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SantosL.Halper
topic
12:33:48 PM May 28th 2010
Remoced the following:

* Mancala. Invented in Africa in prehistoric times, this game makes this trope Older Than Dirt. Many ancient half-complete games have been found, and some African tribes still play the game today, but no one set of rules has been found. Several methods of playing even contradict each other, to the point that all we know is that it has to do with two rows of cups with long cups on each end, and stones that were moved around.

Mancala is an entire family of board games played with the same board, and there are many rules for those games, not to mention that the earliest Mancala boards were discovered in 7th Century Ethiopia (which was already in written history), and the earliest mentioning of Mancala in a written work occured during the 14th Century.
LostInFog
topic
04:47:10 PM Sep 3rd 2010
In the intro: "Also, the trope does not include games to which every single rule has not been given."

Shouldn't the second "not" not be there?

I think it's meant to say, "Also, the trope does not include games to which every single rule has been given."
75.135.145.202
07:39:24 PM Nov 9th 2010
It says what it means to say, it is just poorly worded. It it's trying to say, effectively, "games with set rules that simply haven't been explained don't count". Someone should fix that.
98.163.227.30
topic
01:12:27 PM Jan 28th 2011
Should Fizzbin be on this list? I mean, it was not meant to be a real game, even in-universe. It was a distraction.

I think Fizzbin should be its own page. Fizzbin should be defined as 'a faux game with convoluted and confusing rules designed to distract, defraud, or harm another character.' On this page under Live Action TV, I see: Jigglyball, Spat, Klebob, and an anti-Fizzbin game of Cups.

Basically, a Calvinball is a 'real' game (however outlandish, unrealistic, or unplayable) that is enjoyed and understood by all the players. Though, part of the enjoyment may come from how confused and frustrated spectators become. A Fizzbin is just a scam. Two very different things.

A number of the examples given on this page should be filed under Fizzbin.
Wyldchyld
topic
01:17:03 PM Feb 5th 2012
edited by Wyldchyld
I don't think Kyouraku from Bleach is a genuine example of this trope, so I've removed it from the page. Justification as follows.

Looking at the trope description, this is about games that are fluid, without rules or with rules that will change at a moment's notice and the purpose is fun, not winning. Kyouraku's power weaponises children's games. Going by the four points listed in the trope description, his power compares as follows:

1. Weaponised children's games. It's very much about winning the "game" (really, a fight tactic) because if you lose, you die.

2. They're weaponised children's games. As a result, they're not non-existent games. If the opponent can work out which game is being played, they can work out the rules because it's a fight-modified version of the game it's based on.

3. Kyouraku's zanpakutou requires him to explain the rules to allow his opponent to play the game. As a result, all Kyouraku can do is try to limit how many of the rules he reveals to retain as much of a tactical advantage as possible. It's not about having fun or spoiling jokes, it's about winning a fight and making sure the it's the other guy who ends up dead.

4. The rules are fixed for the game being played. Kyouraku can switch the game being played but he can't change the rules of the game. If he switches from Game A to Game B and then goes back to Game A, the second time he plays Game A will have the same rules as the first time he played Game A.

Kyouraku's zanpakutou can withhold games leaving Kyouraku limited to specific set of games he can play in battle, but again, that's not what this trope's really about. The games are more like battle strategies, the person who masters it best, wins. The loser dies. As much as he's called Captain Calvinball by the fanbase, I really don't think he's a genuine example of this trope. Not based on the trope's current description, anyway.
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