MSCHF Turns Taboo Investment Scheme Into a Chance to Win Cash With Online Game Tontine

Back in the 17th century, a Neapolitan banker named Lorenzo de Tonti created a living investment system aptly named a tontine. For each tontine, a group of premium-paying subscribers would receive an occasional payout from the aggregated pool of money throughout their life—the only requirement was that they had remain alive to receive it. When a participant died, the rest of the investors would absorb the deceased's entitlement, which would naturally increase their own payout. This would continue until the final investor's death, upon which the trust would essentially dissolve. You can imagine how a system where one literally profits off of another's death could get very messy, very quickly. The controversial scheme is still fairly common in certain countries like France, but it is also considered a hotbed for potential scandal, making it a largely contested concept in the many other countries. But while it may not make for the best pension plan, it could make for a rather interesting game. At least, that's the idea behind creative collective MSCHF's latest drop. This week, MSCHF launched an online platform for a game called Tontine, modeled after the investment scheme of the same name. To participate, each player must pay a fee of $10 dollars during the active signup window. At midnight on Dec. 28, that window will close and the game will officially begin. To play, all participants need to do is log on every single day and hit a button that confirms that they are still alive. That's it. From there, it's just a matter of "outliving" your fellow investors. Once a player fails to log in, they die. The last person standing wins the entire pot, which at the time of this writing is near $5,000. "There is an old truism that goes, 'You can’t take it with you,'" MSCHF writes in a manifesto posted on the game's site. "MSCHF’s Tontine envisions a brave new world where the estate tax is 100%, there’s zero population growth, and hangin’ out in a graveyard is how all the cool kids spend their time." If the concept sounds like it could go on for a very, very long time, that's because it could. MSCHF confirms that Tontine is designed to last as long as the players do, which could theoretically equate to years depending on the perseverance of the participants. Giving them something to talk about Though founded in 2016, MSCHF's taboo-breaking work over the past year has turned it into a creative shop to watch in the coming year. Previous drops include Lil Nas X's blood-infused Satan Shoes and Illegal Chips, a collaboration with Mythical Kitchen that was inspired by foods made illegal in the U.S. The inherent controversy of the tontine system makes it an ideal source of inspiration for a collective that aims to spark conversation with its creative campaigns. As noted in MSCHF's manifesto, Tontine emphasizes its natural proclivity to be "extremely online," whether it's through social media, work, shopping or any of the many things that tie us to the internet in some fashion. "If you don’t log in everywhere for a month, your big data aggregate profile probably thinks you’re dead," the manifesto reads. "Amazon knows you’re pregnant before you do, so if Facebook, Google and Netflix think you’re dead, you’re dead." Those who wish to try their luck can sign up and invest through Tontine's site. MSCHF warns potential players that it will not show mercy to those who fall victim to updated browsers or forgotten passwords: "Death comes for all of us and in many forms. Tontine, like life, is not fair." Mythical Kitchen and MSCHF Drop Illegal Chips, Inspired by Foods Banned in the US