Here’s some good news for you! With the new card game “I Have the Numbers!”, you can test your mettle at various political skills – crafting strategies, making declarations and uncovering the lies of your rivals, to name a few. All without the hassle or expense of campaigning or running for office!
Created by Bryan Ooi and Ernest Ng, this satirical parody of Malaysian politics is a creative and enjoyable game of “quick maths, trickery and deception”.
“I’ve wanted to create a card or tabletop game for the longest time! I’ve been making plans for this game since 2021. I was actually hoping to release this before the 15th General Election. Then the state elections. But I underestimated the complexity of making a card game,” Ng, 37, told FMT Lifestyle with a laugh.
“I didn’t want to rush it out though, because if a game’s not complete, then there’s really no point. So I delayed it until now, and it’s finally out!”
Ng is no stranger to the ups, downs and zigzags of Malaysian politics. Many may know him as the creator of the popular ‘If Malaysia was Anime’ comic series, which featured parodies of politicians and prominent figures.
The comic has just completed its “Covidball Z” arc, and is still ongoing.
In “I Have the Numbers!”, you play politician Anuar, who is attempting to form a government, but doesn’t have majority support. Your job is to gather as many politicians (represented by cards) to your side, and gain sufficient numbers to win an election.
Most of the cards feature images of politicians, drawn in Ng’s inimitable cartoon style. Mahadir, Kayjay, Masabu, Zamadi … squint a little, and they MAY resemble some of Malaysia’s most famous (and infamous!) political figures.
Each politician is drawn with an item famously connected to them (one of them, for example, holds a Doraemon plushy) and part of the fun is interpreting all these images.
“I’ve mostly drawn figures that I’ve enjoyed drawing in the comic. Many of them are the more recognisable ones. If you want to know who made it here… well, buy the game!” Ng laughed.
He added that he and his team took about one and a half years to develop and test the game.
Here’s a very simplified version of the game’s rules: the “I Have the Numbers!” deck contains Number and Target cards, which have a specific number on them, and Wild cards, which can be any number from 1-6.
In each round, a card is drawn from the deck and revealed. The goal is to add the value on that card with the values on yours to reach a certain number, which depends on the card drawn. A player who can do that declares “I Have the Numbers!” and places his or her cards down. First to do so wins the cards.
Don’t have the right numbers? You can bluff, but you can also be challenged. If you have the right numbers, your bluff works, or if you are wrongfully accused of bluffing, you keep the round’s cards. If another player successfully challenges you, they keep them instead.
To make things more exciting, other players can try to “steal” your cards, in certain circumstances. The game goes on until all cards are drawn, and the player with the most Target cards wins.
The rules may sound a little complicated on paper, but the game is quite easy to learn. It only takes a few practice rounds to get the hang of bluffing, stealing and scoring.
Playing “I Have the Numbers!” is very entertaining: there’s nothing more satisfying than successfully stealing a set, or seeing through your opponent’s poker face and calling his or her bluff.
Ng is already working on an expansion for his game. Expect more politicians to come, and more craziness: like local politics, anything can happen, he teased.
“Malaysian politics is very colourful and interesting, and I hope the game covers all the twists and turns connected with it. Hopefully, people have a good time playing this with their friends!” Ng concluded.
“I Have the Numbers!” can be purchased via Shopee here.