Overview

Bailout! The Game is a satirical board game created by Jordy and Shari Sopourn, published by Liberty Street Games in 2009. Inspired by the 2008 financial crisis and the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), the game turns the government bailout concept into a humorous competitive experience. The tagline is “When you lose, you WIN!” – players take on the role of failing banks trying to accumulate the most debt to qualify for the biggest government bailout.

Components

• Game board (money trail layout)
• Bank player tokens
• Play money (starting at $2.5 billion per player)
• Investment/transaction cards
• Dice
• Debt tracking tokens/markers
• Rules booklet

Setup

1. Place the game board in the center of the table.
2. Each player chooses a bank to play (satirically named banks such as “Bankruptcy O’ America” and “Worth Farless”).
3. Each player starts with $2.5 billion in assets.
4. Place investment cards and debt markers in their designated areas.
5. Determine starting player.

Turn Structure

On each turn:

1. Roll dice: Determine movement along the money trail.
2. Move token: Advance your bank along the board.
3. Investment decision: Make an investment decision based on the space landed on or card drawn.
4. Resolve transaction: Gain or lose assets based on the investment outcome and die rolls.
5. Inter-bank transactions: Sales and acquisitions between banks may occur, affecting multiple players.

Actions

• Make investments: Choose investment opportunities that can cause your bank to gain or lose assets.
• Acquire debt: Accumulate unsustainable losses to position your bank for a larger bailout.
• Sales and acquisitions: Bombard other banks with transactions that affect their asset levels.
• Strategic positioning: Manipulate your bank’s financial position along the money trail.
• Inter-bank dealings: Engage in transactions with other players that can change the balance of assets and debt.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The game inverts traditional winning conditions: the player whose bank accumulates the most debt and greatest unsustainable losses by the end of the money trail wins the game, as they qualify for the largest government bailout. The goal is to lose the most money, not to make it.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Inverted economics: Unlike most financial games, losing money is the objective – the more debt you accumulate, the better your position.
• Inter-player transactions: Every investment decision a bank makes can affect every other bank at the table, creating interactive and competitive gameplay.
• Satirical theme: Bank names and game events parody real financial institutions and the 2008 financial crisis.
• Educational origin: The game was designed to teach children about the TARP bailout program in an accessible way.
• Family-friendly: Despite the complex financial theme, the game is designed to be playable by younger players.

Player Reference

Objective: Accumulate the most debt to win the biggest government bailout

Starting assets: $2.5 billion per player

Key mechanic: Inverted economics – losing money is winning

Win condition: Most debt at the end of the money trail