Red Tape: Bureaucratic Politics Game Materials
Red Tape: Bureaucratic Politics Game Materials
Red Tape is a bureaucratic politics game where players work in teams roleplaying different members of the political system to solve policy problems. However, the different roles in the game have different incentives which can make problem-solving challenging!
We use an open-access Creative Commons License (CC-BY-NC-SA) for Red Tape. You may use or adapt any materials necessary here for non-commercial uses so long as attribution is given to the original creators. If you choose to adapt this game, we'd love to hear about it! Please contact Dr. Zach Lang at zlang@andersonuniversity.edu about modifications.
Red Tape was developed as part of a broader game-based learning grant to enhance American Government instruction at the University of Missouri. This project would not have been possible without the Truman School of Government and Public Affairs, the Teaching for Learning Center, and the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy. Dr. Tori Mondelli and her book "The Allure of Play," Dr. Bill Horner, Dr. Jake Haselswerdt, and Dr. Rudy Hernandez were particularly crucial to this project. Card artwork was designed by Hailey Donald (haileyedonald@gmail.com).
Below are the documents needed to make a free paper version of the game. Instructions for the game are contained within the manual.
We used The Game Crafter to professionally design the game. This entailed a game box, laminated character cards, etc. Prices will vary depending on how many players need to be accommodated.
To create the game box, order 1 "Large Stout Box" with the logo below:
To create the character cards, select the "Bridge Deck" and size the character cards, Random Event, and Stress Bomb cards from the paper versions into the correct format. If you do not have access to photo editing software, contact zlang@andersonuniversity.edu for correctly sized images of the cards for use in The Game Crafter.
To create the scoring pads, select the "Medium Scoring Pad" and size the paper scoring pad appropriately.
To create the instruction manual, select the "Large Booklet" and insert the paper instruction manual.