This is discussion archived from a time before the current discussion method was installed.
Dark Sasami: I don't have a copy of Brave New World handy. Does Centrifugal Bumblepuppy count, or was it adequately explained? It's still the best game name ever, either way.
Fire Walk: It was explained vaguely (it was the one with the rotating thing that shot balls, wasn't it?) but I'm not sure it would count: the amount of explanation was fine for what little role it played. I wouldn't count games which are never properly explained if they're not really dwelt on or toyed with.
Hasher Britarse Does anyone remember the name of the wrestling game from The Prisoner that involved trampolines, Gymnastic bars, a pool of water and wearing one cricket glove?
Robin Goodfellow: "Kosho" (sp?)
Scifantasy: How is Dragon Poker in Myth "Americanitis"? Asprin's American.
Hasher Britarse Possibly more Creator Provincialism, Asprin seems unable to imagine any of his multiple dimensions not being a copy of the USA and understanding American jokes. Puns like Ahz/Oz, Klahd/clod and Jahk/jock only work if you have an American accent and require that you knoe 'jock' means big dumb football-player type. Masha sees a crowded city and immediately compares it to Manhattan (even though none of the cast ever mention going there) and whan she starts floating, compares herself to the Goodyear blimp (in a sword-and-sorcery setting!) Okay, maybe Masha is American and her presence in another dimension gets explained sometime. A Teamsters union run by the mob.... etc. etc. there's a thin line between parody and lack of imagination!
el Igore: I think Rollerball should be in here. Yes, the (few) rules are rather well explained, but hey, people in hockey/football gear on skates and motorbikes which are fighting over a small ball on a playing field with ramps etc.? Not to mention that in the most games players are severely injured or even killed.
I took out the Pirates of The Caribbean/Liar's Dice entry, as Perudo
is a real game.
Nate The Great: I removed Tongo and Dabo from Star Trek. Perhaps we need a better description. This trope is not "any fictional game." Tongo and Dabo have very precise rules, and new ones can't be created on the fly. Fizzbin fully counts, but the others don't.
Daibhid C: The description is a game which doesn't have clear and precise rules from the perspective of the audience isn't it? (If it isn't, at least two thirds of the entries shouldn't be here.) The characters may know how Tongo and Dabo should be played, but from our viewpoint they're just spinning wheels around and talking "gamebabble".
- While the basic rules of water polo are clearly defined (one hand on the ball, can't dunk under water, 30 second shot clock, etc.) whether or not something is a foul, ejection, or nothing is almost entirely dependent on the referee and acting skills. Just put it this way — for one of the most violent sports, it is actually labeled non-contact.
- Mike Rosoft: Complaining about games you don't like. Did it ever occur to you that the first sentence is true for every ball game?
