• moakley@lemmy.world
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    20 hours ago

    Every time Rock Paper Scissors comes up, I like to point out the superiority of Odds and Evens for resolving disputes.

    Rules:

    One player picks Odds, the other player picks Evens.

    Someone says, “Odds, Evens, says, SHOOT”, and both players put out either one finger or two fingers.

    Count the fingers. If it’s odd, Odds wins. If it’s even, Evens wins.

    Exactly 50% chance, no ties. RPS has always been obsolete.

    • IncogCyberspaceUser@lemmy.world
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      5 hours ago

      That’s really cool, thanks for sharing.
      I’m a bit confused by “odds, evens, says, shoot”.
      Do both players agree who bets on evens and who on odds, and then they say “SHOOT” and show their fingers?

      • moakley@lemmy.world
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        3 hours ago

        That’s just instead of saying, “Rock, Paper, Scissors, SHOOT!”. “Shoot” is when both players put out their hands, just like RPS.

        And yes, the players have to agree on which one of them is Odds and which one is Evens beforehand.

        When I used to play a game where we had to randomize who went first, my best friend and I decided in advance that I’d always be Evens and he’d always be Odds.

        There’s no difference, but if you absolutely can’t agree on who’s what you could always flip a coin for it.

        • IncogCyberspaceUser@lemmy.world
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          2 hours ago

          Ah I see, thanks for explaining! I feel a bit dense right now, but what is “says” supposed to mean? Or am I thinking about it too much and it’s just a fill word to have a four word chant.

          • moakley@lemmy.world
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            2 hours ago

            You’re thinking about it the right amount. It’s a fill word.

            I learned the game as a kid and it was one of those things everyone just knows to say, like “olly olly oxen free” or “eeny meeny miny mo.” It’s just what you say.

    • Skua@kbin.earth
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      19 hours ago

      Isn’t RPS “meant” to be a game rather than a way to decide randomly between two options? There’s an element of skill involved since you can attempt to avoid playing patterns and identify patterns in your opponent’s play in repeated rounds

      • LanguageIsCool@lemmy.world
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        54 minutes ago

        In game theory, odds and evens is called matching pennies, and RPS is the 3-strategy generalization of matching pennies.

        Both are games with cyclic behavior and no pure Nash equilibria.