05/21/00 13:01:04   (chmeee)   Hello Kerry! This is David Bush
05/21/00 13:01:08   (MSO_Admin)   Hi, Kerry!
05/21/00 13:01:10   (MSO_Admin)   Thanks very much.
05/21/00 13:01:16   (MSO_Admin)   for turning up.
05/21/00 13:01:35   (MSO_MazeMan)   I wanted to make sure at least one of us made it. Glad that two did.
05/21/00 13:01:59   (chmeee)   You never know when we might get rowdy :-)
05/21/00 13:02:21   (MSO_MazeMan)   Do you mean it might take two of us to control you, David?
05/21/00 13:02:25   (MSO_Admin)   Ladies and gentlemen, we're very happy to have Kerry Handscomb here as our chat guest today.
05/21/00 13:02:37   (MSO_Admin)   Kerry has made an excellent start with Abstract Games magazine
05/21/00 13:02:43   (chmeee)   oh, wait... full moon was LAST night :-)
05/21/00 13:02:46   (MSO_Admin)   and we all look forward to seeing how it progresses.
05/21/00 13:03:02   (MSO_Admin)   Kerry, would you like to make an opening statement at all?
05/21/00 13:03:24   (Kerry)   I've just been working on a couple of articles for the next issue -- epaminondas and Phutball.
05/21/00 13:04:06   (MSO_Admin)   They sound interesting; please tell us more to whet our appetites!
05/21/00 13:04:10   (chmeee)   Phutball is way cool, or so it seems from what little I know
05/21/00 13:04:11   (Kerry)   Well, what can I say about the magazine: it's been a blasy so far. Everybody has been so suportive
05/21/00 13:04:43   (Jochum)   How many subscribers do you have up to now?
05/21/00 13:05:13   (Kerry)   About 300 issue of the last magazine were distributed.
05/21/00 13:05:39   (Kerry)   The number of subscribers is increasing steadily, although it's not a flood.
05/21/00 13:06:04   (Jochum)   How many do you need to keep the magazine going?
05/21/00 13:07:15   (Kerry)   I'm not certain -- it depends on advertisers, but we are well ahead of where I expected to be by this time
05/21/00 13:08:21   (Jochum)   Is it true that you or any writers make absolutely no money out of it?
05/21/00 13:08:23   (Kerry)   The main priority isto expandthe readership as fast as possible in the first year
05/21/00 13:08:29   (chmeee)   Will you be advertising, yourself, Kerry? Maybe put an ad in Chess Life?
05/21/00 13:08:55   (Kerry)   I don't expect to make any money. That's not the motivation
05/21/00 13:09:20   (Jochum)   I will be writing an article about Abstract Games in our next Shogi magazine!!!!
05/21/00 13:09:41   (chmeee)   What's the Shogi magazine name?
05/21/00 13:09:42   (Kerry)   Quite frankly, I love doing this -- I love the games and what I'm trying to do is create thetype of magazine I alwayswanted to read
05/21/00 13:10:23   (MSO_Admin)   Which games magazines in the past have been closest to how you envision Abstract Games to be in the future?
05/21/00 13:10:38   (Kerry)   I hope we get a good review, jochum!
05/21/00 13:11:06   (Jochum)   You will, but we do not have more than 80 readers....
05/21/00 13:11:18   (Kerry)   Games  & Puzzles, definitely. Many gmae players look back upon the publishing period of G&P as a golden age
05/21/00 13:11:53   (Rolgan)   \yes definitely, G&P
05/21/00 13:12:49   (Kerry)   I strongly beleive there has to be a market for a specialised print magazine on abstract games
05/21/00 13:13:33   (MSO_Admin)   Many modern proprietary games are criticised on being very abstract games with only a veneer of theme. Do you intend to include these as well in the future, or will you be sticking to purely themeless abstracts?
05/21/00 13:14:45   (Kerry)   I can understand why publishers put a "veneer of theme" on the game -- to make the potential market bigger, but I think they miss much of the potential elegance of the games in this way
05/21/00 13:14:49   (Rusty)   Goodbye
05/21/00 13:15:16   (Kerry)   I prefer pure abstracts, but I wouldn't rule anything out
05/21/00 13:15:56   (MSO_Admin)   If memory serves me correctly (I'm taking a chance by asking this!), all the games in the first two issues have been for exactly two players.
05/21/00 13:16:05   (Rolgan)   Do you yourself play anything other than purely abstract games now?
05/21/00 13:16:08   (MSO_Admin)   Do you have a preference for exactly-two-player games?
05/21/00 13:16:47   (Kerry)   Yes,that's right. It's not a personal preference, but rather the type of game we want to concentrate on works best for two players generally
05/21/00 13:17:21   (Kerry)   Three is very difficult to create a balances game. Four is possible
05/21/00 13:17:37   (Jochum)   What do you think of four player partner games?
05/21/00 13:18:29   (Kerry)   quite possible. I've been meaning to get together four players for Feudal or Ploy one of these days
05/21/00 13:19:28   (Jochum)   Have you tried Four Handed Shogi?
05/21/00 13:19:48   (Kerry)   no, I haven't. Is it good?
05/21/00 13:20:11   (Jochum)   Yes!
05/21/00 13:20:32   (Kerry)   Is it described in ECV?
05/21/00 13:20:54   (MSO_Admin)   (the Encyclopedia of Chess Variants, presumably)
05/21/00 13:20:55   (Jochum)   I am not sure. I can check that!
05/21/00 13:21:46   (Kerry)   Unfortunately I don't get much time to actually play the game we write about!
05/21/00 13:23:32   (Kerry)   One of the games I really want to play soon is Phutball. It's an amazing concept.
05/21/00 13:24:14   (chmeee)   John Conway's invention yes?
05/21/00 13:24:40   (MSO_MazeMan)   I hope that's something we get to try at the MSO4
05/21/00 13:24:56   (Kerry)   That's right. it's very interesting because both players own all the pieces.
05/21/00 13:25:41   (cjr2000)   I agree, it's a beautiful game
05/21/00 13:25:53   (Jochum)   There are some other games I would like to see at the MSO4 from Abstrct Games! Like Trax or Bashne.
05/21/00 13:26:16   (cjr2000)   Trax is a great game :)
05/21/00 13:26:43   (chmeee)   cjr is very strong at Trax
05/21/00 13:26:48   (cjr2000)   you should try it online if you havent already
05/21/00 13:26:54   (Kerry)   I hope to find space to put second Bashne article in the next issue.
05/21/00 13:27:05   (Jochum)   Great!!
05/21/00 13:27:09   (Rolgan)   I remember that being one of the things that first hit you about Shogi - the owning of all the pieces.  Is that one of the things that you find interesting about games the way that all the pieces are available to both players?
05/21/00 13:28:56   (Kerry)   It's difficult to compare shogi with phutball. Idon't think it's  this factor in common that is why I like both
05/21/00 13:31:52   (Kerry)   With this small sample of people, what would you like to see us write about?
05/21/00 13:32:08   (GR)   afternoon all
05/21/00 13:32:41   (MSO_Admin)   OK, as a recap, we have "Abstract Games" magazine publisher Kerry Handscomb editor here in person.
05/21/00 13:33:21   (MSO_Admin)   We invite questions from the floor for Kerry.
05/21/00 13:33:32   (Rolgan)   From a persdonal point of view I would like to see reviews of games that I have not seen before.  So I can see whats new.
05/21/00 13:33:44   (MSO_GR)   Hello Kerry...Gareth (scrabble, backgammon and cards) here
05/21/00 13:34:07   (MSO_Admin)   Have people played Zertz, the new game in the Gipf project series yet?
05/21/00 13:34:08   (Rolgan)   How can we get hold of Abstract Games over here in the UK?
05/21/00 13:34:25   (MSO_GR)   Not yet Chris
05/21/00 13:35:14   (Kerry)   You have to order it from us. The distribution method is by mail to subscribers.
05/21/00 13:35:34   (MSO_MazeMan)   I'd like information on subscribing, of course. I'm in U.S.
05/21/00 13:36:05   (Jochum)   I think it is a good idea to show many unknown games and than decide by readers response which are worth going more into. As you do it right now....
05/21/00 13:36:08   (Kerry)   All necessary information is on our website
05/21/00 13:36:24   (chmeee)   www.abstractgamesmagazine.com right?
05/21/00 13:36:40   (Kerry)   That's right. Thanks, David!
05/21/00 13:37:35   (Rolgan)   As a point of interest, do you prefer the older games e.g. Go, Chess to the newer ones?  or vice versa?
05/21/00 13:37:46   (Kerry)   We're going to start a series on Grand Chess in the next issue (probably) and then when Mike Sandeman's series on Kyoto Shogi finishes I want to cover Wa Shogi
05/21/00 13:38:21   (MSO_GR)   a balance of old and new is nice I find..always interested in new but spend many hours on tried and tested
05/21/00 13:38:25   (Jochum)   Why Wa shogi? Did any readers prefer that over Chu shogi?
05/21/00 13:38:41   (Kerry)   the older ones tend to be better known. We hope to provide a forum for the lesser known games.
05/21/00 13:39:55   (chmeee)   Like Universe...? :-)
05/21/00 13:41:13   (Kerry)   It's not decided yet -- Wa or Chu. Chu is difficult to cover adequately. How to go beyond MSM?
05/21/00 13:41:45   (Jochum)   True, but who of your readers knows MSM?
05/21/00 13:42:05   (Jochum)   Do you know what your readers play? Shogi? Chess?
05/21/00 13:42:05   (Rolgan)   Hey, take pity on us newbies what is MSM?
05/21/00 13:42:19   (chmeee)   Massive Shogi Monster, the largest variant :-)
05/21/00 13:42:29   (Jochum)   MIddle Shogi Manual
05/21/00 13:42:43   (Jochum)   Middle Shogi is Chu Shogi
05/21/00 13:43:02   (Kerry)   Yes, Universe is in the wings! Next issue's great forgotten game is Epaminondas. Robert Abbott, the inventor has given us some excellent puzzles. MSM is Middle Shogi Manual. Sorry, my typing with four fingera at most is not so fast so I tend to abbreviate.
05/21/00 13:43:55   (Rolgan)   Wow, Epaminondas.  Its been a long time since I crossed swords with you over that, Kerry!
05/21/00 13:44:14   (Kerry)   Wayne Schmittberger's opinion is that Wa is one of the most interesting chess-type games.
05/21/00 13:44:45   (Rolgan)   What was his reasoning for saying that?
05/21/00 13:45:55   (Kerry)   My guess is the unsual pieces and potential for Shog-like endgame situations. And, of course, the potential for strategic invention is tremendous.
05/21/00 13:46:36   (Rolgan)   Isn't that just down to the huge(ish) number of pieces on the board (I'm sort of playing Devil's advocate here)
05/21/00 13:46:58   (Kerry)   Rolgan: Yes, Epaminondas is a beautiful game.
05/21/00 13:47:00   (chmeee)   How big is a Wa Shogi board?
05/21/00 13:47:21   (Kerry)   Wa is 11x11, but the number of pieces isn't so great.
05/21/00 13:48:07   (Rolgan)   Sorry, showing my ignorance there.  How many pieces - so I can get an idea
05/21/00 13:49:09   (Kerry)   Let's see, it is 52 pieces, so there is a low piece density. but of course the drops make a big difference.
05/21/00 13:50:05   (Kerry)   Wa is the biggest game played with drops.
05/21/00 13:50:17   (Rolgan)   Hmmm. 26 a side with none being permanently removed.  Seems huge to those of us used to chess, with a constantly reducing number of pieces!!
05/21/00 13:51:08   (cjr2000)   Maybe i just don't know Shogi well enough, but is Shogi really an innovation for those who know chess compared to all completely original and new games out there?
05/21/00 13:51:31   (chmeee)   Shogi is a cousin of chess, older I think
05/21/00 13:51:59   (cjr2000)   yes, i thought so too, but i mean play-wise
05/21/00 13:52:31   (chmeee)   I would call it very different play-wise, but I don't know it very well either
05/21/00 13:52:54   (Rolgan)   At least with a game thats a bit familiar you can concentrate on the strategy rather than worrying about the details of the way the game is played!  Just my 2 cents worth
05/21/00 13:52:57   (Kerry)   Shogi dates back to the seventeenth century, but some of the variants are older than that. Chu Shogi, surely one of the world's greatest games, dates back to the thirteenth century
05/21/00 13:53:21   (chmeee)   Do many Japanese people play these Shogi variants?
05/21/00 13:53:58   (Jochum)   Kerry, do you know what the mayor games are that your readers paly?
05/21/00 13:54:01   (Kerry)   No. Even chu is almost unknown in Japan now. Minishogi has a very small following.
05/21/00 13:54:51   (Rolgan)   Where can I find the rules to these variants?
05/21/00 13:55:13   (Rolgan)   On-line, I mean!
05/21/00 13:55:18   (Kerry)   The readers are a varied group. I would guess that LOA and Shogi and the variants are the most popular.
05/21/00 13:56:14   (Kerry)   Steve Evan's site is very good for rules, etc.
05/21/00 13:58:20   (Jochum)   Or Roger Hares site: http://www.ed.ac.uk/~rjhare/shogi/intro.html#variants
05/21/00 13:58:35   (Kerry)   Thanks jochum!
05/21/00 13:58:54   (Rolgan)   How easy is it to find people to play these games against?  Can you find them on the NEt?  If so where?
05/21/00 13:59:11   (chmeee)   Hex and Trax have realtime servers
05/21/00 13:59:33   (Kerry)   Richard's server is one of the best places to play most of the games we will be covering.
05/21/00 14:00:05   (cjr2000)   octi also available real-time
05/21/00 14:00:21   (chmeee)   Where?
05/21/00 14:00:23   (cjr2000)   Trax: www.zone.com/trax, Octi: www.octi.net
05/21/00 14:01:34   (Rolgan)   Thanks guys.
05/21/00 14:01:51   (Kerry)   As some of you may know, I lived in Japan for four years. I really appreciate the Japanese game aesthetic.
05/21/00 14:02:34   (chmeee)   Did any Japanese people share your interest in new abstract games?
05/21/00 14:03:14   (chmeee)   Maybe there's a market there...
05/21/00 14:03:28   (Kerry)   No. but what I mean is that the attitude to games is that playing them should be an aesthetic experience.
05/21/00 14:03:55   (chmeee)   the sound of the Go stone on wood, that sort of thing?
05/21/00 14:04:31   (Rolgan)   Rather than a competitive one?  Rather Zen wouldn't you say ;-)
05/21/00 14:04:55   (chmeee)   competition is an aesthetic all its own, maybe :-)
05/21/00 14:05:55   (Kerry)   Yes there are two types of aesthtic experience: there si the enjoyment of the game itself, the nice combinations, etc, and then there is the equipment.
05/21/00 14:07:22   (chmeee)   I'd like to see a Japanese version of some of my favorite games...:-)
05/21/00 14:07:27   (Rolgan)   Actually I totally agree.  It is so much better playing Chess with nice chunky wooden pieces on a proper board, rather than on a luminous screen!
05/21/00 14:08:38   (Rolgan)   And there was a definite "life" moment the first time I saw a Shogi board, with no black and white, just direction.
05/21/00 14:09:11   (Rolgan)   It just made sense.
05/21/00 14:09:13   (Kerry)   I think game publishers are generally doing a much better job these days of producing something that is pleasant to play with than they did, say, 20 years ago.
05/21/00 14:10:33   (chmeee)   Still, economics dictate cost-cutting. How much would it cost to hire a Japanese craftsman to make a decent Twixt set...? :-)
05/21/00 14:10:34   (Rolgan)   Yep.  We used to have to make do with draughts sets, or horrible plasticy pieces.  Finally the publishers have realised you might like a game that has style.
05/21/00 14:11:19   (Kerry)   Yes, many of the games even use woden pieces.
05/21/00 14:11:38   (Rolgan)   I purchased Abalone a while ago, and the pieces are great (not cheap) but worth it.
05/21/00 14:12:32   (chmeee)   Kerry have you had any response from the people at Kadon Enterprises, gamepuzzles.com ?
05/21/00 14:12:35   (Rolgan)   Although there is a limit.  I remember a 3-D circular chess game with pewter pieces that cost about 75GBP 20 years ago.  Can't remember its name though, Taliesin??
05/21/00 14:12:37   (Kerry)   Re. Twixt, I think 3M did a pretty good job given the requirements of the game.
05/21/00 14:13:11   (chmeee)   3M twixt was ok but the hinges broke after years of abuse :-)
05/21/00 14:13:20   (Kerry)   I think Kadon manufacture some lovely games.
05/21/00 14:14:28   (chmeee)   I gotta get their Kaliko and Y sets some day...
05/21/00 14:16:54   (MSO_Admin)   The sets of Chaos Tiles and octimaonds available at www.mathpuzzle.com are very nice too.
05/21/00 14:17:38   (Kerry)   What are Chaos tiles?
05/21/00 14:18:09   (chmeee)   Wow, congruent pentagon tilings! Cool!
05/21/00 14:19:32   (Rolgan)   Yeah, tessalating octagons, only on Hastur
05/21/00 14:20:34   (chmeee)   Oh wait--- those are quadrilaterals...
05/21/00 14:21:04   (Book)   Does anyone make 3-d shogi pieces?
05/21/00 14:21:05   (Kerry)   There is so much to cover.  We have so much great material that I'm thinking ofexpanding the next issue by eight pages instead of what we had planned, four.
05/21/00 14:21:46   (chmeee)   Great! I'm sure you will keep expanding
05/21/00 14:22:14   (Rolgan)   Anyway back to the plot.  Here in the UK the gaming market seems to be on the terminal decline (my opinion only).  But you, Kerry, seem to have found a market, what is your readership currently?  And what is the geographical areas?  Mostly USA?
05/21/00 14:22:22   (Kerry)   I've never seen 3D shogi pieces. Re. magazine size, that will be the limit before mailing costs go up substantially.
05/21/00 14:23:40   (Kerry)   The readership is evenly split between the US and Europe, with maybe slightly more in the US. There are a smattering of readers in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
05/21/00 14:26:44   (Kerry)   Some peope say that the big trend is electronic games. I think that's a shame, but I think the internet is likely to hold up the market for abstract strategy games. I bet there are more people involved in these games now than there were five years ago.
05/21/00 14:27:49   (chmeee)   Yes, particularly realtime servers are a big boost for abstract games, if you're on a big enough site
05/21/00 14:28:07   (Rolgan)   I hope so.  But it just seems to be less players around these days.  Not like the old days when you could find 10 or 15 players on a Thursday night down the local youth club.
05/21/00 14:28:49   (Kerry)   Maybe it's because they are at home playing online
05/21/00 14:29:36   (Rolgan)   Hmmm, yeah.  But you lose out on the social side of it then.  And it is damned hard to read someones body language through a screen.
05/21/00 14:29:46   (cjr2000)   i think the risk for 'normal' computer games to take the attention is greater than that of the abstract online games
05/21/00 14:31:21   (chmeee)   On the other hand, i saw an interview with a strong Go player on TV, and he said he preferred the server, because people would tend to get upset playing him face to face, and on the internet he didn't have to deal with that so much
05/21/00 14:31:27   (Kerry)   There will always be people interested in abstract strategy games. It is unfortunate that much of the playing experience is lost by playing online, but at least it enable people to connect.
05/21/00 14:32:16   (Rolgan)   Totally agree with you Kerry.  There is so much more to the experience than just moving images.
05/21/00 14:32:37   (MSO_MazeMan)   In some cases, the online play can be an advantage. I live in a town of 500 people, and it can be hard to find opponents for some games. But I still prefer face to face play.
05/21/00 14:33:43   (chmeee)   Some games might be better suited for internet, like "The Sigma File" for example
05/21/00 14:33:55   (cjr)   ? the sigma file
05/21/00 14:34:10   (chmeee)   IT's a 4-player game of intrigue and deception
05/21/00 14:34:34   (chmeee)   a lot of the game involves bluff. Unfortunately, cheating is also possible
05/21/00 14:34:44   (Kerry)   A big advantage of email games is that you can do more analysis and avoid annoying mistakes more easily. The latter is important for me!
05/21/00 14:34:56   (chmeee)   but on the internet, the computer referee can prevent any cheating
05/21/00 14:35:18   (chmeee)   Yes, email games can be very intense :-)
05/21/00 14:35:47   (Rolgan)   But half the fun, Kerry, is watching your opponents face when he realises you have forced him into making a mistake.  Surely?
05/21/00 14:36:10   (Rolgan)   Or am I being too personal with my gameplay.
05/21/00 14:36:32   (Kerry)   Sure, sure. More often than not I am on the receiving end!
05/21/00 14:38:19   (chmeee)   Kerry would you like to cover "educational" games such as Equations and Wff'N Proof?
05/21/00 14:38:31   (Rolgan)   Any way time to go, I've got to get up in the morning.  See you Kerry.  Keary signing off.
05/21/00 14:38:39   (chmeee)   cu Rolgan
05/21/00 14:38:44   (MSO_Admin)   Thanks for attending, Rolgan!
05/21/00 14:38:48   (MSO_Admin)   We hope you enjoyed it!
05/21/00 14:42:00   (Kerry)   Re. educational games, I hadn't considered it. Probably not at this stage -- there's so much elseto cover first.
05/21/00 14:42:21   (chmeee)   Have you received any feedback yet on your 2nd issue?
05/21/00 14:42:30   (MSO_MazeMan)   I do remember playing wffnproof many years ago, but I lost it five moves ago.
05/21/00 14:43:31   (chmeee)   Wff'N Proof is still being sold, BTW...
05/21/00 14:43:34   (Kerry)   Re. feedback, a number of people have said issue 2 is better than issue 1. I hope issue 3 is better still.
05/21/00 14:44:17   (chmeee)   Well that's good news, any feedback on the Hex or Twixt stuff in particular?
05/21/00 14:45:00   (Kerry)   One reader said thathe read the Twixt article and went straight out to buy a set.
05/21/00 14:45:09   (chmeee)   Awesome! :-)
05/21/00 14:46:42   (chmeee)   Will Trax be featured in AG?
05/21/00 14:48:15   (cjr)   i think you should feature octi, that is probably the most interesting game i have ever seen
05/21/00 14:48:23   (Kerry)   We don't have plans for Trax yet. The problem is space. It's really difficult to find room for everything.
05/21/00 14:48:39   (Kerry)   Yes, we loved Octi. It's fun to play.
05/21/00 14:48:49   (MSO_MazeMan)   AG?
05/21/00 14:49:00   (cjr)   abstractgames i would think
05/21/00 14:49:01   (chmeee)   Abstract Games = AG
05/21/00 14:49:08   (MSO_MazeMan)   sorry.
05/21/00 14:49:12   (MSO_MazeMan)   mind spinning.
05/21/00 14:49:52   (chmeee)   i have the internet abbrev disease. It's IMPORTANT to save those few seconds...:-)
05/21/00 14:51:07   (chmeee)   thanks for your time and comments Kerry, I gotta go now... cu all later! Hope to be in London this August! :-)
05/21/00 14:51:15   (cjr)   so do i :)
05/21/00 14:51:18   (MSO_Admin)   We hope to see you there too!
05/21/00 14:51:59   (cjr)   bye kerry, hoping to get my subscription soon :)
05/21/00 14:52:07   (MSO_MazeMan)   This has been a fascinating discussion. I'll be mailing mine soon.
05/21/00 14:52:09   (Kerry)   It's in the mail
05/21/00 14:52:19   (Kerry)   thanks.
05/21/00 14:52:30   (MSO_Admin)   Come to think of it, has my subscription to you arrived yet, Kerry?
05/21/00 14:52:46   (Kerry)   Not yet.
05/21/00 14:52:55   (MSO_MazeMan)   Just apply Chris's money to my subscription when it gets there :-)))))
05/21/00 14:53:04   (MSO_Admin)   Hum. :-)
05/21/00 14:53:47   (MSO_Admin)   Do you consider puzzles to be one-player abstract games?
05/21/00 14:54:49   (MSO_MazeMan)   That's an interesting thought.
05/21/00 14:54:56   (MSO_MazeMan)   Some of them certainly are.
05/21/00 14:55:00   (MSO_Admin)   Modem problems? :-)
05/21/00 14:55:19   (Kerry)   Thanks for having me. It's been fun
05/21/00 14:55:32   (MSO_Admin)   Thanks very much indeed for being here!
05/21/00 14:55:35   (MSO_MazeMan)   I would say that a puzzle that has only one answer is not a one-player abstract game, but different people would have other opinions.
05/21/00 14:55:36   (MSO_Admin)   We're glad you enjoyed it.
05/21/00 14:55:39   (MSO_MazeMan)   Yes, I enjoyed it.
05/21/00 14:55:39   (Kerry)   I lost you for a minute there
05/21/00 14:55:58   (davidbod)   Some puzzles are games
05/21/00 14:56:01   (MSO_MazeMan)   Chris asked the question, right as you got booted,
05/21/00 14:56:08   (MSO_Admin)   Do you consider puzzles to be one-player abstract games?
05/21/00 14:56:11   (davidbod)   But in general I wouldn't think that they are the same thing
05/21/00 14:56:35   (MSO_MazeMan)   or perhaps if they might be consider an abstract challenge.
05/21/00 14:56:45   (MSO_MazeMan)   but some puzzles are definitely concrete challenges.
05/21/00 14:56:55   (davidbod)   Some puzzles are based on game theory
05/21/00 14:57:07   (Kerry)   Games are ongoing puzzles. sometimes with definite solutions
05/21/00 14:58:40   (MSO_Admin)   Do you have a favourite puzzle at all,. Kerry?
05/21/00 14:59:42   (Kerry)   I don't really do puzzles much. It's difficult to think of a favorite right now
05/21/00 15:01:08   (MSO_Admin)   Time for one last question from the floor...
05/21/00 15:01:34   (davidbod)   What key developments do you think there will be for abstact games?
05/21/00 15:01:35   (MSO_Admin)   What developments do you expect in new abstract games in the future?
05/21/00 15:01:53   (davidbod)   Snap
05/21/00 15:02:53   (Kerry)   The big new thing in abstract games in the last fifty years was connection games. I'm really hoping another major theme will develop in the way that connection games did. but I can't predict what it will be.
05/21/00 15:03:21   (MSO_Admin)   Thanks very much for that answer, Kerry...
05/21/00 15:03:35   (MSO_Admin)   ...and for all the answers you've given tonight.
05/21/00 15:03:45   (MSO_Admin)   It has been an extremely interesting session
05/21/00 15:03:50   (MSO_MazeMan)   Definitely.
05/21/00 15:03:56   (MSO_Admin)   and we're extremely grateful to you for giving us your time.
05/21/00 15:04:03   (MSO_Admin)   We hope that both the world of abstract games
05/21/00 15:04:04   (Kerry)   Thanks very much for having me. It's been fun.
05/21/00 15:04:09   (MSO_Admin)   and the world of Abstract Games
05/21/00 15:04:15   (MSO_Admin)   flourish in the future.
05/21/00 15:04:23   (MSO_Admin)   and wish you well.
05/21/00 15:04:36   (MSO_Admin)   Our next brain star chat guest is Dan Glimne,
05/21/00 15:04:44   (MSO_Admin)   Sweden's #1 game designer
05/21/00 15:04:58   (MSO_Admin)   with titles such as "Svea Rike" and "DungeonQuest" to his name.
05/21/00 15:05:03   (MSO_Admin)   Meanwhile, elsewhere on the site,
05/21/00 15:05:11   (MSO_Admin)   you can play our selection of abstracyt games
05/21/00 15:05:21   (MSO_Admin)   online in real time at no charge.
05/21/00 15:05:27   (MSO_Admin)   You can also sign the petition to celebratye
05/21/00 15:05:36   (MSO_Admin)   the Century of the Brain and the Millennium of the Mind.
05/21/00 15:05:57   (MSO_Admin)   Thanks once again to our brain star guest Kerry Handscomb
05/21/00 15:06:10   (MSO_Admin)   For MSO Worldwide, this is Chris Dickson signing off!
05/21/00 15:06:51   (Kerry)   Signing off. Thanks again!