https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/the-current-for-march-18-2020-1.5501267/no-us-versus-them-mentality-creator-of-pandemic-says-board-game-has-lessons-for-how-to-approach-covid-19-1.5501557?__vfz=medium%3Dsharebar
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/no-us-versus-them-mentality-creator-of-pandemic-says-board-game-has-lessons-for-how-to-approach-covid-19-1.5501557
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Matt Leacock designed the game Pandemic in the 2000s. It was partially inspired by the SARS outbreak in 2003. (Owen Duffy)
The creator of Pandemic says the collaborative nature of the board game could offer lessons in fighting the global COVID-19 outbreak.
"Unlike a lot of other games where you're working against each other, in Pandemic all the players work together to try to beat the game, essentially — you're working against the disease," said Matt Leacock, a California-based game designer.
Pandemic was released as a board game in 2008, and later turned into a video game. Players are assigned characters such as scientists, medics and researchers, and must travel around a world map dealing with outbreaks of diseases, before they grow to overwhelm the globe.
"The game is really all about worldwide community cooperation and working together, it doesn't have an us versus them mentality," he told The Current's Matt Galloway.
"When you look at a lot of what's talked about and the political situation around the world, people are throwing a lot of blame," Leacock said.
"When really what we need to be doing is coming together and figuring out how we can work on this big problem together."
Leacock says he initially came up with the game while the 2003 SARS outbreak was in the news, as he thought "viruses seem like a really good antagonist."
But he also wanted to create a collaborative game he could play with his wife.
"We had played negotiation games in the past, and they did not go real well," he said.
But with collaborative games, "we always got along great, and felt good whether we won or lost."
People play Pandemic at a convention in 2013, in London, U.K. (Oli Scarff/Getty Images)
Game-playing strategy
Leacock says the key to winning the game is balancing strategy, and effective communication.
"There's pockets of infected populations around the world, and your knee-jerk response is to run around like crazy, trying to take care of every small emergency," he explained.
"But if you do that, you're going to lose."
Instead, the focus should be on co-operation, and managing resources effectively to find a cure, he said.
"It takes a good mix of short-term thinking, and long-term thinking and a lot of communication," he said.
"Everybody has their own unique skill and it takes everybody kind of working together and taking advantage of each player's strengths in order to to win."
Written by Padraig Moran. Produced by Matt Meuse.
https://youtu.be/nV25C4El3io
Covid-19 is a wakeup call for humanity.
ReplyDeleteInfectious microbes affect all nations and all regions of the world
and such global problems require multinational cooperation and collaboration (unanimity of purpose).
In this time of extreme nationalism,perhaps the Covid-19
pandemic will waken us to the need to promote multilateralism and globalism--unifying humanity in its effort to meet the challenges of transnational problems such as climate change,environmental degradation, future pandemics, and other global crises.
We're all in the same boat,
... and we're all on the same planet!
ReplyDelete"team humanity" vs "every nation for itself"
It is ironic that this tiny microbe(a primordial lifeform wch has caused the prohibition of gatherings and physical closeness --the practice of "social isolation") has unified the human species and brought us together to fight a common enemy instead of fighting amongst ourselves!
An alien invasion could not have achieved greater commonality of purpose! Clearly in the face of a universal threat,human beings can set aside their superficial differences and unite to achieve a common goal!
Unfortunately when this threat is over ,the present spirit of cooperation and solidarity will likely evaporate and humanity will once again revert to its historical/habitual pattern of adversarial competition,conflict,and infighting.
ReplyDeleteIran just asked the US to lift economic sanctions as a humanitarian act so it can import essential supplies and equipment to cope with Covid-19.
Trump said he will not lift the embargo!
silver lining: the positive effect of the pandemic
ReplyDeletea global economic recessiom is tbe best thing that could happen to the planet in terms of slowing climate change and saving the biosphere from rampant degradation.
Earth's ecosystems are the unforseen beneficiaries of the Corvid-19 outbreak.
Efforts to stop tbe spread of Corvid-19 and deal with this global health crisis are dramatically changing human behaviour (with unprecedented restrictions on travel, work and human contact) in ways that unexpectedly benefit the planet's health.
In response to public health official's prescriptions to minimize direct personal contacts and physical social interactions(social distancing/self-isolation ),people are adjusting their lifestyles and work habits in ways thst also reduce greenhouse gas emissions and their carbon footprint.
Flight restrictions have drastically reduced air travel.
Factory closures have reduced atmospheric pollution.
People have stopped buying/spending/consuming nonessential goods--sending the economy into a tailspin.
People are re-assessing their values/priorities and the importance of material/economic pursuits.
The preservation of human health and wellbeing takes precedence over the pursuit of wealth/profit.
populist nationalism militates against international cooperation
ReplyDeletethere is no alternative but global cooperation.
We have to work together to deal with global issues.
It will require unity and teamwork!
The idea of "the common good":
ReplyDeletehttps://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-23-ideas/clip/15836298-common-good-or-what-if-this-gets-bigger
https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02FfeStp32UqqicFnmLjEZ9RqPUetZtZiLFmHh2NHpHDN7vW1rjzg3KFeMkFpbHC3rl&id=100064677761133&post_id=100064677761133_pfbid02FfeStp32UqqicFnmLjEZ9RqPUetZtZiLFmHh2NHpHDN7vW1rjzg3KFeMkFpbHC3rl&mibextid=Nif5oz
ReplyDelete