Dan McCurley

Enclosure: A Game About Capitalism

Tags
Game Design, Interaction & Experience Design
Link
https://technolumina.itch.io/enclosure
Mousehold Heath, Norwich, a painting by John Crome of a wide, open heath under a cloudy sky

A medieval brick-breaker about the perils of capitalism

Play Enclosure on itch.io

About the Game

The commons will soon be fenced off as private property. Can you, a simple shepherd, keep producing enough wool to make rent?

Enclosure takes place in medieval England during the onset of market capitalism. You play as a shepherd trying to earn a living while your access to public grazing land continually diminishes. The game provides a fun and accessible way to learn about the origins of capitalism and experience disenfranchisement in the face of privatization.

I designed and developed Enclosure over the course of a week using GameMaker.

Enclosure title screen: a shepherd and sheep on a strip of grass beside a stone wall, with 'Press Enter to Start'
Gameplay on day 1: a green pasture with a brown path cut through it, a sheep at the top and the shepherd paddle at the bottom; Grass 23, Gold 5
Gameplay on day 5: the pasture is broken into green blocks separated by grey stone walls; Grass 13, Gold 12
End-of-day summary for day 3 under a full moon: Grass 103, Wool Produced 51, Starting Gold 2g, Earnings 12g, Rent minus 5g, Total Gold 9g
Gameplay on day 6 with the message 'Your sheep escaped.' over the walled pasture
Game over text: 'Owing a great debt to his lordship, your sheep is taken from you. Unable to earn a living, you abandon your farm and look for work in the city. You spend the rest of your days working in a wool mill, destitute and nearly starving.'

Enclosure @ M+DEV 2024

Enclosure was featured in the Indie Showcase at M+DEV 2024 in Madison, WI.

A player at the M+DEV 2024 showcase playing Enclosure on a monitor, with the Enclosure banner hanging from the table
Two people at the M+DEV 2024 showcase, one playing Enclosure and one watching, in front of a window onto a parking lot

Play Enclosure on itch.io