Daybreak: How the Cooperative Climate Game Works

Quick answer

Daybreak is a fully cooperative game: each player runs a world power, and you win or lose together. Your job is to deploy policies and technologies that cut emissions and protect people, while keeping global temperature from rising too high and preventing too many crises in any single power.

How to play Daybreak: step by step

1. Set up the shared tracks and each player’s power board: Place the global temperature track and crisis markers where everyone can see them. Give each player their world power board and starting components. Common mistake: burying the temperature track at the edge of the table—keep it central because every decision references it. Before any cards are dealt, agree on who will read the temperature and crisis thresholds aloud each round.
2. Choose your world power and review its starting situation: Each power begins with different vulnerabilities and capabilities. Read your power’s setup card or board carefully, noting how many people are already in crisis and what resources you start with. Common mistake: assuming all powers play identically—your first actions should address your power’s specific weaknesses. State your power’s biggest risk to the table so others can plan around it.
3. Take actions to deploy policies and technologies: On your turn, choose from the available actions to play policy or technology cards, reduce emissions, or respond to crises. Coordinate with the group before spending limited resources. Common mistake: hoarding cards for a perfect combo while the temperature track climbs—early emission reductions compound. If you are unsure, ask which action most reduces global heating this round.
4. Resolve crises in your power and others: When a crisis triggers, follow its instructions immediately. If too many people from any world power are in crisis, everyone loses, so helping another power is often the right move. Common mistake: ignoring a crisis in a power that is not yours—crises are shared losses, not private ones. Track the crisis count for every power, not just your own.
5. Check the global temperature and end-of-round triggers: After all players have acted, advance or check the temperature track and resolve any end-of-round effects. If the temperature has reached the loss threshold, the game ends immediately. Common mistake: skipping the end-of-round check because you are focused on your own board. Nominate one player to read the end-of-round checklist aloud every round.
6. Win by drawing down global heating together: You win when you have reduced emissions enough to draw down global heating and keep every power out of crisis. There is no single-player winner. Common mistake: celebrating a personal strong turn while the group is still far from the shared win condition—keep the group’s progress as the scoreboard. At the end of each round, ask: are we closer to the shared win, or just richer individually?

Product facts

• Daybreak: Daybreak is a co-operative game about climate action where each player controls a world power, deploying policies and technologies to dismantle the engine of global heating and build resilient societies. This means your role is dual from the start: you are both cutting emissions and protecting people, so neither job can be ignored.