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Game Info
Year
2023
Players
2-4
Collection
Mechanic profile
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Description
Extended edition includes Crisis & Control expansion.
The Nation is in disarray and a war is waging between the classes. The working class faces a dismantled welfare system, the capitalists are losing their hard-earned profits, the middle class is gradually fading and the state is sinking into a deep deficit. Amidst all this chaos, the only person who can provide guidance is... you. Will you take the side of the working class and fight for social reforms? Or will you stand with the corporations and the free market? Will you help the government try to keep it all together, or will you try to enforce your agenda no matter the cost to the country?
Hegemony is an asymmetric politico-economic card-driven board game for 2-4 players that puts you in the role of one of the socio-economic groups in a fictional state: The Working Class, the Middle Class, the Capitalist Class and the State itself.
The Working class controls the workers. The Capitalist class controls the companies. The Middle class combines elements from both the Working class and the Capitalist. It has workers who can work in the Capitalist's companies but it can also build companies of its own, yet smaller. Finally the State is trying to keep everyone happy, providing benefits and subsidies when needed but trying also to maintain a steady income through taxes to avoid going into debt.
While players have their own separate goals, they are all limited by a series of policies that affect most of their actions, like Taxation, Labor Market, Foreign Trade etc. Voting on those policies and using their influence to change them is also very important. Through careful planning, strategic actions and political maneuvering, you will do your best to increase the power of your class and carry out your agenda. Will you be the one to lead your class to victory?
Hegemony is heavily based on actual academic principles such as Social-Democracy, Neoliberalism, Nationalism and Globalism, and allows players to see their real world applications through engaging gameplay. There are many ways to achieve hegemony- which one will you take?
—description from the publisher
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Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 7
This page: 7
Sentiment:
pos 4 ·
mix 1 ·
neu 1 ·
neg 1
Showing 1–7 of 7
Video ZmhUz3vkpEo
Review at 0:36 sentiment: positive
video_pk 69025 · mention_pk 165345
Click to watch at 0:36 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Remarkable balance given the level of asymmetry.
- A logical next step for players curious about heavier games.
- Provides comprehensive resources to help players.
- Surprising level of balance in adjusting for lower player counts.
- The most dynamic and beautifully messy way of playing is with three or four players.
- Extremely rewarding.
- Gripping.
- Well worth the investment.
Cons
- Learning the game was a chore.
- Heavy barrier to entry.
- Can be too much mechanically or emotionally for some.
- Removes personal conviction, irrationality, and demagogue obsessions from the equation.
- Cannot fully capture real-world structures.
- A lot of content is locked away in the box for two or three player counts.
- Mentally taxing, intellectually taxing, emotionally taxing.
Thematic elements
- The struggling tensions and interdependency between economic classes.
Comparison games
- Root
- Cthulhu Wars
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection — Players discard cards as a cost to take a standard action available to their class.
- Asymmetric gameplay — A two to four player asymmetric game where each player represents one of these classes.
- Card Play — Rounds involve players taking turns playing a card from their hand, either for the effects listed or discarding it as a cost to take a standard action available to their class.
- Market manipulation — Buying or selling various goods.
- Media influence — Influenced your media to determine the outcome of policies.
- Policy making — Proposes a policy change to be resolved at the end of the round.
- Voting — Influencing the number of your factions cubes in the voting bag.
- worker placement — Building new businesses to assigning workers.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- The capitalists are fighting for closed immigration policies to distract from their intense lobbying for lower wages.
- While the working class struggles to unify and promote worker rights, a dwindling middle class is trapped in between, valuing their own prosperity while delicately providing small business opportunities.
- Hegemony. A complex heavy-duty simulation of the struggling tensions and interdependency between these classes.
- It gives it this really weird almost semi-cooperative feel.
- It is very challenging. It's kind of devious, kind of exhausting, but ultimately super fun.
- Learning hegemony was a chore.
- Even though it looks drier than a box of cornflakes in the San Jose sun, it's very emotionally charged as these are the systems societies are built on.
- What I really love though is like the best teaching tools, it gives you a similacrum to question your own points of view to understand pressures experienced by those navigating issues outside of your own.
- This is a good worthwhile game with pretty remarkable balance given the level of asymmetry involved.
- Hegemony was an intimidating though ultimately extremely rewarding surprise.
- A heavy brain burner that's gripping but also taxing.
- This isn't the type of game that I want to reach for super often, but it is the type of gaming that makes me love this hobby.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video fe3HWZ0Ypbk
Discussion at 35:22 sentiment: neutral
video_pk 66985 · mention_pk 162881
Click to watch at 35:22 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
neutral
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- the algorithm has changed to a to a kind of thing where you can't do series of videos easily. It doesn't like that. You need to do long form content in one video.
- If you can't fit it on the shelf, it's not in the collection. And if you have to fit it on the shelf, someone else is leaving.
- It's like, why? You know, it's bad enough to be doing the whole logging plays to say like, 'Oh, I played this at this time. I played this at this time.' I could not care less who won what game and when.
- You do not have to meet a minimum prerequisite. It's just it does get on my wick that.
- It's like there are two people that sort of get on my wick with this or say that try to get out of the idea of helping to pack a game away. Smokers [...] and then the ones doing the BG stats...
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video ga_-TfGlOqY
Review at 2:34 sentiment: negative
video_pk 65720 · mention_pk 159481
Click to watch at 2:34 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
negative
Pros
none
Cons
- Muddled ideology
Thematic elements
- Ideology
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- This is a much better game.
- The muddled ideology is gone and we are left with an examination of real politic in the 21st century.
- And it does a great job of showing world geopolitics in a manageable board game.
- I love how the game models soft power.
- Ward Order is highly interactive, and you will be trading with other players, jostling for influence, and moving armies about.
- The best thing about this game is how you can win without aggression by using soft power and military defensively.
- However, the game comes with two expansions and they feel like cut content.
- I also think the deck building system has potential to break the game with the upgrade cards being just that much better.
- I suspect the game would work better without cards and just choosing one of the actions to take each turn.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video Gd7a3S-ZG7Y
Meeple University Review at 0:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 64211 · mention_pk 157678
Click to watch at 0:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- rich four-way asymmetric structure that simulates running a country
- policy interaction and elections add depth
- learning curve can be overcome with the right group
- state acts as an equalizer balancing happiness across classes
- expansions add new dimensions and solo play options
Cons
- high complexity and learning curve
- best experienced with four players; 2-3 players may not showcase all rules
- scoring and balancing can be opaque or potentially frustrating
Thematic elements
- economic and political power dynamics, governance, taxation, policy, and elections.
- A four-class political-economic system with government, middle class, working class, and capitalists managing a country across rounds.
- policy-driven simulation of a country with interlocking classes and policy decisions.
Comparison games
- Merchant from Crescent Moon
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action_phase — five turns per round; play one card per turn; can resolve card effects or take a basic action.
- asymmetric_roles — four classes with unique powers and scoring interactions: government, middle class, working class, capitalists.
- Compound Scoring — five rounds; end-of-round scoring based on prosperity and capital; end-game scoring with policy alignment.
- economic_scoring — taxation and capital accumulation drive points; prosperity track progression.
- elections_and_bills — propose bills; tie-break via cubes; use influence to sway results.
- Events — two events per round that the state must resolve.
- events_and_government_actions — two events per round that the state must resolve.
- expansions_reference — expansions (crisis and control) add scoring objectives and extra cards.
- hand management — each player starts with seven cards; choose to play or ignore.
- hand_management — each player starts with seven cards; choose to play or ignore.
- policy_boards — seven policy boards that shape wages, welfare, taxation, immigration, and other policy levers.
- round_structure_and_scoring — five rounds; end-of-round scoring based on prosperity and capital; end-game scoring with policy alignment.
- Stacking and Balancing — state actions grant legitimacy and attempt to balance happiness among classes.
- state_legitimacy_and_balancing — state actions grant legitimacy and attempt to balance happiness among classes.
- Variable Phase Order — five turns per round; play one card per turn; can resolve card effects or take a basic action.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- this is hegemony
- it's really a socioeconomic simulator
- it's a very ambitious game
- the state is the Equalizer
- there's a lot to learn
- it's a really fun game
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video n6xtw4GCNdQ
Unknown Channel Top 10 List at 6:23 sentiment: positive
video_pk 39172 · mention_pk 161654
Click to watch at 6:23 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Organic player interaction and role immersion
- Engaging balance between collaboration and conflict
- Strong campaign-like feel despite a simple core loop
Cons
- Heavy discussion burden; may be tiring for some players
- Not ideal for players averse to political negotiation
Thematic elements
- asymmetric political economy and class struggle
- Modern country with shifting politics and class structure
- organic, table-driven roleplay through argument and negotiation
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection — Five-card rounds; players play a card and may add a bonus, while others influence outcomes
- asymmetric roles — Each player controls a different social class with unique powers
- internal market and policy games — Prices, subsidies, taxes, and laws are negotiated and adjusted by players
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Sky Team is a cooperative two-player game where you and your partner are pilots trying to land a commercial aircraft safely, guiding planes through different airports and conditions as you roll dice, manage flaps, adjust thrusts, and engage in an endless stream of disastrous non-verbal communication.
- What makes Sky Team brilliant is how perfectly it captures real teamwork in such a short period of time.
- Thunder Road is gleefully and unapologetically loud, dumb, and brilliantly fun.
- Hegemony is an asymmetric political economic game where each player controls a different social class in a modern country pushing their own agendas through laws, markets, and a lot of very loud table arguing.
- Arcs and the Blood Reach tells this like super messy and overly dramatic space opera that you will remember far longer than how many points you scored in the latest euro.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video nlB0ZVFLuuE
The Broken Meeple Top List at 19:15 sentiment: positive
video_pk 7408 · mention_pk 130371
Click to watch at 19:15 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Strong balance and thematic depth
- Engaging strategic play for experienced players
Cons
- Long teaching time
- Heavy rules for newcomers
Thematic elements
- Power balance and faction abilities
- Futuristic political struggle among factions
- Strategic, heavy, political engine-building
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Area Control — Control zones and influence on a map
- asymmetric player powers — Different powers per faction guide strategy
- Faction Asymmetry — Different powers per faction guide strategy
- hand management — Build and play cards to activate actions and scoring
- planning / multi-round opponents — Long-term strategy with balancing choices
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Spirit Island's fantastic it is one of my favorite co-ops of all time
- it's not for everybody
- I love teaching games
- I just want a nice Speedy game
- The Crew is a great trick taking game
- Scythe is not a fun one to teach
- it's got the most stuff in it which also makes it the harder one to play with Noobs
- ironically the first game I ever played at a board game club that got me into the hobby was Seven Wonders with leaders included where I actually won the game
- it's a fantastic fun game
- I've played this game a lot
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 9_qcgLP7vcc
Peaky Boardgamer Rules Teach at 0:29 sentiment: mixed
video_pk 2668 · mention_pk 7844
Click to watch at 0:29 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
mixed
Pros
- Richly thematic and structurally deep; four asymmetrical classes drive varied strategies.
- Layered mechanics (cards, workers, production, elections) create emergent strategic depth.
- Policy/election subsystem provides meaningful, recurring tension and scoring opportunities.
Cons
- Steep learning curve; rules are extensive and interdependent.
- Very long setup and playtime, which may deter casual players.
- Requires careful tracking of multiple tracks (wages, legitimacy, policy markers, storage).
Thematic elements
- Class struggle, political economy, policymaking, and legitimacy dynamics
- A nation-state with four competing classes (Working Class, Middle Class, Capitalist Class, State) across five rounds, with policies, elections, and public services shaping outcomes.
- asymmetric multi-class political economy simulation with elections and policy shifts
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- card-driven action system — Each class uses an action card deck to perform a main action, followed by basic and free actions; cards are drafted from class-specific decks and discarded after use.
- Legitimacy and scoring — Legitimacy tracks for each class impact scoring; events and policy changes alter legitimacy; at endgame, points are allocated based on remaining resources and policy markers.
- Market and export — Export/Import cards govern trading transactions; foreign trade and tariffs affect pricing and revenue; some goods can be stored in a free trade zone with different rules.
- Policy tracks and elections — Seven policy tracks (A/B/C sections) influence rules; proposals trigger elections, which determine if policy changes pass and reward victory points.
- Production and needs management — In production, all operating classes produce goods/services and pay wages; players must meet population needs with food/health/education; storage capacity matters.
- Resource management and procurement — Vardus (currency) and goods/services are managed; resources are bought from multiple sources (capitalist, middle class, state public services, foreign market) with tariffs and tariffs implications.
- Taxes, loans, and IMF intervention — Taxes are multipliers based on policy; loans can be taken with penalties; IMF intervention can reorder policy tracks and wage levels under stress.
- Worker assignment and company operation — Players assign workers to company slots to activate operations; middle class can open and staff its own companies; skill matching and commitment affect production.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- hegemony is a highly thematic asymmetric political economic car driven board game for two to four players simulating an entire nation its policies and its economy
- Germany is played over a series of five rounds
- this is a highly asymmetrical game in all classes performed differently in each one of these faces
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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Showing 1–7 of 7