When was the last time you sat to listen to someone else’s opinion? Not to argue or debate, but simply to hear them out and understand their perspective. Owner of Your Opinion Doesn’t Matter, Lamont Kirton created a card game just for that.
The East Flatbush native released the card game in 2019 after years of watching friends and family members debate about who had the best pizza or roti in the neighborhood. Instead of a typical panel discussion, he chose a format that would get people engaged and involved while teaching them something new.
In a game with 3-12 players, once you draw a question card, you have 30 secs to argue your stance for or against the topic. If you pull a “For/Against Card,” the die decides which side you’re on, whether you agree or not. Once the debates are done, the crowd decides who had the better argument.
“Imagine if it's 10 people, and then they choose who wins," explained Kirton. It goes on and on and on—especially if it's a juicy topic. One question can last 30 minutes. It's a fun game, a very fun game."
Beyond the fun of the game, Kirton explains that the game fills a real gap in the industry.
Black video game developers make up only two to five percent of the video game industry, while their white counterparts dominate the field.
As a Black man, Kirton expresses that making his mark in the industry has been difficult, but he won’t stop. He continues to share the card game with people he believes it will bring just a little more joy to.
“There are always other perspectives,” he said. “The world would be better if everybody listened to somebody else. You can still agree to disagree. But you still have to take time to listen.”
Kirton explains that the name of the game isn’t to devalue someone’s opinion; in fact, it’s to do the opposite. Many people believe their opinion is 100 percent correct and don’t consider someone else’s, he said.
“People take [the name of the game] so literally," he told BK Reader. "What it is is that your opinion shouldn't be valued more than another person's opinion and I want people to start understanding that there are other perspectives."
His belief in other perspectives was instilled in him by his father as a child when traveling with his family. His father, who would stay back to work at their photo shop in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, told him it was to help broaden his knowledge of other cultures.
“He said, ‘my reason for sending y'all away is to show you there's much more in the world for you to see and hear than what's going on in Bed-Stuy,’” Kirton said.
The game is the perfect icebreaker, Kirton explained. It allows people to really get a bird’s-eye view of the other person’s perspective, eventually causing them to say things you wouldn’t typically say when meeting someone new.
To learn more about the game and options to purchase, readers can head to the YODM website.
