Illuminati: New World Order - Collectible Card Game

Are you an avid conspiracy theorist? Are you suspicious of Governments in general, and always assume that they have a hidden agenda? Well, you might be right and this is the perfect card game for you. The strange thing about this game is that some of the predictions on the cards in this game (which came out in 1995 and, in 1997 won the Origins Award for ‘best card game’) have actually come true. Have2have will explain more about that later in this blog, but first let us tell you more about it. 

Illuminati: New World Order was first released in 1995 and is a collectible card game from Steve Jackson Games. Its foundations are laid upon their previous two boxed games, Illuminati and The Illuminatus Trilogy. 

How it works:  

New World Order is a complicated conspiracy game where players have a central Illuminati group (which would be the behind-the-scenes cabal that orchestrates events, representing mysterious organizations which seem to control everything) consisting of nine groups (and one extra on expansion) making ten. The nine groups are; the Servants of Cthulhu, Gnomes of Zurich, Bavarian Illuminati, Bermuda triangle, UFOs, Adepts of Hermes, the Network, Shagri-La and the Discordian Society. Apart from these groups, the cards also contain categories like Places, Resources, New World Order cards (which change the rules), Personalities, Groups and Plot cards (one-shot actions). Each player (endowed with certain powers, attributes and alignments) plays against the Illuminati Groups, trying to control them and build a power structure. 

Alignments include Straight, Conservative, Government, Violent, Fanatic and Criminal, with the game getting quite complex including things happening all the time such as exposed Plot cards, Disasters and Assassinations, Immunity and Secret groups. This is just an overview of the game, and there is a huge learning curve, but you get the picture (or do you think we are lying and are part of a conspiracy?). 

Conspiracy Theory and ‘Psychic’ Predictions of the Game 

Did you note that the game was released in 1995? However, some of the cards predicted events which happened years afterwards, notably the 9/11 attack in 2001. One card, ‘Terrorist Nuke’ clearly show the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre burning while the ‘Pentagon’ card shows the Pentagon on fire, just like it happened in real life. Also, a ‘Population Reduction’ card shows smoke in the distance with the Empire State Building again featuring as the tallest building in the city. Other similar cards depict the Wacko tower in Japan (tsunamis and earthquakes), BP Oil Spill, subliminal mind control, deprogramming, fiendish fluoridators (fluoride conspiracies) and many, many more. There is also a collectible aspect to this game. 

Is Illuminati: New World Order just a card game, or was its inventor visited by some future visions? Are we reading too much into the cards? They sure seem similar to photographs taken after the fact. You can decide for yourself. Drop us an email, and Have2have will get a pack right off to you.