GroshLink

What are your interests? Greatest Game?

Hmm . . . When I was younger I liked to play Checkers. I shifted first to Chinese Checkers,then various stages of Chess, Monopoly, Risk, Sorry, Stratego, Tetris, Uno.

I remember a lot of Tetris, Rummy and Taboo in college. There must have also been Uno.

Thanks to friends at Carnegie Mellon University, Settlers of Catan then Carcasonne (picture above with PSU-Hershey CMS/CMDA students at 2011 Spring Retreat) then Cartegena topped the list (with Lost Cities and Bohnanza rising up/down as two or three player games at home). Note: Final Battle pictured below. At some point Dominoes was big, must have been due to friends in our local assembly's small group.

But the other day I won Apples to Apples in a room full of college friends (all girls, even with Theresa advising Becky) and our girls have really started to enjoy Fits. Could this be another change in disposition/perspective? Note: A PSU-Hershey CMS/CMDA game of Apples to Apples below (2011 Game Night).

 

Maybe it depends on the audience, because I truly wish other locals had interest in Lord of the Rings, maybe after reading The Hobbit and now having started The Fellowship of Ring with one of my daughters, I'll nurture a next generation :)

Ok. Just because I like a game doesn't make it the "greatest game" and why haven't I even explored physical games or much in the area of computer games? So Ludwig Wittgenstein found game/games difficult to define. Not suprising :) The 3rd definition at Dictionary.com is "a competitive activity involving skill, chance, or endurance on the part of two or more persons who play according to a set of rules, usually for their own amusement or for that of spectators." But I've played plenty of games against myself, I wonder what that means ;)

It would seem that "the Greatest Game" would be simple enough to be learned early in life and be played across generations/cultures. Although not universal, Rock-Paper-Scissors immediately comes to mind. But the casting some form of die or shooting marbles may top my list. Close behind, games such as Candyland, Checkers, Chinese Checkers, and Fits can be learned/taught rather easily without reading. Then maybe Phase 10, Racko, Uno . . . As for 'the Greatest Game' being one of complexity and longevity, chess comes to mind first. Time to submit this question to some of my friends from Carnegie Mellon University ;)

Note: The questions from this Monday Question Series came from a piece of paper I found in the recycling bin. I printed a draft of my most recent prayer letter on the other side and thought "Hey, these are interesting questions." I'm assuming one of the girls brought it home from a school or church activity . . . continuing to reuse valuable resources :) Earlier posts: Perfect Pet?, Coolest Color?