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The Gentlemen of the South Sandwiche Islands is a board game that sits nicely at the intersection of art, logic and literature.

Read more about the game at the official Weblog of Henry Jenkins (author of Convergence Culture): http://henryjenkins.org/2009/11/how_do_you_sell_an_artsy_board.html

The Gentlemen of the South Sandwiche Islands is an absurd game of logic. In this old courtship, Jules and Hodge are competing for the attentions of the Lady Ashley. The group typically moves together, but each of the gentlemen wants to speak with her alone. They must do this by crossing bridges to constantly split apart and reorganize the group. Read more about the gameplay below. (Or in the article above.)

The story, the surreal, Victorian art-style and the questionable history, are as absorbing as the game itself.

Get a Copy - Support the Cause

A Very Real Fact of the Industry…

Unfortunately, it is a disappointing fact of the board game industry that large companies shy away from strange, whimsical art games that fall outside the board game norms. There simply is not an appetite in this country for "the latest” board game. If you go to a toy store, you are more likely to see well-established games like Monopoly or Trivial Pursuit, with slightly new themes.

In order to preserve the integrity (and strangeness) of The Gentlemen of the South Sandwiche Islands (TGSSI) with all of it’s historical and narrative richness, we want
to self-publish. To get it off the ground, we need the help of the kickstarter community.

THE GAME IS NOW COMPLETE. HELP US PRINT 500 COPIES.

A harbinger to a new field of creative Inquiry…

Ironically, as old as it is, this game is a much-needed forerunner to a new area of creative inquiry. For such a light, fun, imaginative game, it brings with it some big questions: Why is it that games are not taught in schools like theater or literature? And why are art-house board games so hard to find on the shelves? The Gentlemen of the South Sandwiche Islands can be discussed critically in terms of its surreal artwork, its unusual narrative & history, and it’s game play. It opens questions about gender, master servant relationships and the permutations of a product over a long history.

To launch this game, we want to raise $7,600 to print 500 copies. If we raise more money, we will print more copies.

Help us to open a market in this country for strange, imaginative board games that are about ART rather than INDUSTRY.

Preorder the game and invest in a very small company.

Investors who contribute $36 will be given a copy of the game. Investors who contribute over $150 will receive a copy of the game plus their name on a pamphlet (of thank you's) inside the game whenever it is sold. Investors who contribute over $250 will receive all of the above, plus dinner with editor and artists to learn more about the history and secrets of the game.

Gameplay

Jules and Hodge are competing for the attentions of the Lady Ashley. Each wants to speak with her alone. They must do this by crossing bridges to leave the others behind.

There are 6 pieces on the board. You control a master piece and a servant piece. On your turn you can move one, or the other, across a bridge and decide who follows. (The bridges only permit a certain number across.) Some players try to lead her away from the group, and others use their servant to lead others away. The game is very easy to learn. At any time a player only has several choices... but be careful, there are more than 300,000 different possible arrangements for the 6 pieces on the board.

The game has been well play-tested.

New & Restored Art by Dan Gray and Jason Pruett

Read more about the game here: http://henryjenkins.org/2009/11/how_do_you_sell_an_artsy_board.html

And an interview with the creator here:
http://www.facebook.com/#/notes/kickstarter/creator-qa-south-sandwhiche-islands/187372003406

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