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I wonder if there's a way to soften the personal blow of Diplomacy without changing the game. Something simple, perhaps, like literally wearing masks - to empha

I wonder if there's a way to soften the personal blow of Diplomacy without changing the game. Something simple, perhaps, like literally wearing masks - to emphasize that this isn't you, it's your in-game persona. Or maybe something more subtle, like making the game really short so you can play many games, where each betrayal in each game becomes insignificant on a personal scale - it impersonalizes, and becomes simply data and decisions. (I've only played Diplomacy once, and it left a very sour taste in my mouth. I don't think we even finished one game, and it certainly hurt real-world relationships.)

cjbgkagh 5y ago
I think fast games are better so people are more likely to experience both being betrayed and being the betrayer. It helps develop cognitive empathy. Plus less time and effort is invested in each game. Sorry to hear about the hurt real world friendships. The same would have happened to me but being able to play multiple games helped patch things up.
tempestn 5y ago
Another problem with Diplomacy is that it kind of ruins the game if someone quits before they're eliminated. And certainly if multiple players do. But most non-hardcore Diplomacy fans don't find it fun to stick around playing the game for potentially several hours after their position becomes fairly hopeless. I roped some friends into an online game in the early pandemic times, and it started out fun, but half of them lost interest once they felt an alliance had 'won'. Of course I'm thinking this is just the beginning of the midgame, but I can see how most wouldn't feel that way. Best that everyone understands what they're getting into, at least.
- MiddleEndian 5y ago
  Is there a shorter version of Diplomacy one could use to introduce people to the game and its concepts?
  - tempestn 5y ago
    Some possibilities here: https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/31753/short-term-diplomacy-rules-shorter-game https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/31753/short-term-diplomac... I'm not sure how well they'd give people the idea of the full game though. I suppose a better approach might be to take them through a game replay and talk about the strategy and likely communications going on throughout. Even less likely than finding a group of friends willing to sit through a game of Diplomacy would be finding a group willing to sit through a lengthy explanation of the game rather than just jumping in though, so I guess that's likely not such a good suggestion after all.
    - B1FF_PSUVM 5y ago
      Give it a sports spin? "Spectacular comeback after dire betrayal ... a must-watch game!"
  - andrewflnr 5y ago
    Would a much smaller board not do it?

cjbgkagh 5y ago

I think fast games are better so people are more likely to experience both being betrayed and being the betrayer. It helps develop cognitive empathy. Plus less time and effort is invested in each game. Sorry to hear about the hurt real world friendships. The same would have happened to me but being able to play multiple games helped patch things up.

tempestn 5y ago

Another problem with Diplomacy is that it kind of ruins the game if someone quits before they're eliminated. And certainly if multiple players do. But most non-hardcore Diplomacy fans don't find it fun to stick around playing the game for potentially several hours after their position becomes fairly hopeless. I roped some friends into an online game in the early pandemic times, and it started out fun, but half of them lost interest once they felt an alliance had 'won'. Of course I'm thinking this is just the beginning of the midgame, but I can see how most wouldn't feel that way. Best that everyone understands what they're getting into, at least.

MiddleEndian 5y ago
Is there a shorter version of Diplomacy one could use to introduce people to the game and its concepts?
- tempestn 5y ago
  Some possibilities here: https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/31753/short-term-diplomacy-rules-shorter-game https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/31753/short-term-diplomac... I'm not sure how well they'd give people the idea of the full game though. I suppose a better approach might be to take them through a game replay and talk about the strategy and likely communications going on throughout. Even less likely than finding a group of friends willing to sit through a game of Diplomacy would be finding a group willing to sit through a lengthy explanation of the game rather than just jumping in though, so I guess that's likely not such a good suggestion after all.
  - B1FF_PSUVM 5y ago
    Give it a sports spin? "Spectacular comeback after dire betrayal ... a must-watch game!"
- andrewflnr 5y ago
  Would a much smaller board not do it?