Local Grads’ Risky Chicken Has Your Pandemic Game Nights Covered

It is fitting that during a year in which most of us have felt like prisoners relegated to binge watching shows, working jigsaw puzzles and playing board games under a virtual home arrest due to pandemic-ordered lock-downs and restrictions, a new board game based on the “Prisoner’s Dilemma,” called Risky Chicken, would arrive to relieve us of our well-worn Scrabble tiles and Monopoly boards.

Like most of us, Highland Park native and CEO of Moraine Road Games, Ben Reingold, a recent graduate of Kenyon College was not on a mission to create a diversion from a global pandemic when, after a course in Game Theory, he came up with the idea for Risky Chicken. Reingold, who explains the game’s foundational concept in detail in this video, was fascinated by the human behavior exhibited by the Prisoner’s Dilemma theory and saw an opportunity to create a game that allows players to experience the concept in real time.

So, what is Risky Chicken?

According to Reingold, Risky Chicken is a game of making and breaking alliances with a silly theme that makes it an instant game night classic.

Each player is a chicken who climbs the “Golden Mountain” in hopes of becoming the first to get enough Gold Coins to win the game. Throughout the game, players must choose whether to continue up the mountain and go for more Gold Coins as the climb becomes increasingly perilous, or “Chicken Out” before it’s too late. Their partner on the mountain may betray them at any moment, leading to plenty of dramatic moments.

The game’s dynamics are spiced up with “Chicken Trick” cards, ensuring unique gameplay every time you open the box.

With bright, amusing artwork by cartoonist Lawrence Christmas, Risky Chicken has attracted more than 200 customers in the few short weeks since its commercial debut.

With the help of fellow HPHS Alumni Meryl Rudy, Justine Rudy and Lindsay Greenberg, Evanston resident Jenny Nagel, and Moraine Road Games CFO Kerry Rudy, Reingold has taken Risky Chicken from an idea to a reality.

Reingold and his team have been busy fulfilling orders, delivering games locally within 48 hours of receiving the requests.

It’s going to be a long, cold winter with few places to go. Reingold’s new game may be the go-to friends and family game night option.

The new game is available for purchase at www.RiskyChicken.com. Visit the site for more information or to order your copy! Contact Ben@MoraineRoadGames.com with questions and comments.