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Can turns be eliminated?

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Anonymous

I know there was a post elsewhere about RTS boardgames, that made me think of this topic of turns.

Can turns be eliminated entirely? Meaning; having at least 2 players always doing whatever it is in the game that makes it fun?

I

doho123
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Joined: 07/21/2008
Can turns be eliminated?

During one of the regular chats, we had a discussion along these lines. Through a little back and forth between members, this is something I put together:

http://home.attbi.com/~doho123/games/bombsquad/index.htm

Anonymous
Can turns be eliminated?

One way to do this is the way they did it in diplomacy. Everybody secretly writes down their orders for the next turn. And then all orders are revealed to the game moderator(Possibly also a player) who resolves them simultaneously. It

FastLearner
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Joined: 12/31/1969
Can turns be eliminated?

I agree that simultaneous action selection is probably the best "real-time" mechanic that I

Anonymous
Can turns be eliminated?

Most of the games where turns have been eliminated involve an element of speed. To me, this seems to take most games out of the strategy game genre. Some people think well under pressure and others do not. I enjoy turn-based strategy games though I would certainly be open to new mechanics which which add elements of quick thought that might result in bonuses or free turns.

A recent turnless game called Time Control was released and can be found on the FunAgain website.

In answer to your question, "yes" turns can be eliminated. It just makes for a whole new kind of game.

zaiga
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Joined: 12/31/1969
Can turns be eliminated?

Pit and Wheedle are real-time trading games, which end when someone has collected a certain set of cards. While speed is important in this game, it is more of the "thinking on your feet" kind, then the dexterous kind.

Simultaneous action selection games are kind of turnless, but not really (players just take their turns, well, simultaneously).

It

phpbbadmin
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Can turns be eliminated?

One alternative I thought of while reading this thread was the use of timers... (egg, electronic, whatever). Say if you performed a particular action, you had to turn that timer over and couldn

Scurra
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Can turns be eliminated?

"Tamsk" literally is played with egg-timers - it

Anonymous
Can turns be eliminated?

My recently published game, Sunda to Sahul, can be played as both a

jwarrend
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Joined: 08/03/2008
Can turns be eliminated?

At spielfrieks, there's been some discussion today that Klaus Teuber is going to release a board game version of a popular RTS game called "Anno 1503". It will be interesting to look at how a great designer approaches this problem; perhaps after playing his game, we can all revisit this issue!

My personal feeling is that I like turns, even when its' "simultaneous action selection", because I find I like to analyze things at my own pace and weigh my options, and games that reward players who can think quickly and make a lot of decisions fast don't typically reward the way I play.

That said, I think there are some great exceptions; Chinatown, for example, is all about wheeling and dealing, and pausing to think too much could lose you a chance to make a lucrative deal with another player. I have no problem with that kind of thing; I think it's crucial to the atmosphere of a wheeling and dealing game that it play fast, in real time, and players must play by intuition rather than analysis.

But I'm not at all interested in a game where players can get extra turns by manipulating their pieces, or other game elements, faster than other players. I think turns are crucial to making a game playable for players who play at different rates.

I bet there are ways, however, to incorporate RTS concepts into boardgames, but I think, ultimately, the best you can really hope for is simultaneity of actions; I think going to real-time just gives up too much of what I find fun about playing games.

-Jeff

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