Press
“Rarely have I played a game that so seamlessly meshes theme and mechanics. There's a delicious tense feeling throughout the game...And the cooperative gameplay feels natural; you need all patients to get better to win, but you're the advocate for what your own patient needs. Omari's design chops and Lakshman's ICU knowledge come together beautifully in this game. See for yourself!"
- Emma Larkins, designer of Abandon All Artichokes
“This interview was very meaningful to me as a health care worker in the land of COVID. Make no mistake; we are having a really rough time helping people through this. Dr. Lakshman Swamy feels this too. He and Omari Akil turn pain into redemption and joy with their game...Critical Care truly represents the best that games can offer us... it is more than a game. It's got a soul to it."
— Jason Perez, Shelf Stories
"The board game, Critical Care, explores the world of ICU medicine in 250 playing cards, from the medicines used to the procedures patients undergo. The game has easy-to-understand descriptions embedded on the cards for the players to read and learn from. Concepts of social justice are also woven into the cards."
READ: How creating a board game helped a Boston ICU doctor grapple with the trauma of COVID-19
“Critical Care is an intense co-op that has you expecting the unexpected with your patients every day in the ICU but i’m even learning about medicine along the way!”
— The Lobby Of Hobbies
“Critical Care has a legit tension to it without even mentioning the fact that each turn introduces complication cards and pager alert cards that can change the plan during that round. Pager cards can either be helpful or give a restriction for the player during that turn.”
— One Board Family
"Now, no medical knowledge is required to play the game, but what I love about this is that it is actually based on real facts and real medicine and each card- there’s over 100 unique therapy cards- each card has real life descriptions of what you're doing to help these patients make it through the ICU. Theres even a therapy dog, best thing ever, right?!"
— Ruel Gaviola, The Good Time Society
"My dream is to see families playing this game and starting conversations around the coffee table about health and healthcare, about clinical careers. It is a real dream of mine that people play Critical Care and are inspired to become doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, whatever."
- Lakshman Swamy told Medscape
"As part of its goal of celebrating health care professionals, the game shows a variety of frontline workers who contribute to patient care, including respiratory therapists, pharmacists, dietitians, chaplains and environmental service staff." -Abby Patkin
READ: Become a doctor overnight with Critical Care, a Brookline resident's new board game