Life According to Scrabble

I absolutely love playing games.

You could even say I'm quite addicted. 

My latest favorite is playing Words With Friends. It takes the pressure off of someone waiting for you for 5 minutes to make a move. Basically the same idea as text messaging-- the option is available at your convenience and the delayed response gives you time to think of something a little more witty to say than you normally would in a typical conversation or game.

The objective of WWF/Scrabble is to score more points through your words than your opponent.

So naturally you would think that your entire focus should be on YOU scoring points and making sure the other person doesn't..

Is there anything worse in the game than watching someone score 50+ points on a TW that you set them up for?

But that focus doesn't really work. Yes, your objective is still winning, but no one wants to play a crappy round of WWF when their every move is blocked and they spend the entire game playing defense rather than offense. When that happens-- no one gets to play.

I'd much rather play a game where there's a little sacrifice and setting up on both players parts than trying to destroy their every move.

Isn't that how life works? If we're constantly focused on getting our own perfect score, the joy of the game is gone. Sure, you technically won the game point-wise, but is that truly the objective of the game? To win through points?

Taking this idea of game playing up another notch, what about game playing in general?

How much can you read into a person's personality by the way they play games?

I'm here to argue-- a lot!

I realized last night that I'm not addicted to games to win. 

It's still nice and I'm not going to claim it doesn't mean anything to me..

But that's not what I look to get out of games.

I love playing games because of the people I play with.

How much can you learn from someone's answer to Things or Loaded Questions or What's Yours Like?

How much can you learn from their strategy in playing Monopoly Deal?

Do they even have a strategy at all?

Are they more interested in talking than playing the game?

Have they come to realize that once you have a set down you want to make sure you have enough cash built up to protect it and that the easiest way to win is to target those without cash so they pay in property?

Are they patient towards other players or do they make snide remarks that while stated jokingly, have a great deal of truth behind them?

Do they take charge as the center of attention in the game or are they the quiet ones concentrating on their hand?

Do they let a mistake go or push the issue until a rule book is pulled out?

Are they satisfied to lose or does it become an ordeal of "that wasn't fair."?

There are traits I've found in people through playing games that I now know to be more patient towards.

There's also traits in some people's game playing that I've been seriously impressed by and it makes me want to spend more time with them to learn more.

If you thought game night was all fun and games..

maybe there's a little more?