'Never NOT at it' -- American company to turn Irish tragedy into new board game

More than €12,000 has been raised for a controversial new board game centering around one of the most defining events in Irish history. The game is being created by Compass Games as part of their Golden Age Collection, with the crowdfunding page far exceeding the €2,143 goal. The tabletop game has been described as easy-to-learn and rich with historical detail and will be for between two and five players, but has garnered some major controversy for its subject matter. More than €12,000 has been raised for a controversial new board game centering around one of the most defining events in Irish history. Pic: Kickstarter The game has drawn some backlash online, with many hitting out at the ethics of creating the game, however the rulebook sees designers acknowledge the difficult source material. The Great Hunger sees players representing families of tenant farmers and field hands, first growing and helping your family expand across the map, but then dealing with the repercussions of the family when the blight arrives. Yes, you heard that right, it’s a game based on the Irish famine. The Great Hunger sees players representing families of tenant farmers and field hands, first growing and helping your family expand across the map, but then dealing with the repercussions of the family when the blight arrives. Pic: Kickstarter Players will then work to ‘save as many as you can, find aid or employment in Ireland, or scramble to ports to secure passage to America.’ The crowdfunding page adds that ‘victory is survival’ and the family with the largest surviving population across Ireland and America is deemed the winner. Naturally, the board game has raised some eyebrows, with many taking to social media to hit out at the devastating period in Irish history being used for entertainment purposes. One person commented on a post on Facebook: ‘Has Compass Games considered the ethics of creating a game on a mass starvation event and arguable crime against humanity? I am rather shocked at this game.’ Elsewhere, social media users took to X, with one sharing: ‘They made a boardgame about the Famine, to see who can survive best. Never NOT at it, of course, but as much as I’d reflexively blame the Tans there’s a distinct odour of yank diaspora off this.’ Another wrote: ‘Hmmm. This is bothering me. A board game about the Irish Famine, made in the US, raises questions about distance, memory, and who gets to turn suffering into content.’ A third responded: ‘This right here makes it a non-starter for me. Turning a national tragedy into a competition. Imagine a board game where you have to save as many from the twin towers or as many from the gas champers. ‘There would be complete outrage.’ What do we think? Is this completely out of touch?

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