Kickstarting Bloc by Bloc: a game about radical insurrection

Rocket Lee writes, "In Bloc by Bloc: The Insurrection Game, players struggle together to overthrow a repressive government and liberate a randomized city that changes with each game. To win, players must build barricades, loot shopping centers, occupy strategic locations, clash with riot cops and defend liberated zones before time runs out and the military arrives. Each player is also dealt an individual faction agenda and those with Vanguardist or Nihilist agendas are secretly playing to win the game alone."

Bloc by Bloc is the first project of the subversive game design and publishing collective Out of Order Games. The game is based on the rich history of recent anti-capitalist uprisings and popular rebellions in locations ranging from Oaxaca, Mexico to Athens, Greece to Out of Order's hometown of Oakland, California. Initial development began over five years ago and the project is shaped by the designers' varied experiences in street protests, social movements, and anarchist projects around the world during the last decade.

The game's Kickstarter went live last week and runs through May 17. Out of Order has also released a free print and play download of Bloc by Bloc (link below) and the entire project is available under a Creative Commons license. The game is being manufactured in the U.S.

If you are interested in checking out Bloc by Bloc in person and meeting the game's creators, swing by their table at next Saturday's Bay Area Anarchist Bookfair in Oakland.

Bloc by Bloc: The Insurrection Game [Rocket Lee/Kickstarter]