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Down to Marx and penny: In the actually existing socialism of the 1980s shopping was quite a special consumption experience. The family game “Kolejka” by HUCH! & friends demands for luck, skills, and stamina to get the goods you need. In the era of state-directed economy even buying everyday goods becomes an adventure – black market and hired children included.
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In Kolejka (Polish for “waiting queue”) each player gets a shopping list. For example, they might have to re-furnish their dacha. The items they need are offered in the shops on the gaming board – theoretically. In practice most of the shops display utter emptiness. To buy goods players have to line up in the most promising queues. Only if all those willing to shop have lined up, delivery arrives. However, neither do all the shops receive goods, nor do they get enough items for all their customers.
What happens if there are fewer goods than willing customers? People start shoving and pushing. By playing their cards everyone wants to improve their position in the queue. Mothers with babies may move to the front – even if the baby is only hired. Those who are well-connected know when the next delivery is due. And some people hurry home with “under the counter goods”, even before the shops open their doors. The shops will open only when everyone has played their cards or passed. Then you will know who has been able to snatch which rare goods. If you have got something that’s not on your list, you may simply sell it on the black market. |
The first player to complete their shopping list wins Kolejka as the hero of consumption.
Kolejka, winner of the Polish Games Award Gra Roku 2012, hilariously revives the madness of everyday life in Poland during the 1980s. The German edition adds elements of nostalgia to the shopping experience in the Eastern bloc, nostalgia for the actually existing socialism in Eastern Germany. |
