The MAJOR FUN AWARDS go to games and people that bring people fun, and to any organization managing to make the world more fun through its own personal contributions, and through the products it has managed to bring to the market.
"...lessons I have learned from computer games...The first...is echoed by kids who talk about "hard fun" and they don't mean it's fun in spite of being hard. They mean it's fun because it's hard. Listening to this and watching kids work at mastering games confirms what I know from my own experience: learning is essentially hard; it happens best when one is deeply engaged in hard and challenging activities. The game-designer community has understood (to its great profit) that this is not a cause for worry. The fact is that kids prefer things that are hard, as long as they are also interesting."
The day after I arrived in Billund, Denmark, for some workshops and consulting with Lego, I was greeted by my friend and Chief Happiness Officer, Alexander Kjerulf, and a few of his many associates (from left to right: Mareike Bulow, Roosevelt Finlayson, your local funsmith, our Lego associate, Alexander, Michael Bech Bendix, and Bjarne Tveskov).
So we introduced each other to ourselves, and we shmoozed fascinatingly, and then, right in the middle of the Hotel Legoland lounge, we got up and played actual games.
Mr. Finlayson, it so happens, is from the Bahams, where he conducts programs he calls "Festival in the Workplace." His theory is that there is much for businesses to learn about the nature of work, just by recognizing the amazing amount of dedication and devotion that goes in to producing a Carnivale, all without salary or job title, all for fun. So, after we played my current most favorite of pointless games, Sound and Fury, he taught us one of his - a children's circle dance called Brown Girl.
And then we sat down, exhausted in glee, feeling as if we had known each other at least half a lifetime, and shmoozed some more,, until someone noticed that I was fighting myself to stay awake, and we hugged, and we took this picture, and we left each other amidst echoes of probably unforgettable delight.
Rocky (my best friend and wife, too) heard this on NPR today - a story titled: "Oakland Group Seeks More Play In School Day." It's about a school program taught by a group called Sports4Kids. They explain:
"Since 1996, Sports4Kids has been transforming chaotic playgrounds riddled with fights and inactivity into structured, healthy environments for play. This workshop is designed to provide adults within school communities the tools and strategies to help them create healthy and playful experiences for all students on their playground."
So, OK, it's still adults teaching kids the games that kids should be teaching adults how to play. But its very newsworthiness demonstrates how such a simple idea can speak to such a profound need. May they succeed beyond their wildest.
It's called The Priest of the Parish. It's played with teams. My favorite part of the game description is this: "The end of the game is when the Gossiper (the game leader) can't be bothered continuing any further."
According to Wikipedia, Pooh Sticks is "A game for two players or more, in the traditional version of poohsticks the participants must drop a stick simultaneously on the upstream side of a bridge and run to the other side. The winner is the player whose stick first appears on the other side of the bridge."
"Thought this might interest you, anyway, if you haven't encountered it before - it's a ball-catch game with RFID chips. The idea of a computer keeping score and keeping track of what is and isn't 'fair' seems like something that fits well with your 'well-played game' stuff."
"But where this thing really scored is in an element I've not noticed in a lot of the talk about play - fairness. And kids are utterly, utterly obsessed with fairness. It's the most important element in any game. And human rule-enforcement is automatically deemed unfair. There is no referee, umpire or god-like grandparent that can escape being seen as unfair at some point, for some decision. But the commanding voice of Cosmic Catch escapes all that. The relentless, ineluctable judgement of the RFID machine brooks no argument, is prey to no human frailties and biases and is immediately seen as fair."
And I, in turn, thought it might interest you.
My first, pre-actual-playing-with-the-thing impression is that, fairness-wise, if kids want to cheat, they'll find someway around it. And second, if kids have trouble with the idea of "fairness," this probably won't help them understand or integrate what they need to learn. On the other hand, it's something to think about, in deed it is.
Expect a more detailed report once we get our hands on one of these, Cosmically-Catchingly speaking, fairness-wise.
Ya-Ya and granddaughter Esther are playing Chutes and Ladders. There are two problems we older folk have with that particular game: 1) it can get very boring, 2) it can only have one winner. The boring part can be endured. The winner part turns out to be the very opposite of why we want to play in the first place, especially when we're playing between generations.
Ya-ya and Esther are playing so that they can be together. Just having fun. Just doing something, anything, really, they both can enjoy. Ya-ya is probably enjoying being with Esther a lot more than she is enjoying playing Chutes and Ladders. Ya-ya is probably very bored with the game. Esther will probably cry if she doesn't win.
They need a variation.
Some of the best game variations come from playing with rules that aren't written down. Like the rule that says: "this is your piece. You can only move that piece. You really can't move any other piece because those pieces belong to other players. Other players can't move your piece, because that piece belongs to you. And, you can only win if your piece is the one that reaches the finish first."
I call my variation the "Nobody's Piece Variation." It works like this: "you can move any piece. Whatever piece you move is yours, for that turn." It's yours, but it's not you. You could call it Myrtle or Smunchnik or Pawn. You could even call it You. But it's not you. It's just a piece. Nobody's piece. And all that's important at the time is who moves it.
So, when it's your turn, you can move any piece you want. If you want to move the piece that's closest to winning, you can do that. If you want to help the other pieces catch up, you can do that, too. It's up to you.
Then the game belongs to all of you. And the winning belongs to anyone who wants to claim it. You can make the game as long as you all want to play it. If you want, you can play forever. And nobody has to be bored. And nobody has to lose. And the one who really cares about winning can win if she wants. And you all can focus on enjoying each other, which is what you're playing for in the first place.
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About the photo: I found it on a weblog called Tundra Topics. It was in a post about Ya-Ya's visit to her Alaskan family. It's a wonderfully personal website, by the way, giving us a clearly illustrated view of Alaskan living, written by someone who, it just so happens, was born in Indiana, my new home.
It was about a year ago, again from Israel, that I wrote about my experiences playing a game called "Sound and Fury." This time, it was one of the last games we played, near the end of our stay, and one of the precious few we got to play with the whole family: Josh (who turned 2 in October), Zev (4), Reina (7), Maya (11), their parents (40), and us grands (66, 67).
Once again, the game was new for me - specifically the part about how much more deeply fun it was to play it with family - particularly with a relatively large family (relatively speaking), explicity with a family whose youngest member is still learning how to talk (albeit in two languages).
We did make up a new rule: If you wanted to pass (just in case you couldn't think of something silly enough to do - the pressure, you know), you could just say something (we had suggested something like "smeegledeebop," but "pass" worked, too), and then everybody would just do anything they felt like (complete with noise and movement). Oddly fun.
Point is, as a family game Sound and Fury is very oddly fun: easy enough for a 2-year-old to understand, fun enough to keep us all involved (we must've played it for at least 15 minutes, maybe 10), pointless enough to keep anybody from caring about having anything other than what we already had together.
I've been wanting to tell you about this project ever since I became involved with it, more than a year ago. As you can see from this article, it's finally been made public enough for me to write about.
I've only had a small role, actually, as an outside consultant. I got to help them create a format for their rules - one that would be clear enough, well-enough illustrated, as Lego-like as we could make it. I also got to help them think about the entire concept: the educational and social implications, the game system, online and off.
A hint - take a look at the image of the die. It's a Lego die. Note the different faces. Contemplate what it would be like if you could change the faces, like you can change anything Lego - build and rebuild them, even, perhaps, while you're playing a game with them. Think about the impact that might have on the game.
Another hint - think about playing on a board made of Lego pieces. You could redesign the board, if you wanted, couldn't you. You could move the start and finish, shrink or enlarge the board, add or remove obstacles. In other words, you could have exactly the kind of game I've been teaching about, designing, implementing - exactly the kind of board game, computer game, social game that I've been writing about ever since the Well-Played Game.
Which, by the way, is what led the Lego people to inviting me to this whole project. Because of a book by Salen and Zimmerman called Rules of Play, a book for computer game designers which brings the concept of the Well-Played Game to the design of online, multiplayer, role-playing games, which, further because, the leader of the new Lego initiative was astute enough to read.
What this particular Lego genius and profoundly insightful person had to show me was a group of board games, made out of Lego pieces. The real genius was not in his discovery that you could in fact make new and viable board games using Legos, but that you could make board games that could be changed, boards that could be redesigned, that you could let kids design their own variations, that you could make it possible for kids to learn how to design games that would be even more inclusive, and always "new," just as we did more than 30 years ago with the games we taught and created for the New Games Foundation. Only even more flexible, more responsive to the player/designers, and with board games.
I can't really tell you much more about this project or my future role in it, because it is still in the future. But I can, at last, share something promising with you, something positive, something new, something I am proud to have had even a small part in bringing to you, something empowering, something fun.
There are at least two different communities that form in support of playing together - one is what you might call a "game community," the other a "play community."
Every game and sport that becomes a cultural institution forms a community, a game community, and members of that community have only one thing in common, but very much in common – the particular game being played.
When you are part of a game community that comes together for a poker night, a game with the girls, or a cockfight, to some clear degree, it’s the mastery of that game that keeps you involved. At some point, your proficiency at the game, or at what you do in support of the game, determines your place in the game community. Winning is good. Winning a lot is better. In other words, to some clear degree, it’s the game that determines if you’re good enough to be part of that community.
In a play community, it’s the players, you and everyone you’re playing with, who determine whether the game is good enough. If it’s not, you change it. You change something about the rules, or you discover a hitherto unknown variation, or you play something entirely else. It’s you who determines if the game is good enough.
Most informal games - street games, pick-up games, playground games – are played by a play community. Most formal games, like Little League and Lawn Bowling, are played by a game community.
Commercial and historical forces tend to embrace game communities, and vice versa. Little League and Lawn Bowling are not just games, they are cultural events, they are sports.
Ultimately, the majority of people aren’t good enough to participate in the kinds of games played by game communities, especially when compared to the skills of the masters and grandmasters of the game.
Ultimately in the play community, everyone is good enough. Because it’s not any particular game that people have come together to play. Because the reason they have come together is to play, not necessarily to win, or even to keep score, but to play together, and be part of an event in which anyone can play, in which everyone is a master.
In the play community it’s mystery, not mastery that draws people together – it’s the mystery of shared imagination, of spontaneity and synergy, of generalized laughter and much mutual admiration, of shared fun.
When children are young, they first form play communities, and usually, if they can avoid formal intervention, they’ll continue expanding and diversifying the play communities they support and that support them well into adulthood.
It is no coincidence that the Internet, though it serves both kinds of community (play and game), is so easily characterized as a play community, dependent on openness and trust shared by its players, succeeding to the degree in which it can respond to their constantly evolving, individual and collective interests.
Most often, game communities share characteristics with play communities, and vice versa. In both, members show mutual respect for play - for supporting fantasy, keeping rules, observing boundaries…
People who come together for a "friendly game" - the weekly mahj game with the girls - are not about winning. What, you can win maybe $2.00. They’re about being with other people who know the game just about as well as they do, well-enough not to take it too seriously.
Once you've identified the principle members of a game community, it becomes more and more like a play community. Even to the point of changing rules. It’s not about the game any more. We’re all good enough.
The same is true at chess clubs and bridge clubs. Those community members who are good enough get together to play for fun.
The rewards of participation in a game community are often highly tangible – statues and money even. Those for a play community are the experience of community itself, of affinity, membership, acceptance, mutuality, respect, appreciation.
Christopher Alan Raynolds (paraphrasing Huizinga) writes: "The sense in a play community…(is) so powerful that the community outlasts the game."
Florence M. Hetzle and Austin H. Kutscher, in their book, get this, "Philosophical Aspects of Thanatology," write: "the primary interest of a person in a play community is in each other as persons; they are concerned to affirm each other in the uniqueness of one’s existence."
Street Games are informal sports, adapted to environment, the materials, and the spirit of the people playing. They are played without adult supervision, without official people or equipment. They are games that you can take very seriously, sports with loose enough rules so that you can play with just about anything, anywhere, with just about anybody you want to play with.
Playing in the street is probably as old as streets themselves. Streets are a natural playspace, depending on the traffic. Just take a look at Breughel's painting of maybe 200 middle-age children (though they may look middle-age, they are in fact children at play in the middle ages) playing more than 80 different children’s games.
In the late 19th century, most of the games Street Games Culin reported on were played on streets that led into vacant lots or were surrounded by fields or crossed rivers and train tracks. By the middle of the 20th century, streets were bounded by houses and each other. Around this very time, most of the games that were still being played in the streets – especially in the streets of big cities like New York, Philadelphia, Chicago and London - became the very games most commonly cited as “authentic” Street Games: Wall Ball, Stick Ball, Box Ball, Hand Ball, Stoop Ball, Skully. Jacks, Marbles, hopscotch, and Double Dutch, too.
For the World War generations, Stick ball and Skully would be grow to be considered the archetypal Street Games. Stick ball would become an official sport, as much like baseball as possible, originally played with a stick for a bat, an old tennis ball for a baseball, a sewer lid for home plate, a car and a sign post for first and third. And frequently no second base at all. And now played on Stick Ball Fields with official Stick Ball Sticks and even Stick Ball Balls.
Skully is like marbles, only instead of marbles it’s played with bottle caps filled with candle wax, and instead rolling, you slide the caps, like little shuffleboad pucks, and instead of playing in a circle, you play on a big rectangular, chalk-drawn field of lines and boxes.
Skully and Stick Ball, like all Street Games, originated as informal sports, adapted to environment, the materials, and the spirit of the people playing. (There are games you can play with half a ball, for example, with just three people, if you have to.) They are played without adult supervision, without officials. They are games that you can take very seriously, just like real sports but their rules are just loose enough to let you can play with just about anybody you want to play with. Street Games can, and have, become formalized, and commercialized. You can buy official sticks for Stick Ball. Official Spaldeens and Half Balls, too.
Street Games are continuously changing and adapting to their environment, to the players and the evolving technologies of play. There are still kids who are playing in the Street Games spirit, but the streets they play in, and what they play, and whom they play with, are, for the most part, a far cry from the way we played Stick Ball. They still play their own Street Game versions of baseball and football, soccer and hockey, but they play for the most part in their private yards or on the sidewalk, and they have nerf balls and whistling nerf footballs and portable street soccer goals and hockey pucks that hover. And yet, as far as everyone’s concerned, they’re playing something very much like what we called Street Games. They are playing in a way so that everyone can play. They are all players. They are all officials.
Though played on Razors and skateboards and BMX bikes, modern Street Games, like all Street Games, are replete with intricate tests of agility, opportunities for invention, and performances of death-defying originality. Each, like the classic Street Game, remains somehow informal, adapted to the environment, materials, and spirit of the people playing.
Street Games have their virtual equivalents in video games, especially in games that involve physical movement, like the Wii, or, slightly earlier, Dance Dance Revolution, each with its many different game playing modes, where players get to choose to cooperate and compete, follow and lead.
In every expression, it’s the dynamics of Street Games – how they are organized and maintained, how they are supported by their community, how they engage players in learning, teaching, designing, and leading open-ended play contracts, where you can change the rules, where winning isn't the point, really, where it's all about getting to play - that are most instructive.
When you begin to explore how a Street Game is governed, how it empowers its players, and becomes redefined by the way they want to play together – you discover an almost perfect reflection of the social architecture of successful communities – neighborhood and national, physical and virtual.
Street Games are remarkably easy to overlook. Many parents who moan over their children's inability to play manage to ignore the Street Games being played all around them.
Part of the reason that parents overlook the Street Games they’re own kids are playing is that they can’t see them. That’s because Street Games are being played on a very different kind of street from those of their parents. Street Games take place everywhere, but most often in spaces noted anthropologist Victor Turner called these spaces "liminal" - spaces that comprise an unofficial, temporary, anybodyland; spaces that exist between buildings and sidewalks, steps and parking lots, between front yards, across fences, behind the library and garage. “In between” spaces. Like the Internet.
Street Games are governed, officiated over by the people who play them. Just like the, oddly enough, Internet.
And, like the Street Games of the past, Street Games of today are played mostly by children in their liminal years – not-yet-adults, too old to be seen as kids – and are played everywhere.
Even on the railing of the library steps. Even on the cell phone and in chat rooms. Even on the Internet.
And a holy hello from Jerusalem. Which happens to be where I am. Where the fact that it's almost Chanuka takes on significant significance. Which makes me think of Dreidels. Which are a form of Teetotum. Or perhaps Teetota.
I'm ever so sure there's an historico-cultural connection between Chanuka and gambling. And if there isn't, it'd be fun to invent one. But I never liked gambling. Especially with kids. Because it's hard enough for them to deal with winning and losing, even without financial consequences, even when they're playing for pennies. Or latkes, even. (see also "The Great Latke-Hamentash Debate")
So I've been thinking that maybe there should be other games to play with Dreidels. For example, maybe a Dreidel version of Yahtzee (we could call it "Yachtzee"), with, say, 4 Dreidels. It could be maybe a cooperative game - see how many different combinations you can make before you get a duplicate.
And how about new kinds of Dreidels - like this lovely, impressive, and interestingly fragile glass Dreidel, or maybe even a junkyard Dreidel made of bottle caps!
Who knows what good a few new Dreidels and a few newer Dreidel games could create for Dreidel-players everywhere, for the children of Dreidel-players, for the very future of Dreidel-playing? Who actually knows?
Take a closer look at this checker set. Nothing but a random collection of bottle tops and a piece of cardboard. And yet, it's checkers, and it's most clearly as playworthy as a checker set should be.
This is the lesson that AfriGadget teaches us, post after post after post: that we can make do. We can make do beautifully.Even without the newest and jiggiest. We can make do. Especially when we have to. Which, given the current state of the world, is something we should strongly consider making part of the basic curriculum, if you know what I mean. Courses in ingenuity and junkwork.
Founded by Erik Hersman, AfriGadget is edited by a team of African bloggers, and was recently selected by Time Magazine as one of the 50 Best Websites of 2008. You'll want to know more about Erik. Here's a recent interview.
I found this hopscotch court outside my very own house. It was drawn by 9-year-old girl named Erica, our neighbors' kids' cousin (artist's name and relationship included to establish proper "provenance").
According to my unfounded deductions, it began life as what one might consider to be a regulation hopscotch court. For some reason, Erica decided not to stop when she reached 10. So she continued. By the time she reached 12, she decided that the next square should not be a number, but rather an L, as in "Left foot."
She goes on, the next square being also an L (requiring a hop), the next an R, then another L, then two more hopworthy Rs, followed by two Ls, an R, and then a "clap" square. (A clap square! O, the intimations of hopscotchly variations yet unexplored!) Followed by more Rs and Ls, and so on, into illegibility.
My point: Contrary to popular opinion, kids are not only still playing games like hopscotch, they are still inventing it.
For more detailed hopscotch contemplation study, view the image in its full, hi-res glories.
One of these days, the bridge will be even wider - the one connecting this Deep Fun website to a book of games published by the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations - a book called Deep Fun.
In the mean time, what we have is a generous collection of games, many of which echo the spirit and purpose of this website, its articles, and its collections of Pointless Games. Generous, because there are 31 pages of games - each of which is written from the perspective of a youth leader devoted to developing community and social skills. Generous also because the entire booklet is available online, for free, in HTML as well as PDF formats.
Even before you look at all the wonderful games, take the time to read the first chapter - The Five Steps of Community Building. My favorite part, the last two points in very final section on "Accessibilities and Comfort Levels." I quote:
3. It is always ok to pass: Make it clear that any participant can pass at any time during the activities. If you are doing an intense activity, also make sure that chaplains or someone else is available to help someone process the experience.
4. Modify! Modify! Modify!: If someone cannot take part for whatever reason ask them how the activity might be modified so that they could take part.
For many of us, the best thing about watching the clip of Johnson & Cluff Kids Playing is knowing that we are nowhere near the mayhem. The next best thing is trying to figure out what exactly they are playing. And shortly thereafter, the realization that these kids aren't hurting each other.
Despite the differences in ages and bodies and understandings of the game, these kids are in fact playing very well together, brilliantly, one might say, especially if one turns down the sound. In further fact they are playing together. Not only together, one might note, but intimately together.
Which, for some of us, is a very useful reminder, once again, that kids, given the chance, can and often will play together, safely, creatively, lovingly.
And at the same time, a kind of commentary about how adults, given similar opportunities, don't.
The site features an inspirational collection of games to get you started. You'll probably notice that almost all of the images are of adults engaged in deep explorations of wackiness. See, for example, Crazy Croquet with its cinder block wickets, Richieball (see the official Richieball site for the full rules,) and the highly evolved, Box Ball-like game of Smack Ball.
The contest has already begun. The entry deadline is August 10.
One of the best collections of theater games online, now available for download
Yes, punkin, you can in fact download the entire Improv Encyclopedia, in full, graphic, PDF format, or in PDA-appropriate, just-the-text straightforwardness.
For anyone who works with groups - teachers, recreation specialists, therapists, team managers, business facilitators - this is a what you will soon find to be an invaluable resource. Take a look at a sample game, like this one about translating gibberish (a game concept I recently added to Junkyard Olympics). Contemplate how useful this game can become in how many situations, note how clearly written, how intelligently cross-categorized. And it's only one of hundreds, and its free.
By deep study of the Codex of the Lost Ring, we hope to gather insight into the mystery and vasty significance of the The Lost Sport of Olympia. We seek further guidance from Ariadne, who says of herself: "I woke up in a Labyrinth of Feb. 12. They call me Ariadne." Ariadne, should you consult the Wikipedia deeply enough, also refers to: "Ariadne's thread, named for the legend of Ariadne, is the term used to describe the solving of a problem with multiple apparent means of proceeding - such as a physical maze, a logic puzzle, or an ethical dilemma - through an exhaustive application of logic to all available routes." Ah. Ariadne's thread.
The mystery deepens and at the same time widens. What actually is the Lost Sport? Where is Olympia? Who lost it in the first place?
ARG, don't you know, stands for Alternate Reality Game. Ah, so we are not speaking of an actual Lost Sport of Olympia, but something of a fantasy, something perhaps made up?
Perhaps in deed. But, reality-wise, the reality to which the alternate reality is an alternate, what we actually have is a quite fun game, which, as my colleague, covisionary and general friend Celia Pearce is quick to point out, is very much in the spirit of New Games of yore and ours. See, for example, this.
A Million Ways to Play Marbles, at least, was originally published in 1978, as an appendix to The Well-Played Game. I wrote it because I've found - in these many years of showing people how important, healing, inspiring fun can be - that it is extremely helpful for people to see games not so much as "things" but much more as "processes."
Generally, we think of a game as having a certain set of rules involving certain objects and aspects of the environment. But, if we take the time to remember, we discover that most games, especially the "good" ones, can be played in many different ways, with many different combinations of things and surroundings and people. Once that is understood, any game can become something that brings people together, regardless of the range of ages and abilities, because there really is no one way to play it, because we can change it in, well, a million different ways.
If you'd rather not read the whole thing, you can listen to me read it here.
My keynote address at the NASAGA conference (2006) was called "Deeply Played Games."
Here's why:
"The games that we play the most deeply, as kids or adults, the games we play hour after hour, day after day, year after year – these are the games that are the 'good' ones, these are the games that affect us most deeply, and in these games we can find the bits of cultural DNA that are most deeply embedded into our collective psyche, so to speak, as it were. In Tag, Hide-and-Seek, Checkers, Football, we develop a common understanding of fairness and cheating, leading and following, winning and losing.
"The good games. The games that get played deeply. The deeply played games. Playing them over and over, we begin to understand the game itself. Playing on different sides, in different positions, we begin to see the whole of the game, the web of strategy and counterstrategy, of trying to tag someone, of trying not to be tagged, of hiding and seeking.
"Deeply played games are games that we, for a time, can almost give ourselves over to completely, just about abandon ourselves to totally, get very close to divorcing from all other realities, embracing entirely, more or less. And the more we, as they say, “give it our all,” the more fun we seem to have. And the better we become at playing them, at understanding them. The more grace we can bring to them. The more of ourselves."
Should you care to read the entire address, you'll find it here.
"Boredom," I explain, "is the mother of playfulness. Desperation, the father. This is one truth that you can explore, in depth, while waiting in line with kids. The particular joy of this realization is the attendant discovery that almost anything goes. The longer the wait, the lower the criteria for gamish acceptability. Even games that are just barely games. Even games that you have to make up as you go along.
Here are some of my favorite creative word games, and several games that are less creative, mildly challenging, and comfortingly time-spanning."
New Tic Tac Toe was published in 1977, under the auspices of Herb Kohl. It was very exciting to me to be even remotely associated with Herb Kohl, and I was honored in extremis when he asked if I could write something for him that he could publish and distribute through his Center for Open Learning and Teaching. Herb, for gosh-sake Kohl! So honored that I didn't really actually totally mind that someone misspelled my name ("Big K in DeKoven," I told 'em, Big D, small e, Big K, small oven." But did they listen?).
This was in 1977. 31 years ago, comparatively speaking. I only recently found a copy of it in my "trophy file" along with magazines that published articles of mine and newspapers and stuff that I've been keeping for historical reasons beyond my ken. I was about to consign it to eternity (e.g. recycling), when I thought to read it again, and, by golly, I kind of liked it. I think I was almost able to understand what Herb had seen in it and me all those many years ago. So I scanned it and uploaded it.
If you want, you can download a pdf file of the scanned booklet, here
Here's a good collection of street games from the UK. There's nothing fancy about the website. The games are submitted by the people who played them.
This is where I found a game called Knock Down Ginger. I personally never thought of it as a game. To me, it much more closely resembles a prank. I quote:
"Knock Down Ginger and it's alternative named variations has been played since there were front doors to play it on. Usually carried out in the hours of darkness, the aim is to ring a doorbell or knock loudly on a door, as though very urgent, and run away as fast as possible.
To make this game even more exciting you can play variations such as after knocking you hide as close to the door as possible, in shrubs or behind a tree, behind the owners gate or just around the corner.
The test comes when you try a second time on the same door, giving the owner a few moments to settle down in front of their TV, the quicker you do this the more exciting it can be."
Variations, yet. Alternate rules, even. As for example, this one, posted by David from Essex: "And the perpetual motion version where you tie two knockers together and knock on the first door, when they close their door the other knocker knocks ad infinitum."
It has all the flow-inducing properties of a good game. For the players, that is. There's a definite sense of challenge/risk. You can apparently make it more or less challenging/risky as you see fit.
This is a good example of a particular flavor of fun that leaves a certain bitter aftertaste - certainly for the victims, but also, despite the hysterical peals of laughter, for the perpetrators as well. Moderately mean fun, perhaps. Slightly irresponsible fun? Lacking-in-compassion fun? Fun that tastes like the joke's-on-somebody-else.
Exploring the relationship between play and games: discovering and affirming both the connections and distinctions - turns out to be ever more relevant to our understanding of the future of both play and games. In universities and art studios, in computer laboratories and workshops, investigations of game/play relationship are leading to a profound evolution of both. A goodly number of these leading-edge explorations can be found in the playful works that comprise the current Homo Ludens Ludens collection. See, for example, Stiff People's League, in the illustration accompanying this post.
"...play reflects more the idea, the notion, the vivid and spontaneous basis for the action as well as its relation to fantasy, whereas games are closed systems and environments governed by rules which demand discipline and a constraint space and time. Play is in a way the presupposition for the games that are its expressions and forms.
"Play as a notion is much more open and therefore it may even embrace elements that come in opposition with a game's structure. For instance play has no death or end; but games do, otherwise there s no meaning into it. Or think of cheating. While it can destroy a game by breaking its rules, it is still a part, an act of play. On the same line, while any game forms hierarchies, play creates interrelations between them."
"...We can be playful anytime anyplace, not only through games. Games are basically a construction which is made possible because of this playfulness that already exists in any aspect of life."
People are doing some wonderful things in the name of play and games, art and technology. If you're interested in getting a taste, Homo Ludens Ludens is a virtual banquet.
Whilst we're contemplating the playworthy implications of this particular variation, it is worthy of our collective note to collectively note that there are even more profound (and potentially painful) versions of the game, such as shown in this video.
Even I, I must admit, have found myself embellishing on Slapsie lore, thinking perhaps to introduce slightly kinder, potentially gentle nuances, as in 3-person Slapsie and Hand Wave.
Should you at this moment find yourself without someone else's hands to slap, you can access a virtually painless, if somewhat less engaging version of this game online.
Slapsie-related fun has its own peculiar taste: intensely, shall we say, focusing fun, with just a touch of ouchy.
Frances Henson VanLandinham's Children Will Play: Games and Toys from Simpler Times is a collection of "childhood memories," gathered from family, friends and neighbors, most of whom grew up during the depression, when times where perhaps simpler, but definitely far more difficult than most of us currently enjoy. Hence this lovingly illustrated collection describes handmade toys and homemade games - folk games and toys that are truly inspirational accounts of play and love, creativity and spontaneity, of imagination and free-range joy.
I quote from the introduction: "Children will play under almost any circumstances. I've observed children at play while cold and hungry. Even while living in an abusive environment, children play. Children don't have the verbal skills to communicate their pain and suffering, so they express pain as well as joy through play. Children play through times of social upheaval. During wars and natural disasters, children play."
The book describes how to play Appalachian jump rope, how to make corncob darts, milk can trains, bark sleds, plantain dolls, stick cows, hollyhock dolls, handkerchief dolls. It is full of stories of almost heroic celebrations of Christmas, when there was barely enough money for food.
It is a history of the human spirit. Something to treasure. Something from which to draw inspiration and hope. And it could very well open new pathways to fun, for all of us.
It can only be ordered ($12 plus $2.00 US shipping) from the author. Send your check or money order to Frances Henson ValLandingham, 812 Poga Road, Butler, TN 37640. Call 423-768-2261 for more information. Email FrancyMay34@aol.com
Can games improve the provision, and quality, of healthcare?
What existing and emerging game technologies (such as multi-user, virtual environments) might be particularly useful when applied to healthcare issues?
How can we expand the application of computer-based game technologies to face key challenges in the healthcare sector?
How do we identify and proactively deal with any social, ethical, and/or legal issues that might arise through the application of game-based tools to healthcare issues?
Top Ten Tips for Run-of-the-Mill Players to Enjoy Outstanding Games - from Craig Conley, guest blogger
There's nothing so comfy as mediocrity. Indeed, our culture teaches us both explicitly and implicitly that "okay" is good enough. But when it comes to fun, the middle-of-the-road game players cheat themselves out of something precious. Lackluster players miss out on the special spark that characterizes outstanding game play. We're not talking about the thrill of victory versus the agony of defeat. An outstanding player will have more fun losing a game than an average player will have winning a game. The fact is that mediocre players cannot, by definition, get caught up in the lighthearted spirit of the game.
Following are ten techniques for transforming yourself into an outstanding player of your favorite game.
1. Seek your game's hidden source of entertainment, its heart of fascination. In Classical times, Greek and Roman games consisted mainly of running, wrestling, jumping, riding, and racing. On the surface, these games were nothing out of the ordinary, yet their players made them the world's most extraordinary entertainments, exciting the enthusiasm and awakening the spirits of the spectators.[1]
To find your game's heart of fascination, observe those moments when players become carried away, when they exclaim joyously, when they leap into the air or rise off their seats as if suddenly weightless. Notice those moments when teams cheer one another, when the thrill of the play dissolves rivalry. When you identify the dynamic at play—the true spirit of the game—you can foster it, prolong it, and take it to Olympic heights.
2. Improve your flexibility and agility (whether muscular or mental). To stretch your gray matter, a Web search for "lateral thinking exercise" will offer puzzles unsolvable by traditional step-by-step logic. To increase your physical flexibility, the "sun salutation" of Yoga is a 12-step series of poses that exercise every muscle and joint of the body. Do a Web search for "sun salutation" to find free pictorial guidance.
3. Use drills to work on weaknesses (whether muscular or mental). If another player is one step ahead of you mentally or one second faster than you physically, that's a winning edge. A single increment of improvement may be all you need for success. Set simple goals and work one step at a time.
4. Better your memory. A good memory is a boon to virtually any game. A Web search for "memory game" will yield hundreds of free online resources for exercising your powers of recollection.
5. Dispel falsehoods that hinder you. Are you convinced that golf isn't a woman's game, or that softball is a young person's game, or that pinball is about making lights blink with a rolling ball? Educate yourself about your game. Read books, explore websites, talk to other players. There's always more to learn.
6. Sharpen your concentration. This is the age of the eleven-second attention span. Being easily distracted is ruinous to game play. Sharpening your concentration takes conscious, prolonged, repeated effort. Keep a journal about your game. Thinking and writing about your game will help to increase your power of concentration.
7. Manage your stress. Stress management techniques will help you improve virtually any game. A Web search for "stress management" will yield hundreds of free online tips and techniques. One marvelous stress reducer is laughter. A Web search for "laughter therapy" will inform you about how laughter reduces stress hormones, boosts immunity, promotes a positive attitude, and engenders a feeling of power.
8. Practice solo. If your game involves two or more people, don't let that fact discourage you from practicing any aspects you can work on by yourself.
9. Embrace change. "Change is necessary to improve your game. You must not be afraid to risk giving up the known for the unknown if you wish to play better."[2]
10. The final tip is too specific to apply to just any game. You already know what it implies, or will soon discover it through your ongoing self-education. Perhaps this tip will require the help of a coach or the advice of a teaching pro. Perhaps it will involve visualization techniques, or the use of a video camera, or familiarization with quantum physics. This final tip may be the ultimate key to your fullest enjoyment of your game.
Clive Thompson, a contributing writer for The New York Times, writes:
...By the looks of it, we're entering a new golden age of social, face-to-face game playing. Consider that in the last year, the biggest breakout hits have been music games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band, and the Wii's sporty and casual titles.
Each of these games explicitly encourages social playing -- people hanging out together. (Here's a revealing cultural moment: I was walking down the street in the East Village last month and overheard two female college students complaining vociferously that they hadn't been invited to their friend's Rock Band session.)
Perhaps we're simply going back to the roots of gaming. Though you wouldn't know it from the perennial hysteria about games turning kids into walleyed, anti-social zombies, videogames were originally a social pursuit, because the best games were available only in arcades, and those places were as convivial as Irish pubs. You'd watch one another play, you'd share techniques, you'd talk trash, gossip.
In the late '80s, the rise of home consoles broke up that sociality, making gaming a more solitary pursuit -- something you pursued alone in a basement or a bedroom. But 10 years later, the rise of multiplayer gaming brought the public vibe back to games. That was particularly true of world-games like World of Warcraft, where players log in often for the sole purpose of chatting.
So maybe it's no surprise that we're coming full circle. We don't want to play alone. We want play dates.
Playing alone is fun. There are puzzles and solitaire and running around trees and stuff. Playing together is funner.
The Spirit of the Game - from guest blogger Craig Conley
The "Spirit of the Game"
by Craig Conley
Without the spirit of the game, what would the game be? —Nevin H. Gibson, The Encyclopedia of Golf
Arabian folklore tells of a wish-granting genie imprisoned in an oil lamp or bottle. Might players innocently conjure such a spirit in a game of spin-the-bottle? Indeed, every game has a motivating force at the heart of it -- its own sort of soul. Whatever we might call it -- essence, atmosphere, intention, or ethos -- it's that special spark that distinguishes the game from all others. Like a genie of folklore, the Spirit of the Game grants good sports a wish -- the ultimate wish. (We'll get to that in a moment.)
The Spirit of the Game is not necessarily spelled out in the rules. Indeed, "There are situations in which adherence to the so-called letter of the rules can be taken to violate the spirit of the game."[1]
The Spirit of the Game is a distillation of the intent of the rules. It has been called "a self-regulating set of norms without which some games would degenerate into anarchy."[2]
It is a frame of mind, not a commandment carved in stone. It's a point of view, a sense of humor, a strength of character. Novelist Richard Le Gallienne summed it up perfectly: "To be whimsical, therefore, in pursuit of a whim, fanciful in the chase of a fancy, is surely but to maintain the spirit of the game."[3]
Because it is typically undefined, the Spirit of the Game can be abused. Unsportsmanlike conduct (like taunting and intimidation) is one indication of abuse; bringing the game into disrepute is another.[4]
When honored across the board, the Spirit of the Game turns opponents into equals. Most importantly, it engenders fun. While camaraderie is jolly and competition is stimulating, "the real spirit of the game is all about having fun."[5]
Though each game has its own unique Spirit, there are some universal characteristics. The Spirit of the Game is:
Ultimately, the Spirit of the Game "is the only thing in the game which is lasting."[6]
Corporate trainer Julius E. Eitington makes an interesting observation: when players become caught up in the Spirit of the Game, they "become themselves."[7]
What is one's true self, but that of a player on the grand game board of life? Edward Clark Marsh once described being enlivened by the Spirit of the Game: "If it was not for a moment real life, it at least made you wish it were."[8]
Other signs that the Spirit of the Game is present include:
• both sides wish each other good luck • both sides cheer one another (winning or losing is secondary; the game itself is a victory for all [9]) • everyone plays fair (no cheating, no bending of the rules) • players celebrate the game's tradition, safeguard its precedent, and carry on its legacy • players supervise themselves.
Game scientist Andrew Thornton notes that "There is no agreed upon definition of the Spirit of the Game, but there is a pervasive sense that one should play by it. The Spirit of the Game is the Police" inside each player's head.[10]
But we've neglected the quintessential sign that the Spirit of the Game is present. And that's when the ultimate wish is granted: the firing shot that sets play into motion. When the game is afoot, all else is inconsequential!
Fun Facts about the Spirit of the Game:
• In Ultimate Frisbee, where there are no referees and no penalties, the Spirit of the Game is the underlying philosophy. "The Ultimate player will always praise and support successful actions on both teams. It is a normal thing to introduce yourself to the opponent at the beginning of every point and to wish him a good game. And after the game both teams stand in a circle talking about the game and singing a song for the opponent team. So it is a lot more than just a short handshake after a game."[11]
• The Spirit of the Game comes into play "before the game has even begun."[12]
• "Soccer is unique among sports in that the official's job is first and foremost to maintain the spirit of the game as well as the safety of all concerned; this concern outweighs all other laws of the game."[13]
• The Spirit of the Game of soccer has been traced back to the early to mid nineteenth century, when the game developed from its folk roots into its modern form.[14]
• The Spirit of the Game of curling "demands good sportsmanship, kindly feeling, and honourable conduct."[15]
• The Fighting Spirit of the Game of American football is persistently aggressive in nature: "Throughout the history of football, the violent spirit of the game has endured, even as other elements of the game have changed."[16]
• The Spirit of the Game of lacrosse "is a feeling of honor and dignity."[17]
• The Spirit of the Game reminds players that not everything is a matter of life and death, that consequences are temporary, and that results are not critical.[6]
• The Spirit of the Game teaches players to "accept success with grace and failure with restraint."[18]
• The Spirit of the Game of golf is characterized by disciplined conduct, courtesy, and sportsmanship at all times.[19]
[1] Allan C. Hutchinson, It's All in the Game, 2000, p. 195. [2] Lincoln Allison, Amateurism in Sport, 2001, p. 161. [3] The Quest of the Golden Girl, 1897, p. 35. [4] William John Morgan, Ethics in Sport, 2007, p. 126. [5] Richard Carlson, The Don't Sweat Guide to Golf, 2002, p. 205. [6] Division for Girls' and Women's Sports, Sports Programs for College Women, June 21-27, 1969, p. 23. [7] The Winning Trainer, 2001, p. 142. [8] "Anthony Hope's 'Sophy of Kravonia,'" The Bookman, 1907, p. 381. [9] Modris Eksteins, Rites of Spring, 2000, p. 124. [10] Belinda Wheaton, ed., Understanding Lifestyle Sport, 2004, p. 187. [11] Jorg Bahl, Ultimate Frisbee, 2007, p. 4. [12] John Byl, Co-Ed Recreational Games, 2002, p. 205. [13] Andy Caruso, Soccer Coaching, 1996, p. 29. [14] Sharon Colwell, "The 'Letter' and the 'Spirit': Football Laws and Refereeing in the Twenty-First Century," The Future of Football, 2000, p. 201. [15] Gary Belsky & Neil Fine, 23 Ways to Get to First Base, 2007, p. 209. [16] William D. Dean, The American Spiritual Culture, 2002, p. 148. [17] Steve Bristol, quoted in Our Game: The Character and Culture of Lacrosse by John M. Yeager, 2005, p. 79. [18] Hubert Vogelsinger, The Challenge of Soccer, 1973, p. 274. [19] United States Golf Association, Golf Rules Illustrated, 2004, p. 4.
About the author:
Craig Conley is an independent scholar and author of One-Letter Words: A Dictionary (HarperCollins) and Magic Words: A Dictionary (Red Wheel). His website is http://www.oneletterwords.com/ His Zen version of Rock-Paper-Scissors can be found at http://www.moonfishocean.com/
I received the following email from Tom Hanson, editor of OpenEducation.net
I see where you recently discussed kids and video games on your site (see: Are Video Games Ever Good for Kids?). At OpenEducation.net we did an in depth review of the topic of violent video games that included an interview with one of the authors of the book. We broke the topic out into three posts:
The research of Kutner and Olson has caused one critic of such games, this writer, to rethink his thoughts on the topic. If you think the posts would be of interest to your readers I would be grateful if you would share them.
Grateful? No, no, I'm the one who's grateful for this great resource. Someone's been doing a lot of clear thinking, in the name of education and play - the series, and in fact the blog itself, is a gift to all of us: designers, players, families and especially kids.
I have been in touch with the people who've been organizing, running and developing "the Fun Fed" since before they opened their doors in 2005. According to their new website, "The Fun Fed was created with the aim of offering opportunities to adults on the lookout for more joy, upliftment and laughter. We do this by running games, singing, dancing and clowning sessions up to four times a month."
This is a good and much needed thing, this Fun Fed. To catch a bit of the goodness, click your way to their collection of games. See, for example, Stick Swap - a game of exemplary silliness, and purposefulness. I better let them explain:
"Our sessions offer physical activity, laughter, joy, creative opportunities, stress relief, a space to meet new people and the chance to let your hair down and your selves go.
"Most importantly, they offer you a natural high and a feel-good factor without the morning after!
"A question people ask us all the time is 'What kind of people come to your sessions?' – which is so hard to answer. The sessions are aimed at anyone and everyone who would like to be play games and have fun. They are not 'therapy' although of course having fun always makes you feel better, think clearer and smile more. In terms of the demographics, about half of any session is likely to be 28-38 with the other half spread throughout the other ages groups. And people come from all walk of life. The other week we had a session with 20 people, here’s what they did: Student, Coach, Managing Director, Massage Therapist, Recreation consultant, Marketing, Media Buyer, IT Consultant, Fundraiser, Photographer and Unemployed – and we had a fantastic time."
"At the start of the game each player stands facing the other a few yards apart. Both have placed their feet into plastic buckets, one on each foot. For children playing the game a standard bucket is usually perfect – for adult players you may need to search a garden centre for larger specimens. Players hold in their hands an equal number of small balls. The aim of the game is to throw and get as many balls as possible into either of your opponents buckets whilst avoiding too many in your own."
Someone sent me this question: Are video games ever good for kids?
I guess it came at a good time, because I actually enjoyed writing my answer:
Are video games ever good for kids? Of course they are. They can be good for adults, and even seniors, too.
Can they be bad? Of course they can. It depends on the games and on the people who are playing them.
Actually, the same can be said for any kind of game. Can chess be bad? It can be, if it becomes an obsession, if the chess players pursue chess to the exclusion of everything else social, physical, and intellectual.
In fact, the category "video games" is itself misleading. The term comes from the arcade game era, and was used primarily to describe games like Pong and Breakout and PacMan. And these games suffered from the same misconception that led to us asking the very same question - are they good for kids.
Currently, kids have access to a very wide variety of things you might call video games, and other games that involve computers that you wouldn't think to call video games, but, in fact, have the same characteristics. Texting, for example, via cell phone, chatting and IMing via computer. Not games, actually, but highly interactive platforms for largely intellectual engagement. And then there are mass multiplayer online environments, like Second Life, which no one thinks of as video games, and yet have many of the same attributes.
I myself have designed games of almost every ilk, including computer games. Some were intellectual exercises, some social. Some were for the Children's Television Workshop, others for dedicated videogame companies, others for board and card game publishers. They all have succeeded in engaging children, in challenging them to solve and master some intellectual or social problem. And, as such, have all proven good for them - except for the few kids who took the games too seriously.
Which brings to mind all those concerns about violence in children's games. I personally don't like games that involve people blowing each other up. But I can't tell you that they're bad for kids, because I think most kids are not fooled by the imagery, and focus rather on mastering the intellectual, visual, and physical challenges these games pose. Take, for example, chess. Isn't it all about killing? Killing military figures and religious figures and government figures and destroying their homes?
On the other hand, violent imagery isn't necessary for a good game or a good video game. Take, for example, the many variations of the Sims, or my current conceptual passion - the beautifully cooperative game of Chilone.
But, I can't say violent games are really bad for kids, either. If kids are seeing violence, in their neighborhoods or on TV or in the movies, then it's part of their lives, and it's something they need to play with, to integrate into their world view.
There's a great story from Sara Similansky about pre-school kids who were playing outside, in the school playground, when a car hit a pedestrian. Soon an ambulance came and took the pedestrian to the hospital. It was a potentially traumatic experience for the kids. The next day, they started playing Accident and Ambulence. They continued playing for several days. And then went on to something else.
Play and self-regulation? Play, the apotheosis of abandonment, spontaneity and general mucking about...and self-regulation?
Well, maybe not play, so much. But games. Games, for sure. Like, for example, Simon Says. Here's what Alix Speigel says in her article Old Fashioned Play Builds Serious Skills
"Simon Says is a game that requires children to inhibit themselves. You have to think and not do something, which helps to build self-regulation."
And this about reading stories with preschoolers from researcher Laura Berk:
"Reading storybooks with preschoolers promotes self-regulation, not just because it fosters language development, but because children's stories are filled with characters who model effective self-regulatory strategies."
And the there's even talking to yourself. "Permitting and encouraging children to be verbally active," writes Speigel, "to speak to themselves while engaged in challenging tasks — fosters concentration, effort, problem-solving, and task success."
"In fact," says "executive function researcher" Laura Berk, "if we compare preschoolers' activities and the amount of private speech that occurs across them, we find that this self-regulating language is highest during make-believe play. And this type of self-regulating language… has been shown in many studies to be predictive of executive functions."
Speigel continues: "It turns out that all that time spent playing make-believe actually helped children develop a critical cognitive skill called executive function. Executive function has a number of different elements, but a central one is the ability to self-regulate. Kids with good self-regulation are able to control their emotions and behavior, resist impulses, and exert self-control and discipline...We know that children's capacity for self-regulation has diminished...Poor executive function is associated with high dropout rates, drug use and crime. In fact, good executive function is a better predictor of success in school than a child's IQ. Children who are able to manage their feelings and pay attention are better able to learn."
If we'd only let them play.... If we only believed in fun....
When I first wrote about the Myanmar game of Chinlone, I really only had minor intimations of how important that game was to become to me. It wasn't until I watched Greg Hamilton's movie, Mystic Ball, that I understood not only his profound passion for Chinlone, but my passion for The Well-Played Game.
When I wrote The Well-Played Game, I described a pivotal experience I had, during a game of Ping Pong. Later, I found a wonderful story by Bill Russell, in which he describes an experience of genuine transcendence, similar to mine, but in the highly competitive game of professional basketball. But in all these years of teaching, Mystic Ball, the movie, was the first time I've found the Well-Played game expressed so purely, understood so deeply, documented so thoroughly - in a game totally devoted to sharing that particular experience.
The film opens with the following Myanmar proverb: "The spirit of give and take that breeds happiness is the foundation on which the game of Chinlone rests." We are then transported into an astonishingly ornate building, festooned with bare electric bulbs and intricate carvings covered in gold paint. On the inside, we see a kind of theater-in-the-round. On stage, 6 people playing with a rattan ball. Hamilton comments: "Getting to play with this team that I just played with is like playing with Michael Jordan and Baryshnikov and Fred Astaire and Bruce Lee and Muhammed Ali and all the most beautiful movement people and sports people I could ever imagine...It's surely the most fun, beautiful, mystical feeling...This is like my religion and my love and my heart. Chinlone is just all about love and happiness."
The film progresses from scene to scene of beauty, passion, grace and skill. We observe the art of making a Chinlone ball. We see the game played everywhere throughout Myanmar, by men and women, children and elders, on the street, in practice courts, in dedicated arenas. We follow the highest practitioners of the art. Director and author Greg Hamilton explains what he has discovered in the game of Chinlone with a clarity and intensity that characterizes every scene of this remarkable film.
"The most amazing thing about Chinlone, Hamilton comments, "is that it's not competitive. There's no opposing team, no scoring, and no winners or losers. The team tries to keep the ball up as long as possible. But that's not enough. The real goal is to do the most difficult and beautiful moves they can."
"Watching them play was a revelation. What really stuck out was just how playful they were. They weren't arguing or fighting, like always happens in competitive sports. These guys were just having...a good time. It really made me think about how most sports are not playful."
His background is in martial arts. He says: "I used to think of myself as a warrior. But deep down, I never really liked hurting people." In Chinlone, however, he discovered that he could "do something as if my life depended on it, but without having to defeat anyone."
Near the end of the film, he takes us to his favorite Chinlone practice court. He comments: "There's so much beauty inside this circle - the flow of the ball between us, and the 'tic toc' sound the ball makes as we support each other."
I was fortunate enough to get to talk to Greg about this beautiful film, and to get a personal experience of his deep passion for the game. Basically, I just wanted to convey my excitement and gratitude for what he has brought to us - and to me, especially, in his being able to capture and convey what I have devoted my life to teaching. Greg commented: "I didn't really want to be in the film in the first place." He just wanted to show us the game itself. But he was as much a part of the story as the game was, and he couldn't avoid it. What he wanted most to share with us was that: "Something as serious as Chinlone could be so playful." What he most wanted us to perceive was that "above all, Chinlone is a way of loving."
Later, I sent Greg a draft of this post, asking for further comment. Here's part of his reply:
The interaction between the ball and the players and the players with each other is sensuous, I can't think of a better way to put it. In my opinion, and I've asked some of men players about this and they agree - Chinlone it is strangely similar to making love. Because of a certain modesty with the the women in Myanmar, I've not been able to ask women players some of these kind of questions. It's like the essence of what making love is - not the rubbing together of body parts, but the intense, immediate connection and playing together of spirits. It really is play isn't it? This is one of the unique and breathtaking things I've found in Chinlone. And you can do it for hours at time with 1,2,3,4,5, or even more other people! When I see dogs playing and frolicking together - it's making love through play, and that is the feeling I've always wanted my life to be full of. There is always love and the sensual inside real play.
So many things that I didn't say or bring up in the film, for various reasons. One being that I didn't want to come across preachy, and of course there is only so much you can fit into 83 minutes. There are lots and lots of other things to share about Chinlone.
I think Chinlone is a feminine sport. One is nurtured and embraced in this game. It's not about power or dominance. There is a gentleness, an inclusiveness and a loving feeling that is always there – even between the audience and the players. Men and women play together, old folks and young ones play together. At the first Chinlone festival I saw, there was a team that had a 72 year old (in fact it was Wei Za Than, the one with the beautiful wife!) and a 9 year old on the same team - I was blown away!
All of the play in Chinlone is an end in itself. There are no arbitrary rules, just a certain etiquette and a lot of intuition inside the circle. I love that. There is a struggle with gravity, that as skill develops, becomes an elemental dance of pure flow.
So many things that I love about Chinlone - it is so hard that everyone, even the greatest players end up looking foolish fairly often - nothing to do but laugh about it, and 5 or 10 minutes into a game everyone is laughing for sure. You didn't see a lot of this in the film because I focused on the festival plays and because there is an audience, the players are a little more serious than usual. It's a very, very funny game.
Here we are on this giant spinning ball - in orbit. I feel a connection between the way Chinlone is played and the orbiting of planets. I'm still working on this one and trying to find clear ways of talking about it.
This is not an image of the Moon, Fish, Ocean game, but rather of a variant of the aforementioned - Pearl, Lotus, Bowl. I'll explain in a moment.
Developed by Craig Conley, the same Craig Conley, author of, amongst other significant scholarly works, the Magical Dictionary, about whom I've waxed so enthusiastically; Moon, Fish, Ocean is actually Rock, Scissors, Paper, only with different gestures. It's also, as described above, as Pearl, Lotus, Bowl, as well as Bridge, Stream, Boulder, and equally Candle, Incense, Fan, and even more equally Brush, Circle, Paper.
But is it, you might ask, actually, as Conley implies, a Zen game, as played by Zen masters to help acolytes to Zennish wisdom? Claims Conley, perhaps tongue-in-cheekily:
"Zen disciples play Moon * Fish * Ocean as a form of mindful meditation, or to determine who will chop wood and who will carry water. Disciples typically sit in either the full or half lotus position, upon round cushions atop square mats.
Zen Masters use the game as a test of a disciple’s reflexes and non-attachment to outcomes. The Master holds a pebble in his palm. The pebble remains hidden when the Master plays 'Moon' or 'Fish.' It is revealed only when the Master plays 'Ocean.' If the disciple can snatch the pebble quickly enough, he automatically wins the round."
It is, upon further retrospection, probably not an authentic Zen activity. But, on the other hand, as it were, what is authenticity other than illusion?
Point is, it's almost worth believing, and it's definitely worth playing. Learning the different hand motions is a good enough challenge to add interest to introspection. Appreciating the art, and the humor of it all, is a path to enlightenment, at least.
Craig comments: "First, I must confirm that you were correct that my tone is tongue-in-cheek. It is a whimsy that Rock Paper Scissors is a Zen game, and I set out to 'prove' my imaginative quirk with 'evidence' from Zen poetry. (This rather exhaustive research is more evident in the book version of the game than on the website.) HOWEVER, a distant relative of mine wrote that he has a friend in Taipei who confirms the legitimacy of 'Moon Fish Ocean,' though a better translation would seem to be 'Moon, Water, Fishes.' His friend also confirmed that the game is of Japanese origin and is studied mainly among Buddhist priests. His friend assumed that I am a Zen teacher or scholar. This is all beautiful confirmation that 'You can't make it up.' I suppose it's a lesson that if humor goes too far toward the deadpan end of the scale, it becomes cast iron! Perhaps it's also evidence that sincere playfulness, freed from ulterior motives, can lead one directly to the honest truth."
Should you still require further instructions from the cosmos, take a spin on Craig's Follow Your Bliss Compass.
826NYC "is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping students, ages 6-18, develop their writing skills. We offer evening and weekend workshops and afterschool tutoring, and with the help of our talented team of volunteers, we're able to host class trips and offer teachers in-class support. We specialize in writing-based projects, including college essays, student publications, creative-writing assignments, and expository papers."
This aforementioned organization is organizing the world's first Scrabble for Cheaters Tournament.
I prefer thinking of it as "Creative Scrabble." Because, as you can see from the list of "official cheats," you really aren't cheating, as long as you pay for it.
Here's what you can buy:
1. Trade out a letter—$25 2. Wheel of Fortune: buy a vowel—$50 3. Flip a letter over and make it blank—$100 4. Add 10 to any letter’s value—$150 5. Add Q, Z, or X to any word, anywhere—$200 6. Passport: play a word in any language—$250 7. Consult the dictionary for one turn—$300 8. Consult the Scrabble word list for one turn—$400 9. Reject another team’s word—$450 10. Invent a word (must have a definition)—$500
So, OK, OK? It's a fund-raising thing as much as it is a fun-raising idea. But it's an innovative kind of fun, significantly innovative. Buying cheats. Some cheats, apparently more significantly game-affecting kinds of cheats, cost more. Use each once, and once only, but whenever you want. And though there's no reflection in the final score, one must wonder what happens to the player who wins the game without using any of her cheats? Is that cheating?
Here are some more details:
"Sign up on this website between now and January 19. Each team member pays a $50 entry fee. As soon as a team has signed up, anyone and everyone can come to this website and pledge their support for the team(s) of their choice. By donating money to the teams, the pledger buys the team certain cheats. It is therefore advantageous for team members to raise as much money as possible. During the tournament, teams will use their cheats against opposing teams."
Takes cheating to a whole new level, is what it does.
Dr. Barry Sinervo, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has observed a three-way mating cycle in a species of North American lizard and a distant relative, the European common lizard, separated by 175 million years of evolution, making Rock-Paper-Scissors maybe the oldest game in the world.
"Some of the male lizards," writes James Ryerson in last week's New York Times Magazine, "(call their type 'rock'), use force, invading the territory of fellow males to mate with females. Others ('paper') favor deception, waiting until females are unguarded and sneaking in. Still others ('scissors') work by cooperation, joining together to protect one another’s females.
"I think it’s a philosophical point," Sinervo comments. "You have 'take by force,' deception and cooperation. Each beats one but not the other. It’s the way the very fabric of social systems is structured."
Rock-Paper-Scissors - the very fabric of social systems. Who knew?
"At a departmental meeting," writes John Naughton, "one of my colleagues wanted to illustrate a point about the complexity of social networking. Everyone present was given five pieces of coloured string and then told to give one end of each to five people they knew well. You can imagine the result. Good fun; and instructive."
This, from a blog post called "Social Networking in Meatspace" - a "simulation game" that is precisely what a simulation game needs to be:
When I introduce students to the art of game design, I seem to always start with a relatively intense focus on "game-modding" - taking a classic game of some very familiar kind and modifying it, somehow, into something that is new, different, something inviting a different kind of game experience. This site about the sister games of Pachisi & Ludo gives us a near perfect starting point.
Here you will find the history of Pachisi as well as of more than 6 related games, and lists with images of commercial and other computer implementations - enough to inspire you to new heights of Ludo-craft, as well as to give you a much stronger understanding of an entire genre of game structures.
Anu Visel's research into "The Traditional and the Recent in Modern Schoolchildren's Games" in Estonian Folklore" is the very kind of treasure of play scholarship that inspired me to write the Interplay Games Catalog for the School District of Philadelphia, because it presents concrete, scholarly descriptions of games that actual kids actually play. Take for example this wonderful image of a girl playing some kind of hopscotch. But what kind of hopscotch looks like that?
Number Beds.
"It probably arrived in Estonia in mid- or late 1960s," writes Visel, "and in 1972-73 Number Beds was a well-known game (RKM II 306). The figure represents a square or a rectangle that is divided into 9, 12 or 24 compartments. Often an additional square ('foot') is joined to the middle square of the front or back row. The numbering system varies, but usually the neighbouring beds are not marked by successive numbers. Here hopping is the only activity: the player is to traverse the figure precisely in the order of the numbers.15 Only the manner of hopping varies: 1) feet together, 2) on the right foot, 3) on the left foot, 4) backwards. Depending on how inventive the players happen to be the game may be prolonged and diversified further (e.g. the figure may have to be traversed in the opposite order, or blindfolded etc.). Every class consists of as many rounds as there are squares. For "one" all beds have to be taken, for "two" all except the first, etc. Rest beds or "rest homes" may also be involved, sometimes even lending their name puhkekodud to the whole game."
"Jumping games," Visel observes, "are one of the games group that has changed the most during the last 60 years. Jumping games have, in most cases, been adopted from other nations. Such games have come to life quite lately and they represent the quickly changing international town folklore. In Estonia, too, they are mostly girls' games. Though it seems that Hopscotch was popular already in the 1930s, it must have been a relatively new game at that time. During the post-war years popularity of the game grew, some new hopscotch schemes appeared, favourite games changed, jumping sessions or classes became more detailed. It has been overdominated by twist (Elastic Skipping) - though girls knew several kinds of Hopscotch in 1992, they hardly ever used them. Totally new local developments (One Leg, Two Legs; Class: Strawberry, etc.) can be found only in some periphery (e.g. Kihnu Island). Compared to the earlier period the number of Hopscotch played without stones and elements (or boxes) in the schemes and the usage of a private bed (or "home") had increased."
Yet another new adventure in Hopscotch, another way to play, another principle of play to apply to another group of games, to create yet more games, to give kids yet more options, yet more ways to invite each other into play in evermore rapidly changing times.
Underpants Tug-of-War - Could Pantyhose be Far Behind?
Yes, my friends, it's true. It's what you've been waiting for for so many years that you forgot you were waiting. It's: Underpants Tug-of-War, at last!
Apparently (until some well-versed translator can explain otherwise), you get two pairs of panties (and/or underpants), joined by a single string (or perhaps elastic something). You and your partner place these panties on your respective heads, and proceed as illustrated.
My guess is that you lose your panties, you lose the game.
Oh, the fun, the silliness, the sheer, suggestive ribaldry of it all.
I, however, when I put together the words "game" and "panties," find myself having fond memories of yet another game, which I would explain, except that it's not relevant, other than its pantyhose-on-the-headness, as illustrated herein, , which, in turn, makes me think that one could everso easily make one's own Panty-tug-of-war-like game out of a pair of pantyhose, or perhaps two.
Pantyhose-Tug-of-War. A new, playworthy, and clearly Junkyard-type Sport. And you read about it here.
"Cruel 2 B Kind," they say,"is a game of benevolent assassination."
"At the beginning of the game, you are assigned three secret weapons. To onlookers, they will seem like random acts of kindness. But to other players, the seemingly benevolent gestures are deadly maneuvers that will bring them to their knees.
"Some players will be slain by a serenade. Others will be killed by a compliment. You and your partner might be taken down by an innocent group cheer.
"You will be given no information about your targets. No names, no photos, nothing but the guarantee that they will remain within the outdoor game boundaries during the designated playing time. Anyone you encounter could be your target. The only way to find out is to attack them with your secret weapon.
"Watch out: The hunter is also the hunted. Other players have been assigned the same secret weapons, and they're coming to get you. Anything out of the ordinary you do to assassinate YOUR targets may reveal your own secret identity to the other players who want you dead.
"As targets are successfully assassinated, the dead players join forces with their killers to continue stalking the surviving players. The teams grow bigger and bigger until two final mobs of benevolent assassins descend upon each other for a spectacular, climactic kill."
Ah, yes, death, and then transfiguration. Hence, fun.
Did you know that there's a veritably amazing collection of movies, online, free, courtesy of the voluminously virtual virtues of the Internet Archives? Well, did you?
What does this have to do with fun and games, you might ask. Search, and you will find. For example, this one, part of their Open Source Movie collections, is from Don Ratcliff's study of children's free play in a hallway and on a playground. He explains "Video recorded on an elementary school playground, for comparison with video data in the same school's hallway, conducted for my dissertation research. To access a similar video clip of the hallway, go to http://www.archive.org/details/playground1. Four other video clips of the hallway are available by changing the last digit in the address to a 2, 3, 4, or 5."
Ratcliff's complete dissertation can be found here.
Marbles. Ah, marbles. I don't know if you've managed to read "A Million Ways to Play Marbles, at Least" - originally included in the appendix of The Well-Played Game. In it's own silly way, it reflects pretty much everything I know about the nature of games. And if you have read it, perhaps you'd enjoy hearing me read it.
But whether you've heard it or read it, the important thing is that you've played it. And here, for your conceptual delectation, a significant and well-illustrated collection of marble games from the veritable Land of Marbles, itself.
Send virtually anything to virtually anyone, virtually for free
If you happened to find yourself in such a position, and you wished to express, materially, in a virtual-sort of way, your personal appreciation for my ongoing existence, you might very well wish to send me a gift of some sort - especially if it didn't cost you anything. The question remains, however, what to get me. I've narrowed it down to: Pottery Classes, a Digital Camcorder, and a dress-up outfit. As an added incentive, if you happen to choose the one I really, really, really wanted most in the world, given only those three choices, you'd get three thumbs-up points and so would I! So, see, I really do want you to guess the one I really want, because then we both gets thumbs-up points. So the game is about giving each other things, things that'd be nice to be able to give each other, virtual, no-cash-value gifts that nonetheless are genuine acts of thoughtfulness.
This is GiftTRAP Live, Virtual GiftTRAP, yes, the MajorFUN award-winning GiftTRAP of that very same name. Only, it's online now, and it's all grown-up into a game for online social networks, if you know what I mean.
On the one hand, it's a kind of an eCard, so to speak, a nice virtual thing you can send people. Way more personal than a joke. Just as much fun. On the other hand, it's a great way to start that "what do you really want for your birthday, or holidays" conversation. So it's like Web 2.0, see, interpenetrating virtual and actual space. Now that you know that I'd actually prefer the dress-up outfit, you know where to shop for me. And you can shop online, even. And it's like one of those Mass Multiplayer Online Games you sometimes read about, like Second Life, only the life on GiftTRAP's stage is kinder and gentler and more fun.
It behooves me to admit to a personal interest in this project. It was a comment I made back to the Nick from GiftTRAP that kicked off this whole project, and I've been lucky enough to kibitz on various iterations of this game as its evolved.
Which is why I get to be the first to blog about it going live.
"Residents as old as 103 have ditched knitting and bridge after getting hooked on the console," writes Andrew Parker in the Sun Times (UK). He quotes 88 year-young Barrie Edgar: 'It’s great fun. We’ve only had it a few days but we can’t put it down.'"
And the director of the Sunrise Home: "It’s captured everyone’s imagination," she explains. Most residents are in their 80s and 90s. Things have got quite competitive."
The Wii. The International, Intergenerational Wii.
The whole notion of childhood as an historical and cultural phenomenon is, in itself, revelatory. Reading Children at Play is to see American children as something like a separate country, with its own government, its own history, its own customs, its own borders.
In a large part, the history of American childhood proves to be a story of borders being constantly redrawn, redefined, reinterpreted. Chudacoff's well-documented and compassionate study shows how children, poor and wealthy, slave and privileged, native and immigrant, surrounded on all sides by adult America, endowed with childlike resilience and endless capacity for passion, have managed to resist hundreds of years of concerted adult efforts to subvert childhood into something other, something safe, predictable and under control.
Children at Play is in many ways a romance. As the book nears its conclusion, and we read about the evermore massive attempts to co-opt children's play, we find our very adult selves hoping against hope that children will once again reclaim their inalienable rights, breaking the shackles of rampant commercialism and overprotective parents so they can once again take up their "quest for independence."
Here, from the end of the chapter "1950 to the Present," Chudacoff gifts us with a ray of hope: "...while media critics and child advocates have fretted about the hypnotic, sedentary quality that television has inflicted on children, there is always the possibility that kids can convert an object as mundane as a TV box into ther own plaything." He goes on to quote a story told by Isabel Alverez. "See, those old television sets used to have the cardboard [backs] with holes in them. The television was on and we could see all of the lights in the back...So we took the cardboard off and put our dolls in there and played that it was the city of Manhattan." Chudacoff concludes: "Kids still find ways to be kids."
When people ask me what games I most wished I had invented, I generally respond: "Frisbee and Cards." Frisbee because of the grace and beauty of its flight, and the games and more games, and even more games you can play with it; and cards, for the art, and especially for the apparently inexhaustible cornucopia of Invented Card Games.
Even one card game, like, for example, Crazy Eights, about which I waxed so drippingly in my article Not-So-Crazy-Eights, has spawned everso many variations. And of these, there are all the variations of one commercial variation of Crazy Eights, called "UNO." All from one card game.
And though you can play Frisbee all by yourself, with the wind as your partner, there really aren't that many versions of one-player Frisbee games, while there are literally hundreds of solitaire games you can play, by yourself, of course, on your computer, and online, even.
Dr. Lana Trick (honestly) is actively engaged in researching the mechanics of multiple-object-tracking. To get an almost immediate understanding of what this is all about, take a moment or two to experiment on yourself. Should you wonder about the fund-worthiness of all this eye-challenging fun, consider the military applications of machines that can track multiple objects.
I was first made aware of the play value of Multiple Object Tracking when I reviewed a children's game called Scoops Surprises. It's like a kids version of the shell game, only with three different color "peas" (small cylinders of different colors representing ice cream flavors). I was amazed at how fun it was to play. Of course, I never got beyond two different ice cream flavors, and the kids won every time.
According to Egyptologist Edda Bresciani, there was a very bowling-like game going on in Narmoutheos, Egypt, about 18 centuries ago. He explained:
"The game was played by two players positioned at the two ends of the lane. One would throw the smaller ball, the other the bigger one...They would throw the balls at the same time. Most likely, the bigger ball was thrown along the lane to prevent the smaller ball from entering the hole at the center. When this happened, the smaller ball could be easily recovered from the sand-filled terracotta vase below."
Two bowlers at opposite ends of the alley? Both throwing at the same time? This very old game has got to be an inspiration for a whole new ball game!
In describing his 4-player version of his Major Fun Award-winning game, Lost Cities, master game designer Reiner Knizia responds, with admirable intelligence and insight, to an all too often asked question:
"Frequently I get asked about my favourite game. There is no favourite game (except always the one I currently design), because games are not absolute. Games live through the players, and for different groups and occasions, different games will be the right choice. Games provide the platform to enjoy an exciting and stimulating time with other people. I rejoice the ever-new challenges that players with different personalities introduce to the games. For me, the interaction with the opponents is the most important stimulus of play."
"Brains love information," writes Margaret Richardson, in her column State of Play: Why I Play Games "- finding connections, mapping relationships - and games let you mainline a fat flow of pure, perfected data, all deliberately contrived to be rich with exactly those kinds of interconnections.
"And as you learn, you're given an incredible window into your own capabilities. Games are a test-bed where you can endlessly explore what an extraordinary machine you are. "
Me, I also like to watch my emotions, the play of my passions, the sheer utterness of my abandonment to the fantasy, my total willingness to risk virtually everything. Because then I get to be my own Buddha, learning to observe and accept, with equanimity, in the completeness of the illusion, the genius of its crafting. I like to find myself on the verge of promising my next child to God in return for a red three. And maybe even to laugh.
There's this guy Yehuda, from Jerusalem, who writes a weblog about games. And the guy is a game maven. Let me tell you.
So, just the other day, this guy writes a blog piece titled: Games are not supposed to be fun. Honestly. That's what he wrote. And he has some good stuff to say about games and art and fun, and how easily one can get in the way of the other.
But me, I think that not only are games supposed to be fun, I think fun is a lot more serious than we admit. I think that fun games about serious things can get even more serious than games that aren't any fun at all.
Return with me now to the game of Chapay, as so faithfully and lovingly described heretofore. From thence, shuffle forward to a flash game, serendipitously, and yet mysteriously known as "Shuffle."
Perhaps I should say no more, relying, rather, on your own personal musings, as you muse about the perhaps not-so-subtle connections between this obviously amusing amusement and the perhaps more mysterious joys of its lineage. Clearly, the similarities are beyond coincidence. Even more clearly, a game with beauty is a joy forever.
Game Cafe is one of the very few game stores that actually invite people to come and play. I wrote them to find out more. Naturally. When I read their response, my first reaction was "finally." At last, a game store that understands, respects, and provides for play. My second reaction - I have to share this with the known universe. Here's what they sent me (shared with permission).
"Game Cafe is a retail game store started, owned and run by my husband and myself.
"We are all about fun and have worked hard to create a comfortable and inviting environment that is family oriented. We are located on the Historic Independence Square in Independence, MO, and have been open for just over a year now.
"The way our store is set up is that the front area is our retail board and card game section. We sell unique games for ages 3 through adult. There are many types, from light-hearted family games, group/party games, 2-player games, kids games, educational games, strategy games, puzzle games, collectible card and miniatures games and more. We have a large Chess/Checkers table in front that is free to anyone who wants to use it.
The middle of our store is a cafe area with snacks (candy, chips, ice cream, small microwaveable pizzas and sandwiches, etc) and drinks (soda fountain and bottled). It is also a place to play tabletop games. We have a game menu were you can select a board or card game from our growing game library to play in-store for $1 per person. We have games for kids, families, adult groups, couples, etc. We also host many game tournaments and leagues in this area. Tuesday nights is new game night where I teach a board or card game to the group that comes that night. (This particular group is designed for older teens and adults and is free) There is no charge to use our table/play area in general.
"The back area of our store holds our computers and video games hooked up to wall mounted flat-screen T.V's. We have PC games, are connected to the Internet, and have XBOX 360's, a Game Cube, and a Nintendo Wii. To play in this area, there is an hourly fee. We have many game titles to choose from and allow people to bring their own game titles to use if they choose.
"We also have a game room in the back that can be rented out for group games or for birthday parties and such. We have a basement that is in the process of being finished and will become a hall to host large scale gaming events, and be available to rent out for groups or even receptions."
In Japan, they call it Tunnels no Minasan no Okage Deshita. You'll find it on Youtube as Japanese Human Tetris. I prefer Tunnels no Minasan no Okage Deshita, because, even though I don't understand what it means, I even less understand the Tetris connection.
The game is wonderfully easy to understand. All you have to do is watch it for a minute or two. When two or more people play it, it becomes a test of teamwork worthy of ballroom dancers. It's funny. It doesn't really make people look embarrassingly silly. It seems reasonably safe. And it invites real skill. The challenge itself is as mental as it is physical - trying to anticipate how to position your body so it will fit through the moving shape. And it makes for great viewing. Worthy of all the attention it is receiving on the net. Worthy, even, of yours.
If you've already read about the game of Washers, and you happened to come across the story about Laundry Balls, you should most definitely be reading the very article you are reading now, because this is yet another throwing, backyard-type game you can make out of junk, or buy commercially, and propogate great fun.
Or, you might consider the immediate satisfaction gained from purchasing this ready-made version, called Top Toss, which has the added benefit of a less-than-traditional trapezoidal design for that "I really deserved that score" feeling.
Or, perhaps you might consider reading the Wikipedia article to find out all about the rules and origins and stuff.
You might even consider something like the "Spin-It " version of the game, which, as you can so clearly see from the thoughtfully attached illustration, has 4 different goals (each a different color), on a wheel-like apparatus which turns as soon as a bolo attaches itself, thus, giving rise to a different goal of a different color and scoring value, or not, depending on how many bolos therefrom append.
It's been what you might call a pervasive theme of this blog. You might call it "new games from old" is what you might call it. As so clearly exemplified by this simple crossword puzzle.
First of all, there's that Wheel-of-Fortune-like interaction with the puzzle, where instead of filling in each blank, the letter you select goes in every highlighted blank. So, for example, in the illustration - all the squares highlighted in yellow take the same letter - one of the letters in the panel on the right. Is it an "A"? No, because then you'd get AUB. Hmmm. Maybe a "P" - that'd give you PUB, but it would also give you CP_W. What, oh what could it be?
Well, you get my drift. It could be a new kind of crossword puzzle. One unique to computers. Faster to play, and as inviting as even the best of crossword puzzles - challenging, perhaps, one might say, even fun.
I'm not saying that this is the ultimate crossword puzzle, nor that it is the best, but rather that it represents what much of this blog is about.
There's a Swedish game called Kubb , which is quite similar to the Karelian game of Kyykka and clearly connected to the Russo-Canadian game of Bunnock, which was originally played with the ankle bones of horses. There's also the Finnish game of Molkky, which is a relatively close relative, but different. Which brings us to Woodchuck - a faithful reproduction of the Swedish original, but played with 4 Woodchucks instead of 5, and 5 throwing batons instead of 6.
Since Woodchuck is moderately priced and readily available here in the US through Simply Fun, let's talk Woodchuck.
Woodchucks are made of wood, which, from the Kubb-perspective, is quite traditional. You can play on a lawn, or in the sand, or any nice flat area, 12-feet wide and 25-feet deep. Four Woodchucks are placed at one end of the playing field, spaced evenly apart, in a line. The other 4 are placed at the other end. The King Woodchuck is placed exactly in the middle of the field.
There are two teams, which, for the sake of clarity (which, even though the game is quite simple, will soon prove most valuable), let's call one team the Beavers and the other the Otters.
Teams don't have to have the same number of players. You could have 6 Beavers and only 4 Otters. Or even just 1 Otter if things turn out that way.
Let's say the Beavers go first. They throw their Throwing Batons, one at a time, underhanded, end-over-end, at the Otters' Woodchucks. It's like throwing horseshoes, the idea being to knock over all of the Otter's Woodchucks while being extremely careful not to knock over the King Woodchuck. And let's further say that the Beavers managed to hit 3 of the Otter's 4 Woodchucks.
Now it's the Otters' turn. Remember, they only have one standing Woodchuck. Oddly enough, before they can throw any of their Throwing Batons at the Beavers' Woodchucks, they first have to throw each of their fallen Woodchucks into the Beaver's half of the playing field. Then they stand each of those Field Woodchucks on their ends. Then they use their Throwing Batons to try to knock over their Field Woodchucks. And then, and only then, can they aim for the Beavers' Woodchucks. Know what I mean?
What makes this all so difficult to understand is that the game breaks a central convention of most sports. The Woodchucks are more obstacles than targets, and the obstacles get moved around as the game progresses. There is only one actual target - the King Woodchuck.
Anyhow, once a team has managed to knock over all the Woodchucks on the other team's side, then they can go for the King.
Clearly, from a Junkyard Sports perspective, this game can be played with almost anything that you can stand up and knock over. And you can use tennis balls or tuna cans as easily as you can use Throwing Batons. In fact, the article on Kyykka points out that students frequently make their own sets using:
80 empty 500ml beer cans (330ml soft drink cans work as well)
Sand
Duct tape
Plastic/aluminium piping
And one more thing that makes it especially worthy of our collective consideration, found in the Wikipedia article, is the observation that "sportsmanship and a sense of fair play...is a trademark of this unique game."
It's a game of catch, is what it is. With score. It's called 500. And the point of it is: you're not really playing for points. You're playing for fun.
I quote:
"the game begins with the thrower calling out a number (typically a multiple of 100 between 100 and 500), and then throwing the baseball/football/flying disc,(hoseball), or hitting the baseball with a baseball bat, in the general direction of the group. The person that catches the throw gains the number of points called out. The process is repeated until one of the players reaches or exceeds 500 points. That player then switches places with the thrower, and the game continues. Typically, all player's point totals are reset when a new thrower is instated."
See, the thrower/hitter decides ahead of time what the catch is worth. And then the real catch is that when someone finally "wins," everybody's score goes back to zero. As if the score really doesn't count. As if you don't ever really win. You just get to throw/hit.
O, you can play with everyone keeping their score. But what, actually, is the point. Especially when the pitcher/hitter can also call "infinity" or "negative infinity" or, somewhat less mystically, "jackpot."
"Infinity?" you ask, pondering endlessly the mathematics thereof. I quote again:
"If a catch is attempted but missed (i.e. the object is touched but dropped), the player must deduct that throw's value from his total. When this rule is combined with the above rule (ie infinity is allowed), the math is bent slightly such that infinity accumulation is additive. This means that dropping two infinity/jackpot throws would yield a score of negative 2 x infinity. If an infinity/jackpot throw were then successfully caught, the player's score would be negative 1 x infinity, or simply negative infinity. Varying by region, this variation can be used selectively by using the term "hot" (e.g. calling "400 hot" would mean that the aforementioned variation would be in effect, however calling "400" would mean that merely the standard rules would be in play)."
500 is clearly a game that is played in what I have come to call the "Spirit of Junk." That is, rules may vary, apparently endlessly, the only point being the fun of it all. Or, as my friend Stork, co-Defender of the Playful, would call it: "The Spirit of the Game."
Rock-Scissors-Paper. It's one of those so-called "kids' games" that has become emblematic of how profound a so-called kids' game might be.
I wrote about it in this article on more variations and applications of Rock Scissors Paper.
I recently received a children's strategy game for review. Called "Sizzletoad," it's a combination of Rock-Scissors-Paper and Tic Tac Toe. And then I checked Board Game Geek to discover that there is an entire category of games built around the "Rock-Scissors-Paper mechanic."
And even more recently I learned of an article that investigates the remarkable strategic depth of the game.
There's been some happy buzz about arecent article in the New York Times in which Alex Williams writes about adults who are teaching children the bygone games of their youth - marbles, hopscotch, red rover, kickball. He writes: "They are spurred by concerns that a decline in traditional play robs the imagination and inhibits social interaction, by personal nostalgia, and by a desire to create a new bridge to connect generations — a bridge across both sides of the Nintendo gap."
The article (you need to be a subscriber to read it on line, is called "Putting Skinnned Knees Back into Playtime." I guess this is in contrast to the callused thumbs of X-Boxers.
The article concludes with a story about one mother, Sara Boettrick, who tried to follow this new trend with her daughter. "Ms. Boettrich admitted that she hadn’t seen the kids playing seven up, pickup sticks and jacks, and that she had since abandoned her attempts to spark a love of them in her daughter. She added, 'I think I had more fun than she did.'"
And I think therein lies the truth of this whole back-to-the-games-of-our-youth movement. We, as adults, want our children to learn the games of our childhood, because they are the games within which we can still find our youth. As for the youth of today, they are finding theirs in their games. And if it is truly our goal to help our children play, perhaps we should begin by asking them to teach us their games. Perhaps, if they let us play their games with them, we will better understand the fun of their youth, and better share with them the gifts of our maturity.
There's something inherently funny about saying the words "Pool Noodle." Go ahead. Give it a try. Say: pool noodle, pool noodle, pool noodle. See what I mean? Even thinking about a pool noodle, a noodle in a pool, a pool full of pool noodles is kind of fun. And playing with a pool noodle, in a pool, of course, sitting on one, lying on one, lying on several...fun, all fun.
Well, what Chris Cavert and Sam Sikes tell you what you can do with pool noodles, on the land, even, is every bit as fun, and even more inventive than that. They've written two noodle books, as a matter of fact: 50 Ways to Use Your Noodle and 50 More Ways to Use Your Noodle.
Now, before I go any further, I want to warn you. Page through these books, and you're going to want to invest heavily in pool noodles. At about $3/noodle, we're not talking junk. Though you could purchase Tubular Polyethylene Foam Pipe Insulation, Pre-Slit, 3/8" Wall Thickness, For Use On 1/2" Copper Pipe Or 1/4" Iron Pipe, for maybe $3 for 4 3-foot sections. Which is more junk-like, but not much cheaper. Not only are you going to want to buy many, many pool noodles (at least one for each player), but you're going to want to (dare I mention this? yes, yes, I must) cut some of your noodles into 3-foot "Midaronis," 3-inch "Minironis," and 1-1/4-inch "Meatballs."
OK, by now you get a good sense of the tone of the whole thing: fun, funny, creative, inventive. So you're ready for at least one game. Like, for example, Balloon Volleyball, played with Midaronis. Do I need to explain this any more? Everyone with their own Midaroni. Trying to hit a large balloon over a volleyball net. Do you need me to tell you what fun this can be? Or how about the baseball-like "Bustin Burgers" game - where one player sails pool noodle Meatballs to the Midaroni-swinging batter?
You might not expect the more creative activities, like the semi-self-explanatory "Noodle Doodles." And in all likelihood, you wouldn't have begun to anticipate the group team-building, problem-solving aspect of the whole thing, with exercises like seeing how many Meatballs or Minironis two people can hold between them. And yes, in the 50 More Ways book you'll even find pool noodle games you can play in the - can you believe it - pool.
Together, the Noodle books are a treasure of creative, playful, problem-solving fun that should prove an invaluable resource to any youth leader, team builder, or provocateur of playfulness.
RE: Noodle Economics
Chris comments: "we found that the foam pipe insulation is okay for some of the noodle book activities, however, it doesn't have the rigidity for most games. Also, you lose the "visual" pull the colors have. Even though you might pay $3.50 (or so) for a noodle, you'll cut the long ones in half - thus cutting your cost in half. And, as long as the participants don't pick on or chew the noodles they last a very long time - the return on investment is great. Bonus: if you buy in the fall they are really cheap - stores don’t like to warehouse them because they take up so much space (some stores give them away to educational programs just to get rid of them before the winter months)."
Line up a group of boys (and/or girls) against a wall, three or four rows deep. These players must shuffle from side to side (hopefully en masse) progressing forward one step only when they have shuffled a required sideways distance. The game player stands facing them from a distance of 15m (50 feet) or so with a collection of footballs (soccer, or better yet sponge balls). These he fires one at a time at the advancing hordes of invaders. Any player hit is killed (as explosively as possible) and the game continues until all aliens are killed or until one or more reaches (tags) the firer (and gets to be IT for the next round).
At any rate, it sets me thinking, this game does, about how many more games from the virtual world can find their way into the playgrounds of the world (assuming that there are playgrounds and that children are allowed time to play on them), and vice versa.
The vice versa part, actually, has been a pet fantasy of mine ever since I started designing computer games, back in '81. In fact, a game I developed for Children's Television Workshop, called "Light-Waves," was loosely based on a kids playground game called Streets and Alleys. In the playground game, kids stand in rows and columns with their arms joined. Two other kids play tag. And another kid tells the players to make "streets" or "alleys" - turning 90 degrees and rejoining hands. The idea is for the caller to try to help IT tag not-IT. In my computer version, the bars would turn 90 degrees every time a button was pushed. A light-blob would follow the bars. The object of the game was to guide the blob towards the goal in the center. Then a new array of bars would appear. It turned out to be a fascinating little game. One of my favorites, actually, since it all could be played with just one button. All of which makes me think that there is an actual plethora of children's games that would prove to be virtual fodder for the creative computer game designer, whilst wondering if that very same person could in fact be you.
With their collection of Pips: Original Card and Dice Games, Samuel and Jacob H. Stoddard have gifted us with, among many other delights, a collection of, as advertised, original playing card, dice and domino games. Original, well-documented, and apparently most worthy of some significant segment of your playtime.
No, no, there's nothing to buy, unless you don't have a deck of cards or a couple dice or a set of dominoes. I know that's going to make you feel that these games are not, like, "real" games. And, if these guys wanted to make them into genuine, commercial, K-mart-worthy games, well, they'd probably make some significant money. But they most apparently have a very different goal. They want to make some significant fun.
Which becomes even more apparent if you look at the stuff on the rest of their site (called "Rinkworks"). I, following a suggestion from the noble Presurfer, wound up in a subsection of a subsection called "Fun with Words," where I learned about... Wait, let me give you some examples. Can you guess what the following words have in common?
BOLT, FAST, GRADE, HANDICAP
No, silly, it's not that they're all written in upper case. It's that they're all "Contronyms" - words that are also their own opposites. Like BOLT, as in bolt the door, or bolt away; or FAST, as in moving fast or something made unmoving.
Mark well this site, for is much fun to be had therein and by.
Balanko is such a straightforward invitation to fun that you almost don't need to read the rules. There's a ball on a string. There's another ball that rides a curved track. There are pits of various score values - the center and widest pit being, naturally, both the easiest to get the ball into and of the lowest value. There are sliding scorekeepers to keep track of your achievements.
One player releases the rolling ball. The other player releases the swinging ball, hoping that the swinging ball will hit the rolling ball into a high scoring pit. The only other thing you might want to know, suggested-rule-wise, is that the ball-roller, sitting on the opposite side of the game, can try to catch the ball-swinger's, uh, ball. Which is actually a good idea, given that if she doesn't catch the swinging ball, and the rolling ball is still rolling, her opponent can try to catch it and again take yet another swing.
If nothing else happens, sooner or later the swinging ball is going to hit the rolling ball anyway. On the other hand, it could make the rolling ball go into either the ball-swinger's or the ball-roller's pit. So, if one player doesn't catch it, the other player might consider it strategically sound to grab for the swinging ball as soon as it's in range.
Setting it up is a bit less straightforward, but the instructions are clear, the steps few, and it is easy enough to do (once you rid yourself of certain expectations about how it "should" go together) that you won't mind having to take it apart and put it back together. Though you'll probably want to keep it assembled and ready to play with for-practically-ever.
We've given Balanko the coveted "Major Fun Family Game Award" because it is the kind of game that will be as much fun for kids as it will be for adults and probably even more fun for kids and adults together. For similar reasons, it's also getting a Party Games award, even though only two people can play it at a time. And, if that's not enough to interest you, you should know that it is being seriously considered a Keeper.
Here, here, and also here are three parts of a clear, succinct, and even illustrated guide to eleven different checker games. Yes, that's right, eleven. Probably more if you think about combining rules. About which is something I would definitely urge you to think.
Let me tell you why this is so important to me. Years ago - o, maybe 30 - I held a checkers class in a prison in Pennsylvania. It was going to be a class about a lot of different games, but the residents (ok, inmates) weren't allowed to have cards or dice and checker sets were readily available and/or easily made. So, anyway, I decided to teach them different ways to play checkers. This was a major shock for many of them - that there was in fact more than one way to play checkers. And a major opportunity for me to start a dialogue with them on starting dialogues with each other - around rules, around thinking about the game itself, and not just winning. Because if you start out to play checkers, and the next question is "what kind of checkers do you want to play," then, all of a sudden, the relationship between the players becomes more important than the game itself. I mean, the game is still important, believe me you, but making the decision, figuring out what you both want to play, is an act of connection, of communication, of community. Playing with rules, selecting the rules you want to play by, and then keeping those rules, these are the kinds of thing free people do, the kind of thing that people who are part of society, who help to build society, do.
And they really wanted to learn every game I could teach them, every variation. And it was fun.
For all those times when you have spent a countless number of hours playing one of those little online games or watching stupid videos on the web, and stopped for a second to think to yourself, "Man, I really should do something more useful with my time...," and then kept wasting time anyways...
Playing the games is useful in two ways. First, the games adapt and improve based on what people have typed. For example, the taboo words are generated based on the most popular past guesses for each word. Second, we collect the guesses, which gives us information about the relationships between words. For example, if you are playing Categorilla and type "George Washington" for the category "Presidents", we have now learned that George Washington is a president.
Apparently, someone named David C. Lovelace has been afoot (and even more ahand) at producing new and evermore complex variations of more mature versions of the apparently global game of Rock Paper Scissors. [Wikipedia notes the following additional names:
"Janken (Japan), Jiandao Shítou Bu (China), Rochambeau, Paper Scissors Stone (UK), Steen, Papier, Schaar (Netherlands), Scissors, Paper, Rock (Australia), Paper Scissors Rock (NZ), Ching Chong Cha (South Africa), Chi Ku Ba (Tamil - India), Even Niyar Umisparayim (Israel), Schnick, Schnack, Schnuck (Germany), Schere, Stein, Papier (Swiss German), Morra Cinese (Italy), Piedra, Papel o Tijeras (Latin America)...Pedra, Papel, Tesoura (Portugal), Chin chan pu (Mexico), Ca Chi Pun (Chile), Bao Sing Soum (Cambodia)... Pierre, Papier/Feuille, Ciseaux or chifoumi (French), Roche, Papier, Ciseaux (Quebec), Petra, Psalidi, Charti (Greece) and Kgauwi-bauwi-bo (Korea), Kivi, Paperi, Sakset (Finnish), Pao, Ying, Choop (Thai), Jack en Poy (Philippines)... "].
Lovelace has created RPS-7, a version of Rock Paper Scissors with 7 different symbols, RPS-9, etc., etc., until, in what we hope is the culminating Rock Paper Scissors variant, RPS 101, which is, as you might guess, Rock Paper Scissors as played with 101 different symbols.
We do not know what would happen if these two great forces in Rock Paper Scissors innovations combined, and we probably don't want to know what would happen if they in turned combined with structured mayhem of Rock Paper Scissors Tag, but we do know a good game when we see one. Rock Paper Scissors, a children's game, profound enough to span the globe, to reach all the way from the playgrounds of the world to the heart of corporate culture.
Years ago, when I was writing for Games magazine, I proposed that we do an article on what I called "Two Balls Tied Together." We actually got as far as doing a photo session for the article, but, ultimately, it got killed. I suppose because of the semi-salacious significance of what I was calling the game. And perhaps also because the game didn't seem to be "real." Nobody we knew of was actually playing it. Even though it was clearly fun. And most definitely playworthy. There weren't any Two-Balls-Tied-Together Leagues or clubs, even.
Recently, maybe 20 years later, I heard from a company called Yazoo. These Yazoos were in fact marketing their own patented version of something remarkably similar to TBTT (Two Balls...etc.). Coming to me as it did in this enlightened age of the Internet, I gleefully Googled for evidence of this game elsewhere. And behold, it was, in truth, a game called Double Ball, played by our Native American brothers o so many years ago, as further explicated here.
There's something to be learned here about the nature of new sports, and timing, and naming, and patents and stuff.
Do you have/know of any adaptive games for seniors to do on their own? My dear Auntie recently entered a nursing home at age 96 after having been independent her whole life. She now needs major assistance & can participate in very few group activities. Although they do have an activities director, that person does things like bring Auntie magazines. Auntie used to love to play Bridge; I was thinking that if she had a flannel board of some kind that could hold cards for Solitaire that would be one thing she could probably do in her wheelchair or in bed. I haven’t been able to think of other solo activities, nor have I been able to come up with anywhere to find a board like I’m describing for playing cards.
Major Fun replies:
I've been Googling around. I think magnetic playing cards might be your best alternative. I found them fairly widely available. The most often recommended seem to be these.
However, since you asked, most seniors I know really crave people to play with, a lot more than things to play with by themselves. The real, life-restoring stimulation that they so much need comes from, well, living things.
Montegue Blister introduces himself as follows: "I am passionate about party and childhood games. Not just boring pass the parcel but unusual, even bizarre games like Snapdragons, Walking Trippy, Mouchard."
Take Lemon Golf, - a most refreshingly Junkyard-like game played with lemons and walking sticks. Lemons! How joysomely unpredictable and party-worthy. Sure, you can use yardsticks instead of walking sticks. Or umbrellas even (collapsed, probably). But what other game can you think of that combines wacky object-whacking with lemonade preparation.
O, yes, there's the oddly Prui-like Mouchard, and, as advertised, Walking Trippy, and, should you wonder, the curiously dangerous children's game of Snapdragons.
This fellow Blister is clearly a fellow in spirit - an advocate and collector of primarily pointless games, played for the fun of it. And hence, a valued resource for us each and all.
This week's FunCast is about a game that some kids and I created together when I was working at the Intensive Learning Center (actually), in Philadelphia, on my way towards compiling an actual curriculum in children's games. It's called "Human Spring." It is what one might call the apotheosis of cooperative games. Or what another might call "vertical push-ups."
It turned out that someone with the good sense to purchase a copy of The Well-Played Game found herself needing more than an in-depth exploration of the parallels between games and community and culture and life and stuff. What she was actually looking for was a collection of games she could play with older people.
Though I have made some efforts to compile a collection of board games that one could deem "Senior-Worthy," I discovered that I hadn't as yet compiled a useful list of funny, social games that would be specifically of value to people of the significantly mature ilk. Hence, it is with some sense of actual, though delayed accomplishment that I herewith announce the online availability of a sweet compilation of funny, social games for older people and people with limited mobility. You will, of course, find these games equally appropriate and amusing, even should you be of unlimited ability and/or not of the elder persuasion.
Ever since I discovered the power of games, I've suspected that they are more powerful than I guessed. I'm beginning to think that they may be, in their playful way, the kind of archetypes that Jung describes as "primordial images and symbols found in the collective unconscious, which - in contrast to the personal unconscious - gathers together and passes on the experiences of previous generations, preserving traces of humanity's evolutionary development over time. " I've come to see them as mythical metaphors, as Joseph Campbell has come to understand myth and metaphor. They are a theater without dialogue, a literature without words, each one revealing its wisdom in play.
"Shotgun Golf was invented in the ominous summer of 2004 AD, right here at the Owl Farm in Woody Creek, Colo. The first game was played between me and Sheriff Bob Braudis, on the ancient Bomb & Shooting Range of the Woody Creek Rod & Gun Club. It was witnessed by many members and other invited guests, and filmed for historical purposes by Dr. Thompson on Super-Beta videotape.
The game consists of one golfer, one shooter and a field judge. The purpose of the game is to shoot your opponent's high-flying golf ball out of the air with a finely-tuned 12-gauge shotgun, thus preventing him (your opponent) from lofting a 9-iron approach shot onto a distant 'green' and making a 'hole in one.' Points are scored by blasting your opponent's shiny new Titleist out of the air and causing his shot to fail miserably. That earns you two points.
But if you miss and your enemy holes out, he (or she) wins two points when his ball hits and stays on the green.
And after that, you trade places and equipment, and move on to round 2."
For those of us seeking a less, shall we say, junkly challenge, there's of course Schmerltz Frisbee Golf, which would, similarly of course, be played with a, well, flying disc-like Frisbee-like thing (like a paper plate), and, as hitherto implied, a Schmerltz.
Last week, I wrote about the Camp wiki, extolling its promise as a much-needed, collaboratively developed repository of camp-worthy games and activities. The theory behind all this wikification is that, given a community of like-minded fun-seekers (or fun-minded like-seekers), it should be possible to develop an extensive, ever-growing repository of gamish knowledge, that only becomes more valuable as more people contribute.
This week, it is with at least equally profound pleasure that I inform you that Streetplay, one of the few sites devoted to the inner-city street games of the 40s, 50s and 60s, has launched its very own Streetplay Wiki, a.k.a. SPwiki. Now, you, too can exhume and immortalize your rapidly fading memories of those ad hoc, informal, unofficial, homemade neighborhood games that you played on the streets and sidewalks and front steps and back yards of your childhood.
"Players' enjoyment of games depended on whether the games made them feel competent and independent, and, in the case of multiplayer games, connected to other players. Players who enjoyed their experience showed increases in well-being, self-esteem, and vitality after playing, while those whose needs weren't satisfied reported lowered vitality and mood."
My co-inspirer and fellow FunspotterCelia Pearce, adds: "One thing I like about this article is it's saying that most of the studies have been about the potential harms. It also begs the question: who is getting enjoyment out of what? I think some games are actually not that enjoyable for some people, as you know. I hated football when I was a kid!"
It is a great relief to stumble upon this oasis of positivity. My one disappointment is that this article, like so many that have been written in defense of "gaming," is so passionately focused on videogames that it fails to connect with the larger phenomenon of play, in all its manifestations. According to my exhaustive inner research, precisely the same findings related to the enjoyment of videogames is true of all play frames - bowling (speaking of frames), chess, solving puzzles, playing dress-up.
Today's sending, apparently from the Oaqui (him, her or them)selves(f) - ostensibly about a game of Oaqui Pong, which, according to the Oaqui, is the progenitor of all games pongish, contains a curious comment. And I quote:
"Then, when we arrive at the idea of the Serve, well, Table Tennis, bound as it to its OneBalledness, begins as a game in which one player has to Serve to the other, trying, can you imagine, not only to get the ball over the net and hit the other side of the table, but to make the other player MISS! It's beyond odd, when you think about it, that a game would arise in which one player, in the name of SERVING, would try to make the other player lose! These are the consequences of UniBallistic thinking: SERVING each other by trying to make each other LOSE!
Which, of course, leads inevitably to the way they keep score. Here, Table Tennis, merely because of its MonoSpherical premise, makes the oddest of all leaps. Where as you, being sensitized to the Oaay of the Oaqui, would think BOTH players would LOSE a point every time the ball goes out of play, well, need I/we say more?"
I need, apparently, to say it again in today's FunCast, fortuitously titled: "Oaqui Pong."
What? Lacks combat? A Mass Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game, without fighting? And people like it? And it's fun?
Apparently so.
Allow me to continue quoting from the venerated Wikipedia:
"The lack of levels was also a unique feature in past tales, but the most recent tale has seen the addition of a levels system. Players can kill their livestock, go on safari, and most of all engage into politics. The game focuses on building, research and community. Even more uniquely, players are able to have a lasting effect on the world; the game reaches an endpoint, after which a new Telling begins, which bears marks of the Telling before. Players can also create laws (including player bans) and make feature requests. Compared to other online games, there is also a closer to equal ratio of male to female players, and a high level of civility and generosity, as a result of the difference in focus."
Again, what?!? Lasting effect on the world? Player-created laws? Closer to equal ratio of male to female? High level of civility and generosity?
Is there, then, a reason for hope? Is it, therefore, actually likely that there will be more games like this - games that foster communities of players who actually care about each other, and the world they are creating together?
The Camp Wiki is a resource for anyone who cares about groups - from camp counselors to business trainers. Right now, it is far from encyclopedic. There aren't nearly enough games described. But the games that are described are of proven play value, and many are as innovative as they are fun. For example, this very small sample of Big Games has only two games on it - Giant Billiards and Giant Scrabble (Boggle). Both they are both invitations to a great deal of fun, there's just enough about them to inspire the creation of more such games (did I ever tell you about Giant Foosball?), and, being a Wiki, and free, it's also enough to invite contributions from anyone who cares about groups and growth and fun. It's a fragile resource, dependent on its members for expertise and self-censorship. One that we should nourish and protect.
I have a thought. One, it seems, in retrospect, given the Newness of it all, yearwise, somehow appropriate. I begin like this:
"Having done something stupid and embarrassing again – and I’ll tell you it was so stupid and so embarrassing that I really don’t want to talk about it, at all, ever – I found myself really punishing myself for having done what I did. And after about half hour of surprisingly brutal internal rhetoric, it became obvious to me that what I needed more than anything else was some kind of recess. I just had to take myself away from all this. It was something we all needed."
And I somehow manage to conclude like this:
"So Wrong, just when he was supposed to offer the strongest opposition, simply let the rope go. And Silly was yanked so hard by the combined strength of Serious and Right that he landed on top of them both, causing all of them to fall into a pile. And just as Serious and Right were about to express the equivalent of moral indignation, Wrong completely doubled over in laughter. Doubled over so completely that there were, for a brief moment, two Wrongs, which, with an unseen flash, made another Right. And suddenly, there were no Wrongs at all. Just two Rights, either of whom, by all rights, could have felt deeply wronged by all this silliness, but didn’t. In stead, both Rights also doubled over in laughter. Which turned out to be exactly the right thing to do, because neither Silly nor Serious could be found. And everything was all right again. For everyone. For, especially, me, alright, all right."
Defender of the Playful Ze Frank, author of, for example, the visually delicious, play-invitingly voice-activated Meditation Flowers, has, since March, been producing, five days a week, video- and podcasts that range from the strange to the deeply strange. He calls it "The Show," and he intends to continue creating the show for exactly one year.
Since you're obviously one of the fun few, I thought you'd especially appreciate Ze's reflections on the game of Scrabble. It's a frank (naturally), funny, informed, often silly, and sometimes uncomfortably familiar exploration of his experiences as a member of a Scrabble-playing family. If you find yourself so moved, you can even read The Script.
Cosmic Cows - you gotta love them cows. Tiny little, doll-like, plastic cows. All ten of them.
And then there's the game. You know Yahtzee? OK. Think of it as Yahtzee with cows. And you're playing a Yahtzee kind of tug-of-war with your opponent, trying to get maybe all 5 dice the same so you can super beam the middle cow, as it were, all the way to your winning zone. Kinda like getting a Yahtzee in, uh, Yahtzee. Or maybe a full-house so you can move one cow three spaces closer to you and the other, two. Before, of course, your opponent, no doubt, pulls them back. Ten different cows to shoot for. Five different dice. The number of spaces a cow gets to move depends on how many dice show that number. Oh, and you get three rolls, like as in, well, Yahtzee.
But it's not Yahtzee. It's Cosmic Cows, and darn if those little cows and that dicey equivalent of tug-of-warring them back and forth across the board doesn't make it feel like something really different than Yahtzee. Not like a dice game at all. But a board game. And a sweet, light, semi-strategic board game it is. One that has very cute little plastic cows and is really easy to learn how to play - especially if you know how to play games like Yahtzee.
It's interesting to note that according to the written rules of Twenty Questions, you can play the whole game and still need only two answers. Yes, No.
Many years ago, my friend David Thornburg invited me to play 20 questions with a computer.
Is it Animal? I typed. No, it answered. Vegetable? Yes. Edible? Yes. Is it Yellow? No. Corn? No. Is it Green? No. Red? No. White? Yes. (Aha, a white, edible vegetable!) A Cauliflower? No. A Turnip? No. A Jicima? Yes.
I was relatively impressed with the way the computer played. It certainly picked a difficult enough challenge. Jicima!
There's a weblog called Question of the Day, which, as advertised, asks questions, every, apparently, day. Questions like: How many boxes of cereal are in your kitchen?. What makes this site work so well is: the cleverness of the questions, the responses of the readers, and the rule that when you respond to a question, you must add another question of your own. For example, the first response to the cereal question went like this:
"6 open and 4 or 5 unopened.
How many pairs of jeans do you own?"
The next:
"I own 15-20 pairs of jeans.
How many siblings do you have?"
et, most wonderfully, cetera.
I played a game like this at a NASAGA conference years ago. We were learning about a process for discussing a book. The leader began with a question. Anyone who wanted to respond answered, and then concluded by asking another question. As we progressed, our questions and responses became increasingly more genuine. It was strange, odd, even, because the structure didn't allow for what we commonly think of as "conversation" or even "discussion." And yet, as we progressed, we each experienced the development of a deeply and honestly shared inquiry, and understanding.
Then, of course, there's the Questions Game that has become a standard among improvisational theater games, and was enshrined by the not-yet-dead Rosencrantz and Gildenstern in the Tom Stoppard play - in which everything anyone says has to be a question?
The MajorFUN Award goes to games and people that bring people fun, and to any organization managing to make the world more fun, through its own person contributions, and through the products it has managed to bring to the market.
Major FUN especially likes games that:
* make people laugh * are original, flexible, easy to adapt * are well-made, durable, easily stored * are easy to understand and teach
The Five Most Major Fun party games for 2006 are:
Wits and Wagers combines trivia with betting to create a unique party game - one that can involve anywhere from 3 to 21 players in an evening or half-hour worth of relatively painless trivia questions and sometimes near-painful strategizing.
Knowbody Knows, for example, exactly how many hours Tom Hanks sleeps in a week. Probably not even Mr. Hanks knows that. So, OK, so you don't know. You can still guess. Because, see, it's only a guess, and, as the designers of the game are so ready to remind us, Knowbody, actually, Knows.
Quelf is a silly game. For those of us who are mature enough to appreciate silliness as an art form, it is both a bench- and a watermark of wackiness. If you find yourself unwilling to, for example, "suck your thumb in silence and start rolling the dice. When you roll a '3,' shout, 'Get off my land!' in your best chipmunk voice," mayhap Quelf is not exactly your kind of game.
GiftTRAP is a party game about giving each other gifts. The better you are at giving people the things they really want, the better you do at the game. How do you like that for a party game premise? giving each other presents. Well, we loved it!
Luck of the Draw is described as "a game for the artistically challenged." And I am happy to tell you that this turns out to be a remarkably accurate description of the very people who will have the most fun playing it: the people who don't like games that make them draw.
I have, for reasons which are currently obvious only to me and a few game manufacturers, been very interested of late in Family Fitness Fun. I love how it puts together three words which have so much trouble relating to each other. And I love even more the picture of families having fun exercising together. So, I did what anyone in my position (in front of the computer) would do, I Googled. And found my way to this article about a thing called a "Power Pad" - a game peripheral used to play, among other things, Dance Aerobics, which was ever so clearly a direct progenitor of the wildly successful Dance, Dance Revolution, and yet, despite the brilliance of it all, everso vividly failed.
O, it succeeded, the Power Pad did, in its way, but not in its time. And it made me honestly contemplate the possibility that maybe it's not so bad, actually, not such a minor achievement, in fact, not something one would poo-poo, the Power Pad, and all those things and people before their time, who, despite financial failures, have made this time possible.
As I grow older, there is one, almost universal game that has proven ever more central to both my growing and my olderness - the one you know as Duck, Duck, Goose. At the same time, as my olderness makes itself apparent in everless subtle ways, I have with increasing impatience sought out a version of this most wonderful game that doesn't involve running around. Not that I'm too old to run around. It's just that the people I play with tend to be. Too old to run around without hurting themselves a little beyond fun.
Today, because it's you, I am happy to go to these great lengths to introduce to you, special, my latest and perhaps most profound bit of funsmithery yet - a way to play Duck, Duck, Goose sitting down entirely.
It is based, loosely, on the game of A What, don't you know.
Everyone sits in a circle. Ah. One player, let us call her the "Goose," starts the game by turning to the person to her right and saying "duck." That person, the duck-pro-temps, turns to the person on his right and similarly says "duck." And on and on it goes, until one player, instead of turning to the person on his right and saying "duck," turns to the person on his left and says "goose" and then turns to the person on his right and says "duck." The person who was "ducked," as has heretofore been the case, says "duck" to the person on her right. But now, the person was, um, said "Goose" to, says "Goose" to the person on his left, don't you see. So now the Duck is going one way, the Goose the other. And the only thing you supposedly don't want to be is the person who finds himself simultaneously both.
Noise: Last night, at Santarchy, my nephew, dressed as Old St Nick, proposed to his girlfriend, dressed as an elf.
Me: fantastic! did she accept?
Noise: she did. when santa proposes in front of 40 other santas, an elf dare not say no. here's a less-than-perfect photo. a landmark event, santa proposing to one of his elves. mrs. claus wasnt too happy about it
Noise: i'm not a big fan of bar crawls in general... i only like the cacophony ones because we focus more on the crawl and less on the bar. i think we actually spent more time doing stuff in public than hanging out in bars.
Me: but the bar part is the excuse that keeps the party going
Noise: indeed it is... and the excuse to get many people involved who might otherwise consider it "too strange" i see the bar crawls as "gateway" events to get people comfortable with the idea of finding nontraditional ways to have fun and see how much fun they really can have.
Me, half-hour later, in retro- and intro-spect: the more you drink, the harder it is to see how much fun "you can really have." Because the drunker you get, the less connected you are to the "real you." In fact, for many of us, that's precisely why we get drunk - so we can get away from ourselves for a while. Most games do that for us, too - let us loosen the connection to our "real," mature, grown-up, selves.
Loosen, but not lose. That's the key difference. Loosen the connection, but not lose it. Loosen so we become larger than the selves we have come to think of as real.
As I write in my article Meeting by the Numbers: "When you're trying to help people get something together, the first thing you have to do is get them together. And energized. And nothing does this faster and more wholesomely than a game. Especially if the game is presented in such a way that it is: easy to understand, easy to play, and clearly non-threatening. When a meeting reconvenes, especially after a long break, the best kind of game is one that can easily accommodate stragglers." Listen to this. See also this.
In preparing for my participation in the Macarthur-Foundation-sponsored "Pathways to Gaming," I was given a couple of questions to cogitate over. The following are the questions and my responses:
How might we think about gaming as one experience within a larger system of experiences, which constitute contexts for learning, whether they are institutional, familial, or personal?
Before we can put the gaming experience into context, we need to consider the entire spectrum of activities that fall within the rubric of play (or perhaps "rubric cube of play"). Games of all sorts, sports of similar sorts, contests, solitary play, social play, pretend play, play fighting, dramatic play, dress-up, dance, music, dangerous play, nasty play, jokes, riddles, silliness of all sorts, seriousness of related sorts, toy play, puzzle play - and then maybe we can put gaming in its play context, at least. Then, of course, there's the kind of gaming that focuses more on achievement than on play, games that we use to help us learn things, or to distract ourselves, or focus ourselves (I wonder if meditation can be considered a kind of gaming?).
What are the ways in which we might capitalize on the different paths players take into gaming to develop new ways of thinking about learning and literacy across communities?
Then maybe we need to consider the kinds of learning that are native to games and play. Ever since I first taught elementary school I've been amazed and confused by kids who can play chess well, and are failing math. Maybe we need to take a closer look at an educational system that seems not to be able to capitalize on the many competencies people develop when they are in pursuit of nothing other than play. In fact, maybe we nee.d to contemplate the nature of an educational system that is guided by the things kids do in the name of play
Well, I must admit that I've been contemplating that very thing for very many years now, since 1969 probably when I began to understand how much kids were learning about themselves and society playing games like "Duck Duck Goose" and "Capture the Flag." And how utterly confused I've become by an educational system that has all but eliminated recess and a culture that has almost outlawed free play.
The day after I arrived in 
The World Pooh Sticks Competition
I've been wanting to tell you about this project ever since I became involved with it, more than a year ago. As you can see from 
A Handheld Skating and Snowboarding Sail
Montague Blister's Strange Games
The "Spirit of the Game"
This
Here you will find the 
of a girl playing some kind of hopscotch. But what kind of hopscotch looks like that?
Underpants Tug-of-War
, which, in turn, makes me think that one could everso easily make one's own Panty-tug-of-war-like game out of a pair of pantyhose, or perhaps two.
Marbles. Ah, marbles. I don't know if you've managed to read "
If you happened to find yourself in such a position, and you wished to express, materially, in a virtual-sort of way, your personal appreciation for my ongoing existence, you might very well wish to send me a gift of some sort - especially if it didn't cost you anything. The question remains, however, what to get me. I've narrowed it down to: Pottery Classes, a Digital Camcorder, and a dress-up outfit. As an added incentive, if you happen to choose the one I really, really, really wanted most in the world, given only those three choices, you'd get three thumbs-up points and so would I! So, see, I really do want you to guess the one I really want, because then we both gets thumbs-up points. So the game is about giving each other things, things that'd be nice to be able to give each other, virtual, no-cash-value gifts that nonetheless are genuine acts of thoughtfulness.
"Residents as old as 103 have ditched knitting and bridge after getting hooked on the console," writes Andrew Parker in the Sun Times (UK). He quotes 88 year-young Barrie Edgar: 'It’s great fun. We’ve only had it a few days but we can’t put it down.'"
Game Cafe
"the game begins with the thrower calling out a number (typically a multiple of 100 between 100 and 500), and then throwing the baseball/football/flying disc,(hoseball), or hitting the baseball with a baseball bat, in the general direction of the group. The person that catches the throw gains the number of points called out. The process is repeated until one of the players reaches or exceeds 500 points. That player then switches places with the thrower, and the game continues. Typically, all player's point totals are reset when a new thrower is instated."
Rock-Scissors-Paper. It's one of those so-called "kids' games" that has become emblematic of how profound a so-called kids' game might be. 
The vice versa part, actually, has been a pet fantasy of mine ever since I started designing computer games, back in '81. In fact, a game I developed for Children's Television Workshop, called "Light-Waves," was loosely based on a kids playground game called 
Balanko
Montegue Blister
"
Cosmic Cows
