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What would be the game genre of this kind of game?

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Eclecticus
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Hi, I'm designing a game with a medieval theme where a player must challenge another player for a duel. This is a card game and its core mechanic is like the core mechanic of a well known game called rock, paper, scissors. If a player is playing against another player they will have to use 2 decks of cards but if a player is playing on his own he will have to include a small deck of cards to select his moves and 1 or 2 dice as well to select his opponent moves. Both players apply combat moves at the same time like in the rock, paper, scissors game. I don't think I can call it a real time strategy game, or a turn based game but probably it could be called a tactical game or a game of chance because players must apply combat moves at the same time and they must always try to guess their opponent's next move. Could you help me to discover to what genre of games it will probably belong?

I will indicate again its principal features:

2 players playing with one another: 2 decks of cards.
1 payer playing on his own: 1 deck of cards + 1 or 2 dice.
Players must apply their selected moves at the same time.
Players must try to guess their opponent's next move.

Thank you in advance for your help and replies.

Eclecticus

truekid games
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Rock Paper Scissors or "blind

Rock Paper Scissors or "blind bid" would be my guess (hard to discern any more than that based on the limited description).

ilta
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The main mechanic is RPS,

The main mechanic is RPS, straight up.

It's definitely not "blind bid" which implies a simultaneous and/or hidden auction mechanic. If players placed their moves face down, and could bolster them with added strength cards or something, it might move into that territory.

The game genre would probably be "light, tactical card game." Other examples of this genre include Lost Cities and Balloon Cup.

truekid games
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RPS is a double-blind bid

RPS is a double-blind bid (with non-transitive values), so whether it's RPS or not, it's still blind bid :P

JaffetC
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like YOmi?

something like Yomi by Sirlin Games?

Pastor_Mora
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Simultaneous Action Selection

The name of the mechanic is Simultaneous Action Selection, and there are a ton of great games that use that mechanic (7 Wonders, El Grande, Shogun, Dixit) because it drastically reduces downtime.

Not sure what you mean by genre, but yours is a tipical duel game (Magic: the Gathering). Not knowing much about the game, I think you could emphazise in whether the game focuses on bluffing (Poker) or on deduction (Mr. Jack Pocket). I highlight those two dynamics (game cathegories by BGG standards) from what you are saying, but I find them difficult to merge with the notion that you would replace a second player with a roll of two dices (not much logic or cleverness on that). On the other hand, if the real point of your actions as a player is to arrange your cards well, aside of whatever the opponent will play, then you are dealing with a hand management game.

As a side note, I wouldn't say up front this is a bidding game, as I imagine it doesn't have a climbing aspect in the cards you can play.

Hope this makes sense. My 2 cents.

truekid games
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There are a plethora of

There are a plethora of bidding games which have no climbing aspect. Ra being a good example.

Simultaneous action selection is probably another way to frame it, though I would be more prone to say that's the case if the action does something distinct other than just determining winner or loser of a particular play (which is not evidenced by his limited initial description). Certainly a grey area, though.

ilta
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disagree

In Ra, when you try to take the tiles you have to bid higher than the last guy. That's climbing if ever there was. It's an auction / trick-taking game. Also, bids are public, not blind. Are you sure you're thinking of Ra?

Opera has a better example of blind bidding. Players secretly select a certain number of coins to determine their budgets for the round, then reveal all at once. Whoever bid highest has that money to spend this round, and also goes first. Again, though, we're talking about discrete values: $1 is less than $2, and will always lose to it; both are less than $3.

In Rock/Paper/Scissors all "bids" are of equal inherent value. Rock is no more or less "valuable" than Paper -- both have an equal chance of winning depending on what the other guy plays. That's what distinguishes RPS as a mechanic from other competitive bidding/selection mechanics.

Also, RPS isn't "double-blind bidding" because you always know what the other guy is playing, and he knows what you're playing. Double-blind implies that nobody knows what the other one bid, only what the result was. It's often used in arbitration, there's more info here:

http://www.atla.org/LegalResearchServices/Tier3/2005-06DoubleBlindbyCybe...

truekid games
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ilta wrote:In Ra, when you

you're right about the double-blind, i misspoke there. it's just blind bid :P
...with non-transitive values. as said above. non-transitive values are what distinguishes RPS from most other value systems, and does NOT necessarily mean that all options have the same inherent value (especially when not done blind), and does not make it something other than a "blind bid" when it is done blind (which is the most frequent application). it just means the bid values are non-transitive.

Ra is not a climbing game, as a climbing game is very strictly a game which gives you more than one opportunity to increase your "bid". and I never said Ra used blind bids, just that it was an example of a bidding game without climbing.

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