The Complaint Department Complaint: a free game about writing complaints

What is The Complaint Department Complaint?

Write a complaint about the complaint process, part by part: what happened, why it matters, what you want. Then it gets escalated to you, and you have to pick the reply that actually does what was asked.

The Complaint Department Complaint is a free satire game: the complaint form needs a complaint number you only get after complaining, and the hotline's hold music has been one note for six hours.

Build each complaint in three parts (what happened, why it matters, what you want) by picking the strongest line. Then the complaint is escalated to you, and you pick the reply that really answers it.

At a glance

Category

Absurd Bureaucracy

Difficulty

Medium

Play time

6 min

Price

Free, in your browser, sign-up optional

How to play

Write

+50 per strong line: specific, calm and actionable.

Reply

+100 for the reply that answers the ask with a date and a reference.

Three levels

Beginner, Intermediate or Expert, picked before you play: the content and the clock change, and each level keeps its own best score.

Satire

Absurd and warm: every country, office, planet and form is made up, and every run ends on a real admin skill.

Scoring

+50 per strong line in your complaint, +100 for the right reply, and +10 per choice.

Win with 70% strong choices.

What it trains

Writing clearly

Facts, impact and one specific ask.

Seeing both sides

Knowing what a useful reply looks like.

Strategy and tips

Be specific

Dates, places and reference numbers beat adjectives.

Ask for one thing

A clear request with a deadline is easy to say yes to.

As the officer

The best reply does what was asked, says when and quotes the reference.

Why play The Complaint Department Complaint?

Complaints to shops, landlords and services work better with facts, impact and one specific ask. Calm and precise gets results faster than loud.

Frequently asked questions