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Drugs in Games

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wyldewah
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Joined: 02/12/2013

No, I'm not talking about gamers taking steroids so they can lift up their copy Caverna in one hand, but games that have drugs linked in with the gameplay . Are you more or less likely to buy or play a game that has a theme or mechanics that contain illegal drugs or drug dealing? Is it acceptable now that we have had any number of TV programs and video games that feature or focus on drugs or is it still taboo as board gaming is traditionally seen as wholesome family entertainment? Have there been any successful games that use this theme?

I ask because I have a game concept that I feel works well with a drug dealing theme, but don't know whether to try and develop it further or try and think of another theme (so far nothing suitable has come to be, but possibly just because I'm comfortable with the theme so feel no 'need' to think of something different). I thought it would be interesting to get some other views on it.

My idea is as follows:

Play takes place on a board depicting a network of cities. Each player takes control of a gang. They start in one city with a production facility for one of 5 drug types. Drugs, once manufactured, can be sold at the black market or later for greater profit through one of your specialised distribution networks. Any drug deal will attract an amount of heat from the police depending on the type of drug and the amount being sold so decisions will have to be made on how much will be sold and how many gang members to commit to making sure the deal goes smoothly. Profits from deals made can be used to expand production and distribution facilities through the locations on the board with the aim of becoming the dominant force in either a particular drug trade or location (determined at the start by drawing hidden agenda cards). 

Any thoughts on the game idea/retheming or the general concept of drugs in games?

Soulfinger
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Yes, you can absolutely do

Yes, you can absolutely do it, so long as you realize that you are catering to a niche within a niche that may, in fact, be within a niche. Board gaming itself isn't wholesome family entertainment, it's just that traditional family games dominate on account of having broad appeal and a huge marketing machine behind them. There have been drug-dealing-themed games on the market for decades. Most of them were just quite awful. Though it deals with prohibited alcohol, "Bootleggers" is a recent example that seems to have done well. This Geek List may prove illustrative:

https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/67114/games-about-drugs-definitive-li...?

The problem you face is that the inclusion of illegal drugs takes it off the table for most minors, who are an important demographic. That an appreciable segment of adult players will be turned off by the premise further shrinks your market. Moral and religious objections aside, even more liberally minded gamers may have had life experiences that soured them on the premise. Personally, drug-themed games aren't for me after I lost one of my closest friends to a heroin overdose (and two childhood acquaintances before him). Nonetheless, you have a solid age bracket in the 18-35 category and a good chance at targeting college-aged consumers who don't yet have the life experience to find the premise unappealing. Added to that, there is the popularity of shows like Breaking Bad and the media buzz with pot legalization.

Personally, I think that broadening it into a crime-based game with drugs as a facet of play could potentially work out better for you, depending on your thematic approach.

One additional consideration is to be considerate about race. It's easy to rely on tropes and stereotypes when writing a game like this. Yes, African Americans account for 59% of those in state prisons for drug offenses, but African Americans only represent 12% of the total population of drug users. There are a disproportionate number of arrests for them with sentences nearly on par with violent offenses among whites. Therefore, game cards depicting junkies, for example, should have a broad swathe of skin tones with a hefty representation of white.

wyldewah
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Joined: 02/12/2013
Thanks for the feedback

Thanks for replying, and in such a constructive way :)

A few things that I hadn't thought about, particularly in terms of racial stereotyping in the artwork. I am envisaging a worker placement type of game where each player is the head of the gang and they place their coloured meeples rather than having cards depicting a range of characters, so am sort of bypassing that problem at the moment but it is an issue that I will have to confront when (if) I reach the general board/manual artwork.

Bootleggers looks like an interesting game and seems to have a bit of support around it but like you say, the rest of that list looks pretty poor. Even if it is a small niche it looks like one that could be filled well with the right game without a great deal of competition - making the dubious assumption that I'm actually going to be able to come up with a solid game ;)

ElKobold
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Joined: 04/10/2015
If I were to ever make a game

If I were to ever make a game on such a topic, I would definitely include a morale aspect in the mechanics.

Maybe use a deck of negative impacts of a life of crime as a game-end timer.
So that the game ends when one of the players inevitably faces his demise Walter white, or Scarface-style.

Soulfinger
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The visual aspect is also

The visual aspect is also going to be important. Whether its the meth from Breaking Bad or GLeeMONEX from Brain Candy, movies and television often feature colorful, fun looking drugs. The counters for board game drugs should be like that, like colorful acrylic glass or something resembling DayQuil/NyQuil capsules

http://www.codwholesale.com/assets/images/Acrylics/Rocks/rocksassorted.JPG

That's what I'd want my guys trafficking.

MattPlays
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Joined: 04/12/2015
i think

that having a drugs message could be a bit preachy. Perhaps have drugs as one of a number of contraband that players are shifting. I agree that it makes it quite niche

wyldewah
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Joined: 02/12/2013
Moral Issues

While my intent isn't to glamorise drugs in any way, I don't feel I don't want to force negative/moral elements into the game. If I can add things naturally, I will, but it still has to be a fun experience to an extent. I just can't imagine anyone saying 'we had a great time, I won because Jimmy died when his Meth Lab blew up and Brian accidentally poisoned all his customers and had no one else to sell his coke to.'
Well, actually I can, just not in this style of game. It could make it sound a bit too comical. I want the tough decisions to be about which action spots to take and what to do when you can't do your first, second or third choice of those. Like Agricola, but producing drugs rather than wheat, vegetables and animals.

wyldewah
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Joined: 02/12/2013
Components

Soulfinger, that's a good idea. They look like the gems from Istanbul. It's always nice to earn them and they are quite different from components I've seen in other games (anonymous looking wooden blocks). I have been thinking about colour-blind issues too as I play regularly with someone who is. Having different shapes for components means that colour choice is less important.

Soulfinger
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wyldewah wrote:I just can't

wyldewah wrote:
I just can't imagine anyone saying 'we had a great time, I won because Jimmy died when his Meth Lab blew up and Brian accidentally poisoned all his customers and had no one else to sell his coke to.'

That's the dilemma with a drug game though. The myopic casual user's outlook inevitably glorifies, or at the very least sanitizes, a grander reality that is really quite horrifying. Are you playing the guy who supplies heroin to a cartel who import women in from China, hook them on junk, and force them to hook? Are you the guy slowly killing his children while he cooks meth in the household kitchen? Leaving that stuff out is what makes the game more comical, like a Cheech & Chong movie or Dave Chappelle sketch, which again is a selling point for the college age crowd. Inclusion of these elements is no more moral pontification than recognizing that wars aren't just about honor and glory.

wyldewah
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Joined: 02/12/2013
Yeah, there are enough games

Yeah, there are enough games that routinely include killing, both mindless and premeditated - even Cluedo/Clue resolves around a grisly murder.
I guess what I would need to do is arm myself well in preparation for any complaints.
I was interested to hear about Days of Wonder having complaints about the use of slaves in 5 Tribes and then that they actually backed down despite the obvious historical backing for it.

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