SPIR608 Political Simulations and Gaming/2011/BRIC

Courtney bennett, Ankoor Chibb, Yewande Sobowale
Each player receives one of the four developing State's card : Brazil, Russia, India and China. Each card will detail attributes specific to the State's. Example:

Natural resources Oil Man power Skilled Labour

Each State card will receive the maximum amount of points in whatever it is naturally rich in. The remaining resource will parallel the current status of said countries, therefore providing a balance within the game.

Game Play
Each player has 200 points to start. The Points received are used to negotiate trade in resources needed in achieving objectives. Once the required resources have been reached they are deposited in the bank. In return the corresponding infrastructure piece is received.

After each round has been completed, two things occur. [i] Each player receives 50 points from the bank [ii] The player who started the game receives a chance card. (The player to the right starts the next round)

The effects of the 'Chance Cards' are subjective depending on the status of the player. However, should a player have received an infrastructure piece the effects of the said cards are negated. Should a negative chance card be applied the lost points are returned to the bank.

Background Paper
The acronym BRIC is derived from Jim O’Neill’s, Chairman of Goldman Sachs Global Assets Management, document entitled ‘Building Better Global Economic BRICS’. In this paper he explores the rapid socio-economic rise of: Brazil, Russia, India and China; all seemingly in competition to exert their regional dominance through trade and politics. It was from this hierarchy of international states that the idea to develop a game based on socio-economic gain came about. What remains a vital factor in winning the game is the necessary need for multilateral trade, as is with global situation. Although each BRIC nation is rich in its specific natural or social resource; becoming a highly advanced country is founded on a level of interdependence.

Each player will receive one of the four developing states card: Brazil, Russia, India or China detailing a specific key attribute e.g.: Brazil-Natural resources. At the beginning of the game each player will start with 200 points. The points received are used to negotiate trading resources needed in achieving infrastructure objectives. Once the required resources have been reached they are deposited into the bank, in return, the corresponding infrastructure piece is received. In developing this game out initial inspiration was drawn from the property-developing game Monopoly. Just as is with Monopoly there is the possibility to trade, bribe or manipulate a player(s) in order to obstruct the goal(s) of another. For example, should a player choose to over-price a commodity then other players have the opportunity to under-cut the market price. It was not until later in the module that it became apparent that our trading process strongly resembled Catan, in that trading natural resources was fundamental to reaching one’s objective. Where BRIC differs from Catan is in returning the resources back to their states after achieving the matching infrastructure piece.

As with Catan the mechanics of the game focus in trade; where the players exchange their natural resource for an agreed upon price. For every infrastructural improvement gained the state becomes stronger, an essential factor in order to protect themselves from chance cars. Upon understanding the basic mechanisms integral to BRIC very little play-testing was initially required. Nonetheless, it soon became apparent that the numerical aspect would prove difficult in over-coming. By limiting the number of points, natural resources and requirements for infrastructure objectives it simplified the mathematical process, by working within a defined boundary.