20 years of Wallbreakers

Over the past 25 years, Workz has developed countless games and simulations, but few have remained as relevant as Wallbreakers®, our bestselling change leadership simulation, which turns 20 this month. It was our first leadership simulation and, even today, it is still our biggest: both metaphorically and physically. The circular game board stretches more than 2 metres across; taking over an entire room the second it is rolled out.

But in a world of AI, digital learning, and a constant stream of new tools, how has a physical leadership simulation from the early 2000s managed to stay relevant for two decades, and why are we still using it?

To understand that we spoke with Svend, one of the original creators of Wallbreakers.

What is Wallbreakers?

Before we dive into the story behind Wallbreakers, it is probably worth explaining what the game actually is.

Wallbreakers is a change leadership and development training simulation. Throughout the game, participants explore the connection between leadership decisions and employee attitudes towards change. It challenges payers to make decisions, test assumptions, and experience the consequences of their choices in real time, all within a risk-free environment.

At the same time, the game creates space for reflection and discussion. The conversations that happen around the board are just as important as the gameplay itself.

Over the past 20 years, Wallbreakers has been played by thousands of people globally, and has remained relevant for so long due to its versatility and ability to adapt to many organisational contexts. We will explore this further below.

Why the bus metaphor still works

One of the most recognisable parts of Wallbreakers is the bus metaphor – clearly visualised in the physical components of the game. ‘The department’ is represented by an acrylic bus, the ‘change cycle’ is the road, and ‘resistance to change’ is the side sidewalk. People can be on the bus, off the bus, or even standing on the sidewalk of resistance.

According to Svend, the metaphor is part of why the game has lasted so long. “We needed some sign of representation, and I think, to be honest, that the metaphor is one of the strengths of Wallbreakers,” he says. “It’s so easy to connect somehow, as metaphors allow us to talk about something abstract in a concrete way by making it tangible.”

Leadership and change management can easily become abstract concepts. The game makes them visible. Suddenly, conversations about resistance, motivation, uncertainty, or leadership styles become easier to have because players can see them unfold in front of them.

And unlike other traditional formats, Wallbreakers does not try to give participants one “correct” answer. Games need meaningful choices and feedback on those actions; otherwise, they’re not games.

The outline of a dragon

Part of why Wallbreakers still works after 20 years may actually lie in the things the game leaves open.

At Workz, we sometimes talk about “The dragon comes to life in the eyes of the beholder” as a way of talking about the space we leave for the participants using our processes to bring in their own perspectives.

The idea is that if you show a dragon on screen in a movie, there is no room for the viewer to project their own idea of a horrible dragon into the story. They can only be disappointed, as the dragon shown does not, and never could, meet their expectations.

But if there is only a hint of the dragon, a dark, shadowy outline, that hint is enough for people to create their own understanding of it. Everyone imagines their own dragon.

Wallbreakers works similarly. There are enough empty spaces in the game that when someone plays, they can feel like it was made specifically for them. People bring their own experiences, leadership challenges, and workplace dynamics into the game and recognise themselves in it.

“The game is open enough in its spaces between the lines that we can bring in our context and make meaning there,” says Svend.

That openness is part of why the game has been able to work across industries, cultures, and organisations for two decades. The game gives structure and direction, but it also leaves room for interpretation, reflection, and discussion.

Research on Wallbreakers supports this idea. One study found that “the combination of reflection, dialogue, and serious game simulations appeared to be a fruitful platform for sensemaking and for the managers to attain new change management competencies” (Abildgaard et al., 2023).

Rather than teaching leadership through fixed answers, Wallbreakers creates conversations in which participants reflect on their own decisions, behaviours, and approaches to change.

Wallbreakers for the next 20 years

A lot has changed in the past 20 years, but people still react to change in different ways. That is something Wallbreakers continues to make visible.

For Svend, the ambition for the next 20 years is not necessarily to make the game bigger or more complicated, but to keep creating meaningful conversations around leadership and change.

And so far, Wallbreakers still seems to create exactly that.