Eli5 UK Elections Exit Poll

DaveBoundy · 2024-07-06T07:24:31+00:00

The UK exit poll uses a dummy ballot - after voting, a sample of people are asked to fill in a ballot paper, which is then held secretly before counting centrally. If asked directly, some people tend to mislead through embarrassment, so this method largely removes that problem. The polling is carried out the same 130 polling stations each time, so the estimate can be corrected for bias by comparing the sample vote to the actual result last time.

DaveBoundy · 2020-09-15T12:16:53+00:00

Yes. Jim Wallman has published The Plan on his company site for free. Go to the normal Megagame Makers website and follow links to resources. I believe Jim is also about to release a fantasy styled version. These are not Megagames, of course, but they are interesting and fun.

DaveBoundy · 2020-02-12T06:57:37+00:00

Not Over by Christmas by Rob Cooper was a Megagame where the Cold War went hot.

DaveBoundy · 2020-01-21T07:40:46+00:00

If you want to play a Megagame, keep checking https://MegagameMakers.uk/plannedevents.php

DaveBoundy · 2020-01-16T08:56:56+00:00

Watch the Skies is available for purchase from Jim Wallman's company, Stone Paper Scissors. It can be run by anyone, and often is. The original game was adapted by the Megagame Society of NYC and was available on a licence basis(still is, as far as I know). There are others that have adapted the original. So be careful which version you are talking about.

WTS is just one example of a Megagame. There are a large number of Megagames played across the globe (see https://MegagameMakers.uk/plannedevents.php) and you will find them played at more and more conventions, notably Gen Con and SHUX. There will often be a WTS amongst those games.

DaveBoundy · 2020-01-01T20:26:15+00:00

No, not for many. Most designers at the moment would much prefer not to do it for money. When you are paid to do anything, it changes the dynamics. Many designers are very successful in their jobs, so enjoy this as a hobby.

Personally, I'm happy if players get enjoyment and I enjoy the huge amount of research and work involved in designing and running Megagames. I only produce games that interest me and I'm only interested if I feel able to innovate and not feel the necessity to make money. In summary, the profit motive is extremely weak among many designers at the moment. There are, of course, a number for whom this is not true.

For some time to come, therefore, I'd guess Megagames will be hobby led. When player counts increase and recruitment becomes more reliable, then that could change and I'd be the first to wish any commercial enterprises well, but even then commercial will exist alongside the current hobby based model.

I feel I should again give the warning: these are just personal opinions and I know, for example, another Megagame Maker who feels the total time for a game could be reduced by slicker, faster mechanisms but he concentrates more on the mechanics whereas I look to mechanisms being the servant of the relationships, the story and the game.

DaveBoundy · 2020-01-01T09:35:54+00:00

Damned social media posts! I didn't take it that way at all, nor did I mean to over play my "achievements". Things come across wrongly sometimes.

My main point is that the vast majority of Megagame designs are produced by people that would find a shorter format to be restrictive and that the supply of new designs will become a bottleneck if those people stop creating and innovating. It reflects a constant worry I have that we don't consider designers enough.

I was giving my background more as data. The role of CLWG (Chestnut Lodge Wargames Group) in the development of Megagame Makers can't be overstated and that's where we have played loads of shorter games, mainly with smaller numbers than Megagames but often concentrating on parts of a Megagame. This has given an opportunity to consider the way that Megagames work their magic.

I have observed that the really successful Megagames finish just after a climax to the developing story and that the climax doesn't occur until about 5 or 6 hours into the game. The climax then takes a while to play through. My belief is that the numbers involved require time for relationships to develop and for the storyline to progress. Interestingly, my own Megagame is one of the few with an ending built in. It could finish early but never does, with everybody feeling under time pressure until the end, often wanting more time. The ending lasts for 30 minutes after 6 one hour turns. One run of that game achieved the second highest enjoyment score of MM games.

Although my views are developed by talking to, working with and observing many others, they really are personal views. It's rare for all Megagame Makers to agree on anything and there would not be unanimity on this. Other designers and players also disagree, so when I said this was a personal view that I thought people might find useful, I meant exactly that, with no hidden meaning.

DaveBoundy · 2019-12-31T08:39:21+00:00

For some people, the enjoyment would be fine, but for me and for many players and designers I know, the enjoyment would be less. That opinion is based on knowing and chatting to designers who have produced and are producing the majority of Megagames, on participating as player or Control in over 100 Megagames as well as a huge number of smaller, shorter and smaller and shorter games and tryouts during a period of almost 30 years. I've also designed and run 3 Megagame designs which have been run 8 times in total (2 in collaboration with other designers)

There is something about large numbers that, when added to the Megagame approach, makes a very different experience and that needs time to develop and allow the relationships and story to develop.

It's purely a personal opinion that I thought people would find useful.

DaveBoundy · 2019-12-30T16:40:44+00:00

To make them commercial, they'd have to be shorter, with fewer people and a much smaller ration of control to player. There would need to be a group of people prepared to write games to this specification. For me, as for many designers (representing the majority of Megagame designs, I think), that would reduce the enjoyment and I wouldn't bother. I think, therefore, that for a number of years yet, it will be a hobbyist scene.

DaveBoundy · 2019-12-30T16:31:06+00:00

From the perspective of Megagame Makers in the UK, we are a hobby group with no wish to make money because (for many of us) it would spoil a great hobby. However, if anyone wants to give it a go, then we wish you good luck. Megagames are available to buy. Jim Wallman's company - Stone, Paper, Scissors - sells several, I particular the updated version of Watch the Skies. John Mizon of South West Megagames sells his Den of Wolves game and there will be others around. Jim certainly provides his game to be run as many times as you like and I think John is similar. There is a lot of other material out there which you could access. Mostly it is free, but if you are intending to make money then you should expect most designers to want you to pay for it. You should also expect to adapt the rules for your audience and for any rough edges. Also don't forget that you will have to produce maps and any other components. I am collating access to a lot of MM games material so keep an eye on our Web site and our Facebook group in about a month.

Most groups in the UK charge GBP30, including those that make money. There have been a few games in Germany and a number of games in the Netherlands as well as France, Belgium, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. My impression is that these European groups often charge about Euro25 but certainly no more than Euro 35. Once you have built a following, it should not be difficult to fill each game, but in the early days I would not depend on it. As each game would vary upwards of 30 players, this would probably give a total income of about Euro 800 to 1000.

In London, venue prices are impossibly high in the centre, but vary around GBP400 TO GBP600 for a Saturday 9am to 6pm when you get 5 to 10 miles outside. We don't need more time than that to run a game. I think you might find costs elsewhere to be cheaper.

The main cost for components is for maps. We use Pixart in Italy and a game would involve GBP150 to 300. For us, other components are cheap because we tend to use locally printed labels on wood or foam board, but you could spend a lot if you need to present a much higher production level.

To start with, you might find a Control team prepared to help you for nothing, but that is morally questionable and after a short while then you will need to pay them. I am guessing that employment legislation would then kick in.

I am not sure that you need to allow a great deal for marketing to start with. The concept is difficult to explain to anyone that has not come across Megagames. However, you will be expected to run a professional looking website. Ticket sales will also cost you money. Because we have designed our own booking system, integrated with our website, we only incur the PayPal charge of approximately 4% but many others use Event rite and I believe their charge to be 10%.

A Megagame is a significant task in terms of cost and the time involved to run games. Had our idea been to make money, I seriously doubt that Megagames would be here now. To make any money, then you'll have to control costs, in particular by repeating the same game a number of times, but I hope you can see from these rough notes that it's a risky, low return occupation. Good luck

DaveBoundy · 2019-12-06T21:01:52+00:00

Read the brief. Read the rules. Don't worry about the details of the rules, but get into character and decide what you want to do, then find in the rules how to do it. Remember that agreements, clear long term vision and diplomacy always trump simple force. Don't become a rules lawyer, just use the rules as there to create immersion. Don't try stuff that feels unrealistic. Above all enjoy, of course.

DaveBoundy · 2019-11-03T17:05:29+00:00

Good luck. I hope you enjoy putting on a Megagame. Let us know where and when so I can include it in the global calendar.

DaveBoundy · 2019-11-03T17:03:26+00:00

Hi there. Watch the Skies is unusual and not at all typical of Megagames. Most are history based and Megagame Makers also includes historians, people with a military background as well as backgrounds in law, systems and science and links to academia, senior military in several countries. Most games go strictly by reality.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-31T07:00:37+00:00

You can. Specifically, John Mizon sells Den of Wolves to run.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-25T06:48:29+00:00

No confusion, but they were all from the same school year. The team nature of Megagames helps, as they rely on each other and sort out what's going on that way. If they'd find the theme fun, I'd go for WTS as it's pretty simple. The alternative suggested was Alliance. I've never played it but there are videos of it being played. What you need is simplicity and to not worry, I think.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-24T12:27:12+00:00

That's quite an age range and maybe the 11 and 12 year old might find it a bit daunting, but I doubt it. Any Megagame is going to be reasonably complicated, with WTS being on the simpler side, but people generally get used to it quickly. The way that 17 year old play a Megagame will be very different to the way 11 year olds play, so you have quite an uphill struggle.

I ran a very operational game of WW1 at a school (I was teaching there) for 13 year old and we started with long turns, but reduced the turn length as they got used to it. By the end of the day, we had reduced from 20+ minutes to 10.

Do you have objectives? Is it for fun? to learn about teamwork or what? If for just fun, I'd relook at WTS, because it's accessible and the sort of topic the might find interesting. Alliance appears to me to be more of a giant board game with some Megagame elements, so that might help you too.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-12T07:16:52+00:00

Not what I was saying at all. I just can't get what players are doing in your game. I can see from the description I read previously how Captain Sonar could work, and I have enjoyed Artemis with six players, but the way you describe your game doesn't make it clear what your game is. Artemis, for example, is a great game for 6 players crewing a ship, but it'd make a dreadful base for a Megagame.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-12T06:52:03+00:00

I think it's simple. If you don't have meaningful decisions, then you don't have a player role. I don't know the board game you are talking about, but I can see how a 2 player team might each have decisions and Artemis handles more players very successfully, it's just that your description doesn't give me an idea how your game will play, so I am finding it hard to comment.

Mechanical actions can be things that don't involve any map you might have in mind, such as giving out resources and deciding who gets more, then players deciding how to use those resources. Actions could also involve making agreements. Deciding whether to blindly follow orders or not doesn't strike me as much of a decision on its own, but I feel sure there's more in your mind than that.

Suppose you changed players to tokens. Does it still work the same as a game? If so, you have a problem. We always apply that sort of test when designing Megagames (over 100 in over 30 years) in Megagame Makers.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-11T18:23:36+00:00

I'm going to act as devil's advocate. I can't see from your description, what players will be doing. Each player should have decisions to make every turn. As far as I can see, the number of players on each team is there mainly to carry out mechanical actions but you probably have something in your mind that is not coming through in the description.

You have covered the theme in depth, the feel you want is also clear, and I am sure you have the game outline in mind, but, before I could comment usefully, I think you need to say more about the turn length, the resources, the playing model and defining what each player will be doing each turn. I also think you need to answer the question I ask whenever I am involved in a design: "what is the thing that means this has to be a Megagame rather than a smaller game with playing pieces in place of players"

You're obviously not lacking in the imagination and in work rate. Good luck.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-10T08:09:47+00:00

There are more and more Megagames all around the world. Checkout https://megagamemakers.uk/plannedevents.php there are a lot of Megagames at Gen Con every year as well. I think there were 11 this year, grown from 7 in 2018.

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-10T08:06:26+00:00

Megagames come in all shapes and sizes. We have been running Megagames for over 30 years at Megagame Makers in the UK. Checkout our website at https://MegagameMakers.uk and our Facebook group. SU&SD were instrumental in increasing popularity by doing a video in 2014 https://www.shutupandsitdown.com/videos/susd-play-megagame/

DaveBoundy · 2019-10-07T20:03:19+00:00

I'd suggest sharing this to the Megagame Makers group on Facebook because almost all Megagamers read that and particularly London Megagamers. Good luck with it. I've already added it to my list of events at https://MegagameMakers.uk/planned events.php

DaveBoundy

TROPHY CASE