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Game Studies, Brettspiele und Zahlen

Abstract

What Counts? Game Studies, Board Games and Numbers
The article outlines a ludological-mathematical approach that does not view board games as an old form and genre of gaming, but rather focuses on more recent develop­ments in game design. Their goal is to involve the player collective in the design and fine-tuning of games. Count­ing discrete units is essential for analog board games, even when relatively archaic counting aids are used. The procedures by which scores are determined and changed are not hidden in the depths of a program code, but are open on the table. In recent decades, complex board game architectures have been developed that reflect this process and make it part of the gaming experience. From a design perspective, it becomes clear that the range of fluctuations is limited depending on the situation and the course of the game determines how values come into play independently or coupled. In the form of input random­ness, chance does not mark limits of control, but rather determines how individually a group can react to fluctu­ating options and ensure fun and repetition through vari­ability. This thesis is presented in a brief comparison of the “old school” Monopoly and the door-opening CATAN. Modern board games are models for the adaptability of collectives, which is not based on a higher authority of control and omniscience, but on the partial freedom and independence of the participants, who are connected to each other via more or less well-formatted particles.