Favorite Game Tournament 2012 (Chess wins! Condorcet Bonus!)

[zoraster]

Chess
Dominion
Bridge
Texas Hold'em Poker
The Settlers of Catan
Hearts
Go
Risk
Diplomacy

[zoraster]

It was a close call between Dominion and Chess for me. They're just such different beasts. And the truth is that Chess, like Bridge, is a frustrating game because you introduce it, you explain the rules, etc. and it's going to take months if not years of solid play to get to be an even averagely competitive player.

Dominion, on the other hand, is just intuitively grasped by many people, even if immediately they're not truly competitive. Not to mention it's FUN for people even when they're losing and just started. And the cards change. And there are different synergies, etc.

But chess is chess.

[zoraster]

It depends how you define "averagely competitive". Obviously a player just learning the game will beat an expert player more often with Dominion than Chess, because Dominion has a significant luck factor. I wouldn't argue against the notion that becoming an expert in Chess takes more effort, but I don't think the difference is as big as it might seem. When I was playing regularly last year, I would have expected to beat anyone on this site in a best of 7, regardless of their prior experience - it took over 2000 games to get to that point.

I still don't think the number of repetitions is anywhere close. Don't get me wrong: I think that's probably a good thing about dominion. I'm just saying they're different beasts.

Look at it another way: when I was playing chess regularly if I sat down with someone who was just familiar with the rules, maybe knew the basic concepts behind chess, etc. it wouldn't be much fun to destroy them.

But I regularly introduce Dominion to new players. Sure, I'll probably win with a true newbie even if they draw 5/2 on a Witch/Chapel board because they don't recognize the power of the Chapel. But I'll still have fun, and they'll still have fun. And give them a few dozen reptitions, and they'll be to the point where it's challenging.

Give a chess newbie a few HUNDRED reptitions, and they're not going to be a challenge to a good player.

That's not a negative about Dominion at all. Winning over the course of time takes a lot of skill and knowledge. No doubt someone who has played and studied the game more than I have will beat me (especially because I'm not as familiar with the sets I don't yet own). But I like that it's far more approachable and fun for a new player.

And I guess that's the thing abuot chess as well. Two newbies playing each other aren't going to like it much. Because it'll just be about avoiding major blunders because they didn't see the queen could be taken by the bishop. But two newbies playing Dominion are likely to enjoy themselves. They may not be playing optimally, but who cares?