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A quick glance at the frontpage would tell you that the political war drums have been beating as of late.
Already, in some states of Malaysia, votes have already been cast while politicians mud-sling.
During all this, the public can simply watch on amused (or bored) as politicians continue the same song and dance they have performed since time immemorial.
Like in any other country, politics in Malaysia is just silly, confusing at best and infuriating at worst.
And there are few things out there that reflect the dismal, darkly humorous state of politics as much as Politiko.
Dubbing itself “The Card Game of Malaysian Politics”, the game by Centaur Games has actually been around for some time now, with the first version released in 2013.
The latest version, the 3.0 Peninsula Edition, was released in 2022, in the same year as the dramatic 15th general election.
This edition uniquely features double “spin” cards, which can be played either side, depending on the player’s whims.
With the 16th general election likely right around the corner, a look at this facetious but painfully accurate card game is timely.
All about the votes
The gameplay and the overall flow of Politiko are relatively straightforward.
Players must choose to play as one of 10 parties, blatantly obvious plays on real-life Malaysian political parties, and win the election game by gaining a certain number of voters.
Each party can only appeal to a certain type of voter, with factors of political allegiances and ethnicity, coming into play.
For example, the Malay Nationalist Party and the Islamist Party both depend on Malay voters.
This means that they are generally incapable of drawing on Chinese, Indian or Lain-Lain voters.
At the same time, the Islamist Party has the additional restriction of only being able to gain non-liberal Malay votes.
This would suggest the Malay Nationalist Party would have an easier time gaining votes compared with the Islamist Party, as it can attract all Malay voters, whether they are Liberal, Moderate or Conservative.
However, that is where the “Party Powers” come in. Each party has an ability unique to it, which can easily turn the tables if used right.
For example, the Social Justice Party has “Shout ‘Reformasi!’” as its unique ability, which allows it to target a party with more voters and force it to draw less cards per turn.
Balance and schemes
Most games try to retain a semblance of balance to ensure everyone has an equal chance of winning.
That said, even chess is not balanced, what with white always having the advantage of making the opening move.
Likewise, Politiko reflects the imbalanced state of Malaysian politics, implying some parties having an easier route to victory than others.
While all parties theoretically can win the election, it is an uphill battle for some more than others.
For example, the Indian Interests Party can only draw on Indian voters, which are naturally in short supply in the deck, to reflect real-world demographics.
On a side note, theSun team played a round of Politiko and the writer chose to play as the Indian Interests Party – and ended up with no voters.
Compared with the parties that depend on Malay voters or even Chinese voters, the route to victory for that particular party is comically but realistically limited.
However, that is where the Scheme cards come in.
During their turn, a player can either play voter cards to pave their road to electoral victory, or enact Schemes to sabotage other players and or benefit themselves.
A shrewd player can turn the tide by playing the right schemes, though that assumes Lady Luck lets them get the right scheme from the drawpile in the first place.
Wait, that actually happened?
The Scheme cards are the bulk of Politiko’s source of humour, all while hinting at actual political crises that have rocked Malaysia in the past.
It is one thing to add yet another voter to your pile, but it is another to embroil your political opponent in a “Sex Scandal”.
For young Malaysians who are unfamiliar with the political landscape, Politiko does a surprisingly good job at highlighting the tools of the trade of local politicians.
Charitable schemes such as “Road Resurfacing” and “Free Smartphones” earn voters, while harmful schemes such as “Sedition Charge” and “Fake News Alert” impede opponents.
Politiko has a rather cynical take on Malaysian politics, which likely reflects the growing disillusionment of many Malaysian voters, to be fair.
In most cases, when politicians enact policy, there is a good chance they are doing it not because they believe it is the right thing to do but because it helps keep them in power.
A good satire often speaks to power and Politiko quite subtly does this with some of the Scheme cards and their effects.
It is not a coincidence that one powerful Scheme card, which cancels another player’s Schemes instantly, is appropriately named “Blame the Jews”.
Even this joke card game makes note of how politicians distract from their own glaring faults and misdeeds by pointing the finger elsewhere.
That said, there is some humour to be had by having the Social Democrats Party, of all parties, play the Blame the Jews card twice in a row, which happened in the writer’s game.
Spoiler: The Social Democrats won that game, with a handful of Chinese voters and a single Malay liberal voter.
Worth playing?
With election season well underway, now is good a time as any to play a game of Politiko with family and friends.
It may just generate insightful conversations on the sad state of Malaysian politics, while keeping things sufficiently light-hearted.
Each game can last about 40 minutes, and it is best played by between two to six players, even if there are actually 10 playable parties.
Available online and at retail outlets, Politiko costs RM65 and comes with the box, cards and an instruction manual.
Just remember while playing, alliances are temporary truces and trying to stay squeaky clean is impossible.
After all, friends are just opponents-in-waiting, opponents potential allies and voters stepping stones, when your true goal is nothing less than Putrajaya.
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