Week 4

The game I chose from Mr.Animate’s list is called Chicken Fight. This game is fundamental. It requires at least four people and a swimming pool. Two people are partners. Partner A will sit up on the shoulders of Partner B. They will then work together to knock down the other team by pushing and kicking while attempting to stay on top of each other. The game is over when there is only one team left still together. This is a very basic game where the goal is more to have fun than to win. Oftentimes, it involves a child sitting on the shoulders of their older peer. The purpose of this game is to be a fun pastime for people hanging out at the pool. It may be impossible to play if no one is able to support another person on their shoulders, so it can be limiting. Although it can be played with more than two teams, the ideal play is only two teams so that they can compete against each other. This game plays fast and loose with rules, as there are very few restrictions to how you can topple your opponent. Getting the other team hurt can be allowed depending on how you want to play. The only consistent rule is that person A must stay on the shoulders of person B to stay in play. 

This is a great example of head-to-head competition, as it requires one team to directly face off against another team. Both teams have the same goal, which is to be the last one standing, and both teams are encouraged to come up with creative ways to knock the other team down. This creates symmetrical competition, as Macklin and Sharp put it in chapter 3 of their book, Symmetrical competition is when “the players have shared actions with which they compete with one another in pursuit of a common goal.” This game relies on active skill far more than mental skill, as it tests the player's strength and ability to stay balanced. Defined by Macklin and Sharp, active skill is “A form of skill-based play utilizing the player’s motor skills in performing the actions in the game.” This is one of the main reasons why this game would not be for everyone, as people who are stronger and have better balance would have an advantage over people who do not. This game would be best played amongst people who are relatively the same height and size. This game does not often have spectators and does not tell a story or have much significance other than to have fun, so it does not apply to the GDC talk by Bennett Foddy very much.