Purpose of the game
Get your team engaged in a heated debate about an opinionated subject
(in this case Versioning and Dependency management)
Setup
- Two groups of developers sitting around a table.
- A Judge that is very opinionated about the subject. The more controversial the better.
- A Host that can handle a raging crowd.
- A cellphone to record everything on video.
- A whiteboard with a 5×4 blocks black and white drawing like the one above (just without the background color). You should give each block a letter (or name).
- 3 whiteboard pens (green,purple and black).
- hand-bell that anyone could easily grab and ring.
- A list of 20 multiple-choice questions (like the quiz below)
Playing the game
For the hebrew speakers you can enjoy a curated video from our game. Others could appreciate the frustration of the players.
- Split the room into two teams (purple and green).
- The goal of the game is to cross the board from left to right or top to bottom with the same color.
- The host reads a question and the multiple choice answers. Only the host and the judge have access to the questions and answers.
- Once one of the groups ring the bell, the host immediately stops reading answers. The host may not tell the number of answers available.
- The group which rang the bell gets the first chance to answer the multiple-choice question, if they get it right, color the block with their color (green).
- If they get it wrong the second group gets to answer. If they get it right color the board block with their color (red). The winning group gets to pick the next block.
- If both groups got it wrong, the host colors the block in black and chooses the next block.
Faireness
- The letter written on the chosen block is totally unrelated to the question or the answers.
- The host must make anything in their power to ensure no group ever wins the game.
- The judge is the only one that decides which is the correct answer.
- The host should not allow the judge access to the questions or answers before the game. The judge does not have to agree with any answer (there could be zero or more correct answers).
- The host should give time for futile discussion about the subject, to let people vent their frustration with the judge, the host and the unfairness of our existence in general.
- The judge could explain their reasoning, but it doesn’t need to make any sense.
- The host always supports the judge’s decision.
ENJOY 🙂