The dual nature of things — the coexistence of advancements and challenges, the presence of both good and evil, and the occurrence of both progress and setbacks — conjured up the metaphor of the ancient game of Snakes and Ladders. More than 2000 years old, the game was invented in India to teach children about virtues and vices, destiny and desire, good and bad karma. All the good deeds we do, take us closer to the top (ladders), whereas evil makes us slip downwards (snakes, leading us to lower levels for rebirth). Original name: Moksha Patam.

• Each player can play with more than one pawn and can choose which one to move forward, after throwing the dice, in order to benefit best from ladders and to avoid snakes as much as possible.
• We want everyone to reach the top and arrive at the finish. Some go faster than others and win bonus points for that.
• Others may go slower in the field; everyone can gather bonus points during their journey. Or lose points by landing on squares with penalty points.
• The game is intended to be a conversation starter; if a player lands on the core of one of the 6 key areas, take some time to start a discussion with fellow players about that topic.
• It is a multi-stakeholder playing field, where collaboration counts. 

The playing field of Scholarly Communications has many different types of players. Try to include them all in the game. Work together. Cross-stakeholder collaboration is an essential element in our activities.