Shearston first conceived of Game as a screenplay in the mid-1990s. He notes that “it failed to find production money. The first prose version was a novel for young adults. In subsequent drafts it became a novel for adults”. The novel, published by Allen & Unwin, tells the story of the last days in the life of bushranger Ben Hall. Hall wants to quit the game of bushranging and to get to know his son, Harry, who lives with his wife Biddy and Jack Turner, the man she left him for. The novel was longlisted for the 2014 Miles Franklin Award, shortlisted for the 2014 Christina Stead Award for Fiction 2013, shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Awards 2014 and shortlisted for the 2013 Colin Roderick Award.