maj  +  24385 Wed, 03 Mar 04 09:22 AM I am not sure whether this title expresses what I wanted to say. How important are games in our society? Are games useful in our competitive world? Are the games we play different from those our grandparents played? What is the relationship between games and strategies? Do you think we are good losers or winners? maj Joined on Mon, Mar 31 2003 Senior Member 4,756

	Chameleon  +  24449 Wed, 03 Mar 04 05:08 PM What an excellent question! Games certainly serve some important purpose or they would not be as popular as they are. The obvious purpose they serve is as entertainment. But I think this is not all there is to the matter. Games of competition, where one or more teams compete for a prize or at least an arbitrary winning condition (defined by the rules of the game), are obviously a comparison of ability, whether it be mental or physical. The concept of competitive games is a vital development of organized societies. They let humans satisfy their animal drive for direct competiton in a controlled and relatively benign environment. We satisfy our competitive bloodlust by watching or participating in the "death" of the opposing team rather than an individual. The modern development of the individual as the important fundamental unit has largely exterminated death games. Games of competition also reinforce heirarchies with minimal death or maiming. These heirarchies may be somewhat meaningless (you suck at Yatzee! haha!) or they may reinforce regional pride (go Bears! yeah!). Either way, they make us feel "better than that guy", even if our dominance is not permanently assured. Temporary loss motivates us even more to succeed ("You got us this time. But next year..."). Games are also a training groud for real life competition in sex and business. Games reinforce that there is always a winner and always a loser. This is not always true, but western society is based heavily on the idea. Chameleon Joined on Wed, Feb 18 2004 Full Member 174

	benita  +  298081 Mon, 27 Nov 06 12:04 PM  Rommie wrote: Life is a game. Isn't it? I thought life was a stage. Jokes apart, I think games play a very important role in moulding an individual's personality.  It helps us learn that competition can be healthy and that playing a game is not all about winning.  benita Joined on Mon, Jan 31 2005 India Contributing Member 1,667 But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep - Robert Frost Jokes

	Wingb1  +  298386 Tue, 28 Nov 06 06:09 AM what types of games? I automatically think of computer games.... technological ones like PS2 and GameCube. and there's only one answer: escapism. Wingb1 Joined on Mon, Sep 25 2006 Australia New Member 30

	Daedalus7  +  299694 Fri, 01 Dec 06 07:48 PM There seems to be an inherent  instinct for competition in the human species. SO many wars have been waged because "I want to be more powerful than you". Sports in general are a peaceful kind of war, and serve to develop mental and physical abilities, apart from generating fun Daedalus7 Joined on Thu, Jun 29 2006 Barcelona Junior Member 82

	Levia  +  300714 Tue, 05 Dec 06 06:29 AM While writting, I consider myself weird. Pondering for a long time, I still don't know why do I feel guilty when I play games, at this point, I mean all kinds of plays or entertainment. I hate study, but I persude myself study is a must for having a comfortable life. Sounds silly. A great many of the youths are addicted to the electric games or the computer games. They make fun from it. That looks great. I always consider playing games derail from the normal way of life. However, it changed. We can heard or discern, some people earn plenty of money through playing computer games. Looks game play is a good caree. Levia Joined on Thu, Oct 12 2006 China Guangzhou Junior Member 71 One thousand days to learn; ten thousand days to refine.