PLAY THE BOOK

What They Don't Teach You at Harvard Business School

by Mark H. McCormack

A veteran deal-maker distills the unwritten rules of business savvy: reading people, negotiating with leverage, managing time, and shaping perceptions. Players practice sizing up situations, handling office politics, and building client trust through practical, street-smart tactics rather than textbook theory.

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20 maps · 96 characters · 328 questions · free to try, no account needed · book links are affiliate links

Three ways to play the same book. Climb the platformer and answer to refuel.

Loading the demo…

← → to move, Space to jump, ↓ + Space to drop through. Use the on-screen controls to run and jump. Orbs ask a question; a correct answer refuels the climb.

What's inside

20 maps, 96 characters and 328 questions, all generated from the book.

MAP 01

Forest of Reading People

Learn to sense unspoken cues and motivations in business situations.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 02

Negotiation Caverns

Master tactics for controlling emotion and leverage in deals.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 03

Candor's Volcano

Use honesty as a disarming, powerful negotiation weapon.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 04

Strength and Weakness Desert

Assess true bargaining power before entering negotiations.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 05

Positioning Castle

Position products and people strategically in the marketplace.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 06

Timing Ocean

Sense the right moments to act in sales and deals.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 07

Common Sense Ice Fields

Apply practical logic to timing and decision-making.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 08

Scheduling Ruins

Manage time effectively amid competing business demands.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 09

Correspondence Caves

Shape perceptions through letters, calls, and staff communication.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 10

Office Politics Fortress

Navigate corporate hierarchies and internal power struggles.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 11

Conflict of Interest Swamp Forest

Handle competing loyalties and interests responsibly.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 12

Client Relationship Oasis

Build lasting trust and loyalty with clients.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 13

Boss Management Ruins

Learn to manage upward and satisfy superiors effectively.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 14

Self-Assertion Volcano

Build personal branding and confidence at work.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 15

Job Offer Icebergs

Evaluate offers and loyalty decisions wisely.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 16

Favor and Gesture Grove

Use small kindnesses to build long-term goodwill.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 17

Emotional Control Caverns

Master emotional discipline during disputes and deals.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 18

Avoiding Ego Diversification Dunes

Recognize limits of expertise and avoid overreach.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 19

Legal Disputes Ruins

Understand when to avoid litigation and resolve issues directly.

5 characters · 17 questions

MAP 20

Perception Management Castle

Control how others perceive your business image and actions.

1 characters · 5 questions

How the book becomes practice

Reading puts ideas in. Retrieval keeps them there. The game is the retrieval.

Walk the world of the book

20 maps, one per part of the book. Signs along the way hold its key ideas, so the walk itself is a refresher.

Battle the characters

96 characters, each a short quiz on one idea. Answer well and the map opens up; a boss guards the end of each one.

Missed ideas come back

Every question you get wrong is re-asked in rematches and boss fights, and the Flashcards mode schedules it with spaced repetition, until you get it right. That is the part that makes it stick.

Keep what you learn

Sign up for free and your demo progress, XP, best tower stage and flashcard schedules move to your account. Come back whenever a chapter starts to fade.

Questions

Is this the actual book?

No. This is a quiz game built from the ideas in "What They Don't Teach You at Harvard Business School": 328 multiple-choice questions with explanations, spread over 20 maps. It works best alongside the book, which is why the page links to where you can get it.

Is it free to play?

You can play the demos on this page without an account (5 battles in the RPG, 10 questions in the tower and 12 flashcard grades). Sign up for free to keep going; premium worlds come with a preview and Lifetime Pro unlocks everything.

Do I need to have read the book?

It works either way. If you have read it, the game is spaced repetition for what you learned. If you have not, every question comes with an explanation, so the game is a fast tour of the main ideas.

Does my demo progress carry over?

Yes. Sign up from the game and the characters you beat, your XP, your best tower stage and your flashcard schedules move to your account.

Are the book links affiliate links?

Yes. If you buy the book through one of them we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It helps keep the free worlds free.