Difference between revisions of "The Game (game)"

Latest revision as of 08:49, 6 October 2008

"The Game" is a name commonly used for a social phenomenon in the English-speaking world based on the goal of thought suppression. While there are no penalties for losing, it is construed as a game where the object is to forget that "the game" exists; thereby, thinking about it causes a person to lose. It also includes additional rules that cause it to spread quickly as a meme.

Rules[edit]

The Game's rules vary according to location and community, as it is propagated mostly by word of mouth and therefore evolves quickly. These rules are common to most variants:

1. You begin playing The Game when you become aware of its existence.
2. Whenever you think about The Game, you lose.
3. When you lose The Game, you must announce your loss to everyone present.

Loss is only temporary. Additional rules that vary widely by location deal with how soon you are able to lose again; this may be after you forget it again, or after a "grace period" of a certain number of minutes.

Many players believe that you have no choice but to play The Game once you become aware of it, as stated by rule 1, but many who have heard of the game refuse to play by rejecting all of its rules, including the first.

Spread of The Game[edit]

The Game propagates by word of mouth, and is especially popular in schools, colleges and other places with a high density of young people.

One reasons for the rapid spread of The Game is that when someone loses The Game they have to declare their loss aloud. This sudden outburst of 'I just lost' provokes those who do not know The Game to ask why the player just shouted 'I just lost.' Of course the following explanation leads to their automatic partaking of The Game and thus a new player is entered into The Game.

The spread of The Game is being recorded in an online family tree called The Game Tree. The ultimate aim of the site is to establish The Game's origin.

Strategies[edit]

Some people have devised strategies, with varying levels of seriousness, for playing The Game. One popular pastime is to place reminders of the game, like notes saying "The Game" or "You Lose," in strategic locations where other players are likely to come across them. Though the person, in placing the notes, must think about The Game while doing so, and therefore lose, the person calculates that he or she will have forgotten about The Game by the time others find the note, and will therefore cause the other players to lose without losing again themselves. Of course, for the player to realize this has worked, he or she would have to lose again. In schools where The Game is played, it is not uncommon to see such reminders written on class whiteboards, or pinned onto notice boards for unsuspecting students to view.

See also[edit]

• memes
• memetics
• chain letter
• mental event
• metacognition

External links[edit]

• Lose The Game - Dedicated to finding the creator of The Game by tracing its spread backwards. Vote on & discuss the rules.