Strategy vs Dexterity

I've always been a sucker for video games. Way back in the "dark ages", when computer games came via Atari and Odyssey, games were pretty simple and graphics were almost embarrassing. The concepts were simple and mastering most was not difficult.

There were many games I developed an understanding of in which I simply could not lose. Ever. Not unless I wished it. One was a game my brother Mickey purchased. It was a baseball game. Mickey and I loved baseball. I didn't like the game much because the pitchers could throw incredible pitches which defied all known laws of physics. This made scoring for me difficult. But I only needed one run to win. Every time. The reason was that I learned something about the game. After pushing the button to "pitch" the ball, one had but to tap the controller stick to the left. This would put the ball over the outside corner of home plate. A strike. The batter had to swing. Unfortunately, no matter when he (she) swung, if the ball was hit it did exactly the same thing every time. Roll to the first baseman for an out. I could not be scored upon, so I could not lose.

Another game was Atari tennis. It was also a simple game. Just a version of the original pong. I learned a technique which meant I could return every shot. So it just became a matter of outlasting my opponent.

Breakout was fun. Unfortunately, the original version only allowed players to clear the screen twice. I guess it was assumed no one would do that. Well, some of us did. I think the last version I played continues to infinity.

All regular computer games have had the same problem since the first were created: when the computer plays as an opponent, it must cheat in order to win. The reason is that in order to program true intelligent strategy into a game is cost prohibitive. So the programmers take advantage of the fact that the computer has to know everything in order to process the game. Computer opponents tend to get better breaks than humans. It can be frustrating and annoying.

Take Microsoft Hearts, for instance. I did some studies and determined that there is a 60% chance (on my computer anyway) of me either being dealt, or passed the Queen of Spades on every deal. This is not realistic. As many times as I have played Hearts in real life I have never had that kind of luck. Also, computer players tend to 'gang up' on human players. This can be realistic as I have learned when playing any game with my in-laws. The object in their mind is for me to lose. Then they win. They are a collective entity. So in that regard I guess MS-Hearts is realistic.

Programmers hate it when their software is defeated by humans. They take it personally. I wrote before on this blog how Randy wrote an Othello software program for his computer class in college. He eventually got it so it could defeat himself and Stephen more times than not, but it never beat me. The reason? Randy was using me to get the strategy for the game, and what he was never able to do was program a drastic shift in strategy mid-way through a game. When something isn't working, that is the best strategy.

Games now have much better graphics, but they're not a whole lot different than those of the past. Sports games really suck. Always have.

When I wrote my baseball game it was a strategy game, not an exercise in dexterity. There were no graphics. It was all text. Well, one had to push buttons in order to generate plays. But one would simply tell their pitcher what to pitch, and signal runners when to steal, and signal batters whether to bunt, swing away, or go for the walk. It was up to the players to actually do the task. This was based on mathematical probabilities based on this batter's skill against that pitcher's skill against the fielder's skill behind the pitcher and the runner's speed. It wasn't perfect, but it was interesting.

I actually managed to play a season of 102-games for six teams with a best-of-seven championship. My teams were: New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Washington. New York won the regular season and beat Boston 4 games to 1 in the championship. I completed a draft and expansion, adding four teams: Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit and St Louis. But the season didn't make it very long. My saved copy of the game became corrupted and I wasn't able to reload it. The program was lost forever.

Have tried several times to rewrite it, but I get bored and never finish. Writing the software isn't fun anymore. It's playing the game that's fun. No wonder I got dumped.