The Road To Ruin?

Ruin is suitable for early teenagers upwards and although produced as a road safety orientated game by Nottinghamshire County Council Road Safety Group, the road safety angle is very tenuous and I am not convinced that anyone playing the game would become any more safety conscious.

Having said that, it is a good business simulation, easy to understand and good value.

Up to six groups can be accommodated or one group can play against the micro which means that it is possible to use it for a full class.

However, unless the groups have access to individual mach ines which allow interaction with a central processor, pupils could become restless while waiting their turn to input their deliberations.

Each group acts as an insurance company quoting premiums for motor vehicle insurance. The game proceeds for up to 10 years.

Each year, five clients along with details such as age, type of vehicle, experience and number of miles per year, are offered and each group in turn presents its quotations.

These are based on the risk factor each client presents and each group has to quote premiums which attract customers but which cover the costs of any accidents.

A group starts with a capital of £50,000, and after all tenders have been received the program displays a balance sheet for each of the companies in turn.

This shows numbers of new clients, income from new and old clients, the number of claims, liabilities and overheads as well as opening and closing balances.

The group with the largest balance at the end wins. Initially, groups will find difficulty giving quotations which attract new customers at premiums showing a profit but as the game progresses players assimilate knowledge ofthe risks associated with different types of road user and the competition gets keener.

The game can be played several times with each group because client details are randomised and although there is an element of chance in the accidents there is a heavy bias towards real life risks.

John Daddy