Earth Rising: 20 Years to Transform Our World is a cooperative board game for 1 to 6 players. Each player takes on a role such as activist, scientist, politician, or innovator, working together to achieve sustainability before time runs out. The game lasts for twenty rounds, each representing a year. During this time, players must transform every sector of society so that human activity stays within the planet’s ecological limits. They also need to reduce poverty and make sure the system can still support the world’s population.
Kickstarter Board Game Trailers
The central mechanism of the game revolves around managing strain on the planet. Segments around the circular board represent “burdens” – areas where human activity exceeds ecological capacity. Unsustainable practices and population pressure place “strain tokens” into these segments. If left unchecked, they can cause ecological collapses, but if managed well, the segments will flip into the dentre of the board to represent systemic changes towards sustainability.
Players make these changes mainly by using influence cards. These cards let them remove unsustainable practices or introduce better, sustainable options in each part of society. Each player’s role comes with unique strengths, so everyone can use their influence in different ways. This makes the game asymmetric and encourages teamwork.
The game also includes random events called Status Quo Strikes. These represent political resistance and powerful interests that keep unsustainable systems in place, making it harder to enact positive changes. Status Quo Strikes add more strain to certain areas, and if an ecological collapse happens, it becomes much harder for players to improve those areas.
Players must coordinate their actions and manage immediate crises to enact long-term, sustainable change, creating an interesting simulation of the collective problem posed by the climate crisis. In addition, the limited time frame in which they can act reinforces the immediacy of the issue.