Games are an organized form of recreational play, normally undertaken for fun or entertainment, and at times used as a teaching tool. Games are quite different from work, which often is performed for remuneration, and by definition is an artistic or aesthetic expression of some specific political or other kind. In contrast, games are normally just for entertainment, although some of them may also be part of work. Although most people have a limited understanding of the history of gaming, it has been called the “indispensable cultural icon” of our time.
The history of GAMES dates back to the antiquity, with the earliest examples being stone and board games such as Solitaire and Chess. With time however, the genre of GAMES broadened significantly, with the development of the first mass-market video games. With each passing year, we see a more elaborate and technologically sophisticated GAMES. We now see the history of GAMES compressed into packaged electronic forms. In a way, the humble board and stone have been transformed into the modern gaming machine we know today, through the careful incorporation of computer technology.
Games are normally divided into two main categories, either of which may contain card or video game chips. Card games are played with the use of Coins, while video games are played using portable devices like personal computers and handheld game consoles. A wide variety of new titles are continually being introduced to the world, both for the purposes of entertainment and as educational tools. Most video games are targeted at boys and girls aged twelve and above, but some educational board games for kids are also available.
At the heart of all board games, whether played by one or many players, are the basic fundamental rules which, when well adapted, provide a rich opportunity for the imaginative activity of each player. The most common of these rulesets, the WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) style, requires the addition of many sub-systems to accommodate the variety of possible situations each game could be presented in. The Small World rules system, designed for children, is another example of how careful design can help produce a rich and interesting universe that is familiar and engaging to the players.
Another way to approach board gaming, is to limit the number of players to a small number of people, say, the maximum of four. In this way the complexity of the setting can be limited, without losing the richness and complexity of the small world created by the rules of the game. Some games might allow for a maximum of three or four players at the time of publication, but even those at the time of publishing might allow for only one or two players at a time. This is particularly important for games of a visual nature, where the visual itself can cause a small world to rapidly expand.
There are also some games that might have a time limit, or other sort of restriction on the number of players. A popular one is the Travelling Salesman Game, where the last person to buy a product from a salesman is the loser. Another popular one is the Balloon Seller Game, where there is a time limit for the delivery of one balloon. Many of these games have an element of bluffing, where a competitor can temporarily fake being interested in bidding, or else waiting until the right moment to respond.