Re: [Galaxy] Gunboat games?

From: David desJardins <desj@math.berkeley.edu>

Date: Sat, 12 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000

David Michael Kass <dkass@cco.caltech.edu> writes:
> After thinking about it, I realized that Galaxy might be particularly
> well suited to such games since 1) the game itself doesn't require
> diplomacy (unlike say Phoenix); and 2) there would only need to be
> minor modifications to the game itself.

There have in fact been several games of Blind Galaxy.  You can probably
find discussions of that variant in Deja News or on the web.  My
experience in such games was that it was hard to keep up one's
enthusiasm for the game.  The lack of diplomacy means that it basically
degenerates into one-on-one battles, with players trying to keep their
heads down (after all, if everyone else fights while you grow, that's
good for you), and then getting drawn into individual conflicts.  I
guess I didn't find the tactics of Galaxy fascinating enough to enjoy
week after week of throwing thousands of ships at my enemy (who was of
course doing the same to me).  If that were really a lot of fun, you
might as well play two-player Galaxy, and then you could at least have
the extra enjoyment of posting press and gloating over your triumphs.

I think "territorial" games, in which players are somewhat naturally
forced into particular conflicts or alliances by their geographical
position, probably work better as blind games than games like Galaxy
which are relatively unstructured and where it's fairly easy (especially
as tech levels climb) to pick and choose your enemies.  Of course, such
games (like Gunboat Diplomacy) still *do* have a diplomatic element,
even without communication.

David desJardins

References

[Galaxy] Gunboat games?
dkass@cco.caltech.edu (David Michael Kass)
Thu, 10 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000

Referenced By

[Galaxy] Gunboat games?
dkass@cco.caltech.edu (David Michael Kass)
Thu, 10 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000