Scroll.in.
- ^ Patwa, Priyadarshini (30 July 2019). "#5 Boardgames That Teach Us Important Entrepreneurial Strategies & Leadership Lessons". Entrepreneur.
- ^ Devidayal, Namita (26 July 2019). "This new board game lets you play politics | India News – Times of India". The Times of India.
- ^ Khandelwal, Heena (12 July 2019). "SHASN: New board game by Anand Gandhi's Memesys Culture Lab aims to put you in the shoes of politicians". Indulg Express.
- ^ a b Balasubramanian, Malavika (12 July 2019). "When politics on celluloid spills over to a board game". The Hindu.
- ^ a b Ganguly, Arnab (5 August 2019). "Playing politics". Mumbai Mirror.
- ^ "SHASN: Democracy as a Board game". thesocialtalks.com. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
- ^ Majumdar, Rahul (20 September 2021). "Shasn: Azadi Creator Zain Memon on the Journey From VR and Feature Films to Board Games and Esports in India". IGN. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
- ^ a b c "Anand Gandhi announces new board game Azadi, designed by Zain Memon". Firstpost. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "The Creators of Board Game 'SHASN- AZADI': 'There Are Real Leadership Skills That Translate from The Game World to The Real World' -". My Site. 29 September 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ Majumdar, Rahul (31 August 2021). "Shasn: Azadi Board Game Announced With Upcoming Kickstarter Campaign". IGN India. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "Bored millennials get hooked to Shasn, the newest modern board game". Hindustan Times. 13 September 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "Kind Words, Biped win major awards at IndieCade Europe 2019 | The Star". The Star (Malaysia). 22 October 2019.
- ^ "AWARDS – 2019 – IndieCade". IndieCade.
- ^ "2019 Board Game Award Winners". Kick Agency. 3 January 2020.
- ^ "SHASN Invitational Cup Finals". YouTube. 15 August 2019.