Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
onetrouble-Thematic board games Condemned by survivor groups “Minimize the suffering of the victims” Northern Ireland conflict.
board game called The Troubles: Northern Ireland’s Shadow Warallowing players to play as the “British Army”, “IRA”, “Loyal Paramilitary Forces”, ” Royal Ulster Constabulary” and prominent nationalist or unionist politicians from 1964 to 1998 in a “card-driven simulation” game.
The term “Trouble” was used to describe the ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland from the late 1960s to the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, which resulted in the deaths of more than 3,500 people, more than half of whom were civilians.
Kenny Donaldson, director of the South East Fermanagh Foundation, a Northern Ireland support group, said its social impact was still being felt in Northern Ireland today and he feared the game could trigger Troubles survivors across the community.
“We knew the game had been developed over the last five years, but we had just become aware of it and have since spoken to a significant number of victims/survivors to understand their perspectives,” he said in a statement. independent. “It is likely that some victims/survivors will be touched by this new American-produced board game, and many will find it alleviates their pain.”
The game’s main imagery includes a photo of the Petrol Bomber mural, which is part of the historic “Free Derry Corner”. The game is described on the website as a two- to six-player card simulation game that “depicts the conflict between paramilitary and security forces.” Cards that are part of the game mention “bombing,” “nut squad,” “detention cells,” and “bandit states.”
A card refers to “Stakeknife”, the notorious IRA mole The man believed to be linked to at least 14 murders and 15 kidnappings was Belfast man Freddie Scappaticci, but he denied his identity until his death in 2023 at the age of 77.
Players choose the role of a “faction” from the paramilitary or security forces and attempt to defeat their opponents. Paramilitary groups can choose to attack or collude with security forces, while political factions can choose to support terrorism, share power, or participate in elections.
The game has been advertised for pre-sale by US game developer Compass Games since 2021 and is priced at $85 (£62.82) on its website. It was originally slated for release in 2023, but was later delayed. As of Friday morning, according to belfast telegraph and The Guardian, it appears to have been removed from the website.
Bill Thomas, founder and president of the company, said this guardian The game is still in development and won’t be released for a few years. “It’s not the final version. It’s not close to the final version. It has to be playtested. We’re developing it a lot.”
The intention is to make it an educational tool, he added.
“Children in the United States in their 20s and 30s know nothing about history. You have to make it interesting,” he said, adding that people outside the UK would not understand the “difficult times” experienced by residents of Northern Ireland unless history was told in a compelling way. “Do you want this memory to never exist and for no one outside Northern Ireland or the UK to know that it ever happened?”
Mr Donaldson disputed the idea that board games could be used for educational purposes because there was no evidence the subject was being dealt with in a trauma-informed way.
“As a group, we are actively involved in different initiatives that look at issues through the lens of education, learning and promoting violence non-recurrence. We engage in this work in a sensitive and trauma-informed way. It is unclear whether that is the case with this particular board game ‘educational resource,'” he said.
“If these American producers made a similar board game about 9/11, with the players being the FBI, terrorists murdering pilots, etc., how might 9/11 families react? Of course there would be objections and concerns – and many victims/survivors affected by the Troubles would have the same reaction.”
independent Compass Games has been contacted for comment.