1937 Dated Japanese Child’s Military Game Sheet: “Resistance is Futile”

The game sheet for “Resistance is Futile” is a large, bright and colorful montage of war and battle scenes, and it was played with dice for a Japanese child’s military game. The game was a “Sugoroku” style game, with the children racing to reach the finish, not unlike a game such as “Chutes and Ladders”. The game sheet is approximately 21 inches by 31 inches. The sheet is accompanied by the colorful envelope in which the game sheet was sold. This envelope depicts a Japanese soldier, clearly equipped for combat in the cold climate of China, with two children who hold the flags of Japan and Manchukuo. Both the game sheet and the envelope show bright colors and they are in very good condition. The game sheet has typical fold lines. Either or both pieces would make a dramatic display if framed. The game sheet certainly reflects the attempts that were made in Japan to militarize the youth and to indoctrinate them with the Bushido code.