Risk and the Real World

In the game of risks, each team has a goal that they must accomplish to win. With this goal comes a lot of strategic actions in order to further your ambitions whether it be world peace or world domination. In this aspect, risk is a lot like the international world. Every state has its own goals and it acts to make strides in gaining that goal. There is also a lot of double crossing and rescinding statements of allegiance, withholding and fabricating information in order to win. I think this also stays true to the world of world politics. Just because a head of state says something, it doesn't mean that he/ she will do it. Just because one country extends an alliance to another, it doesn't mean that the other country has to accept. With the game of risks, there are some rules on how things HAVE to happen. In the real world, these could be seen as socially constructed norms that exists in the international system. It was a given, if you wanted to go to war with another team you had to be follow the rules of the game. Although forced upon us, they began to be seen as simply "how it is" and no one questioned, this rule or the rules pertaining to order of play etc. With this being said somethings were not realistic like the random zombie plaque that wouldn't stop spreading unless each team gave two armies. I don't think that is really likely to stop the spreading of a disease. Another thing that was not realistic was the secret weapon that each team has. In the real world, the secret weapons are not limited to single states. The ability to go to war with any state even if they are your allies is not a singular power nor is guerrilla warfare. In the game, we are able to see the different IR theories being implemented by each group and their diplomats, some have a large realist stance at times with their trust no team attitude, others display liberal ideals with their questions of, how can this benefit me and how can we mutually gain from this deal. And every team was given an identity when they were given their sheet of paper listing their goals and ambitions. All in all I feel this is really helping us to really see how IR theory is used and how the international system works on a finite level in our classroom.