My family members are Christian but they also like hoarding stuff so we have a lot of non-Christian artifacts. One of these artifacts is a dreidel. A jewish spinning top with four letters written on four sides.
You spin it, and it will land with one of the four letters facing upwards, like a dice that you spin instead of toss. I researched exactly what the dreidel game is and I must say, I am disappointed. There is no skill or strategy or thought involved.
You spin the top, and it decides everything that happens. You need at least two players, each player has a certain number of small things, like chocolate pieces, and each will put one of their pieces in the center. You spin the top. One letter means the person who spined the top takes all. Another letter means you take half. Another means you do nothing. The last means you must put one more in the center. Then the next player spins and does the thing until it gets back to your turn.
If the center becomes empty, or only has one, each player puts a piece in the center. My issue with this game is that there seems to be no thinking involved. Just mindlessly spin the top and watch it spin. Fiddle some pieces around based on what letter lands upwards.
That’s it? Really?
That brings me to another mostly luck based game medium: cards.
Particularly: the card game known as “war”.
When I was young, I liked that game, but now it has completely lost its shine to me.
You shuffle the deck, split it between two people, and each draw a card one at a time without looking at your own deck. The higher card claims the lower card and you put both in your graveyard. each player has a graveyard. When your deck runs out, you grab your graveyard and use that. Repeat until one person has all the cards. If you both draw the same card, keep drawing cards until one pulls a higher one.
The issue with “war” is that the shuffle and split at the beginning determines the whole game. There is no strategy or thought involved. Mindless.
I prefer blackjack as a card game because there at least some thinking there. Hit or stay? You are forced to consider. You would think that a game called “war” would have some strategy, but no.
I used to play Beyblades when I was younger. Looking back, it was basically just theater, rather than an actual game. You watch goy-dreidels fight each other for the amusement of the dreidels. There is no thought or skill, just mindless fun. Literally a gladiator arena spectator game for children. Only luck will save your Beyblade, not any witty strategy on your end.
A lot of dice games and board games suffer from this. The die holds all the power it feels like. You could be a brilliant mind, and still, you will lose to a novice because of the dice. you might as well leave your brain in a jar, for all the good it will do you.
And yet, I would be lying if I said I like chess that much anymore. It also lost it’s shine when I realized that it goes too far in the opposite direction. It is purely strategy. There is no chaotic element what-so-ever. It makes the game feel monotonous after you play it a bunch.
There is zero luck or chaotic variables in chess. Only noobs at chess think they can win through luck. It is actually common amongst the noobs of chess to think that luck has anything to do with it. It is all strategy. I see noobs at chess hope that the opponent will not notice some scheme that is being cooked up. Hope the enemy won’t notice an opening in their defenses.
They are fools for that because luck and hope will never get you far in a game of pure wits!
Chess noobs do not consider that which is likely, they consider that which they hope will happen, like a dice roller hoping for a 6 and not a snake eyes.
Like a new york city tunnel rat hoping the dreidel will land on ג instead of ש.
sigh
i just wish there were more IRL games that involved BOTH skill and luck. Some witty strategy along with the tides of chaos. As opposed to insisting it is one or the other.
Anyway, what do you guys think?