Kolejka (2011)

Kolejka (Queue) – board game

Get in a queue with your family in front of a store and experience a rush of genuine emotions!

The Queue is a board game that tells a story of everyday life in Poland at the tail-end of the communist era. The players’ task appears to be simple: they have to send their family members out to various stores on the game board to buy all the items on their shopping list. The problem is, however, that the shelves in the five neighborhood stores are empty.
The players line up their pawns in front of the shops without knowing which shop will have a delivery. Tension mounts as the product delivery cards are uncovered and it turns out that there will only be enough product cards for the lucky few standing closest to the door of a store. Since everyone wants to be first, the queue starts to push up against the door. To get ahead, the people in the queue use a range of queuing cards, such as: “Mother carrying small child,” “This is not your place, sir,” or “Under-the-counter goods.” But they have to watch out for “Closed for stocktaking,” “Delivery error,” and for the black pawns – the speculators – standing in the queue. Only those players will come home with full shopping bags who make the best use of the queuing cards in their hand.
On the product cards there photos of sixty original objects from the communist era. The merchandise includes Relaks shoes, Przemysławka eau de cologne, Popularna tea, as well as other commodities that were once in scarce supply.
The neighborhood also has an outdoor market but the prices there are steep – unless, of course, you manage to strike a deal with the market trader. In this realistic game you really have to be savvy to get the goods.
Are you brave enough to confront the everyday life of the 1980s?

The box contains:
– a game board,
– a delivery truck board,
– 30 pawns in 6 colors (5 of each color),
– 1 marker for the player who opens the game,
– 1 marker for the market trader,
– 50 queuing cards in 5 colors (10 of each color),
– 5 shopping list cards,
– 60 product cards in 5 colors (12 of each color),
– 15 product delivery cards in 5 colors (3 of each color),
– 5 player assistance cards in 5 colors (1 of each color),
– instructions manual and historical overview.

In addition:
– a 1983 documentary film titled “Everyone Knows Who They Are Standing Behind” directed by Maria Zmarz-Koczanowicz.
– a 2010 documentary titled “What Did They Deliver? The Life of Queuing in the People’s Republic of Poland” directed by Konrad Starczewski.

English print-and-play version of „Kolejka” is available at http://www.ipn.gov.pl/queue

Please be aware that upon opening the box you have entered the 1980s. You now have entirely different goals and ambitions, and very down-to-earth desires. Unfortunately, the fulfillment of those desires is tied up with the delivery of goods to the neighborhood stores. The good news is that you do have some savings tucked away. The bad news, however, is that due to shortages, the merchandise is delivered in very limited quantities. Please do not panic and quietly take your place in the queue. A delivery is on the way and there might actually be enough for everyone. We wish to remind you that at state retail establishments only persons with special rights are served without queuing. Before embarking on the game, you are advised to carefully study the instructions below. Strict observance of rules is crucial when having fun with family and friends. It is our unpleasant duty to inform you that the subject matter at hand may evoke negative emotions in sensitive individuals. Rare instances of tears of exasperation, the gnashing of teeth, as well as manifestations of gratuitous malice have been observed. The authors take no responsibility for unwarranted uses of the game.