Houthoff Buruma The Game: a Dutch law firm's graduate recruiting tool
Houthoff Buruma The Game was a recruitment simulation that the Dutch law firm and Ranj Serious Games built for aspiring lawyers. Ranj is still in business, but no page offering the game was found.
Updated
What the game was
Houthoff Buruma, a Dutch law firm, built the game with Ranj Serious Games to recruit and select talented law graduates. It was shown at the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai as an example of Netherlands serious games best practice. The Dutch government's investment in the GATE project, short for Game Research for Training and Entertainment, was cited as evidence that serious games for business were growing in importance. Ranj sat on that project's advisory board.
Ranj made the game with its own ENG engine, short for Event based Narrative Game.
The scenario is a fictional takeover. Players represent China Mining & Marine, a demanding state-owned client that needs six specific vessels to build the Panlong Renewable Energy Park on an ambitious schedule. All six vessels belong to 't Hoen Marine & Offshore, a century-old Dutch family business that also has the latest technology and know-how, and a family with skeletons in the closet.
How a session ran
Students played in up to five teams of up to five players, and the teams competed against each other. Each session lasted 90 minutes. In that time a team had to persuade enough shareholders of the target company to sell and to draft a Letter of Intent.
Information arrived in many forms: video chats, text chats, conference calls, e-mails, websites, Facebook pages and YouTube movies. Nothing is what it seems and everyone has an interest to protect.
The firm, which then had over 300 legal professionals, sponsored the development. Creative director Marcus Vlaar remarked that law firms tend to be conservative and that this one dared. Beyond recruiting, the game was to join the firm's permanent training program, and clients could also play it to see what a modern lawyer needs.
Law firms were meant to use it when recruiting and selecting aspiring lawyers. Players had to apply legal rules, and also show how they handle a complex case.
What is true today
Ranj's website is online. Its old address, ranj.nl, now forwards to ranj.com, where it describes itself as a specialist in experiences for hiring, upskilling and change, with talent assessment among its offers. Houthoff's website is online as well, and its home page does not mention the game.
No page offering Houthoff Buruma The Game was found, so whether the firm still uses it is not known. Its status is unconfirmed.
Questions about the game
Who made Houthoff Buruma The Game?
The Dutch law firm Houthoff Buruma together with Ranj Serious Games, using Ranj's ENG engine.
How long does a session take?
90 minutes, with teams of up to five players competing in groups of up to five teams.
What do players have to produce?
They have to convince enough shareholders to sell their shares and draft a Letter of Intent.
Is the game still used for recruiting?
That could not be confirmed. Houthoff's home page does not mention it, and no page offering it was found in November 2026.