Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Finding the Perfect Family Game

Posted by michael on from the hungry-hungry-hippos dept.

kowalski1971 writes "Some poor soul with far too much time on his hands has decided - in an attempt to increase sales at his toyshop - to calculate the formula for the perfect family game. Apparently it is, 0.22a + 0.17f + 0.153n + (0.12c - 0.1g) + 0.1s + 0.09e + 0.06d + 0.054l + 0.05m + 0.011c = pfg ...and which game came out top? Cards. So much for the increased sales then."

14 of 201 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Aces! by chimpo13 · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm pretty sure it's Vice City and Carmegeddon. It's nice watching my 5 year old kill cops with his grandfather.

    --
    riding round the world on an old motorcycle
  2. Simpler formula by C17GMaster · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I notice that most of those factors are vaguely defined at best... "Fun factor?" Get real! As long as we're pulling qualitative numbers out of the air, why not design a simpler system? Perfect Family Game = 1.0g, where "g" is the "goodness level." Practical, huh?

  3. cards by gotem · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Cards" is not a game
    a game is poker, bridge, blackjack etc.
    which card game are they talking about?

  4. BCS by JeffSh · · Score: 5, Funny

    Thankfully, his calculations are much LESS complicated than the formulae used to compute the bowl championship series rankings.

    Oddly enough, they are also more accurate, and I would be willing to bet that his formula could easily be converted over verbatim, applied to college football, and STILL come out with a better ranking system for college teams than the BCS.

  5. Cards? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Given that his factors include:

    N = number of people
    S = stimulation
    E = engagement
    D = duration
    L = longevity

    I think we may at last have found the source of all those dastardly penis enlargement spams and viagra...

  6. Re:Aces! by SkArcher · · Score: 5, Interesting
    If you want a game where the variations are endless, try Nomic, where the aim of the game is to alter the rules. From one of the FAQ's:
    Nomic is a game in which changing the rules is a move. In that respect it differs from almost every other game. The primary activity of Nomic is proposing changes in the rules, debating the wisdom of changing them in that way, voting on the changes, deciding what can and cannot be done afterwards, and doing it. Even this core of the game, of course, can be changed. (Peter Suber, The Paradox of Self-Amendment, Appendix 3, p. 362)
    The game was developed from political science theory as an example - but it turned out to be a lot of fun!
    --

    An infinite number of monkeys will eventually come up with the complete works of /.
  7. Sigh. When will we learn? by JonKatzIsAnIdiot · · Score: 5, Funny

    Human factors cannot be reduced to mathematical equations.

    (Sit down Hari Seldon)

    Attempting to do so only results in making you look stupid (like this guy)

  8. If you do it just right... by inode_buddha · · Score: 5, Funny

    a good game of "Twister" will enable you to start your *own* family!

    --
    C|N>K
  9. The only reason "Cards" won... by Rune+Berge · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... is because they forgot the ever popular "Cardboard and plastic pieces" game.

  10. Toy stores do not sell "games" by tepples · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Cards" is not a game

    But it is game equipment. Toy stores do not deal in "games" as such but rather game equipment. A pair of decks of 52 cards can be used for 100 plus well-known games, which may figure into the decision that cards are nearly optimal game equipment.

  11. mathematicians! Bah! by fermion · · Score: 5, Funny
    Math is wonderful. You can basically create formulas that may or may not have any basis in reality. This is why in addition to mathematician we have experimental physicists who whack the mathematician on the snout, take their formulations, and subject the equations to a rigorous dose of reality. Clearly someone needs to whack this guy on the snout.

    Cards and monopoly are great. The have no noise making annoyances, involve lots of manipulative that occupy the child, and rounds proceed quickly while occupying all players attention. More importantly, these games do minimum damage when the playing pieces enter the inevitable tantrum driven projectile phase.

    But Bop It? It is noisy, and hurts like hell when used as a club. Jenga? The point is to frustrate your opponents. This game is great at developing necessary skills, but when the pieces fall, the loser has a great desire to test the aerodynamics of the blocks.

    --
    "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
  12. Precautionary note on side of box says... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    "For best results, do not begin game with original family"

    **Posted as AC to cleanse myself of that 'icky' feeling**

  13. Cards are great! by crazyhorse44 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Sure beats the old-time family classic... "come sit on grandpa's lap"!

    --
    . SLASHDOT: Home of the vicious nerd.
  14. Re:Which game? by Senjutsu · · Score: 5, Funny

    No, the formula for Strip Poker is 0.50T, 0.50A.