Winning Algorithms For Rock, Paper, Scissors

Celarent Darii (1561999) writes "The probability of winning at Rock-Paper-Scissors is about 1 in 3. However, people do not play entirely randomly, a study has revealed. People tend to follow hidden patterns that can be used to win more games. A short article on the BBC gives hints on the strategies to be used to get a competitive advantage with your Rock-Scissors-Paper nemesis." Remember, these strategies are for use against people, not robots.

Comments

This is useless

[Anonymous Coward]

When I play rock, paper, scissors with someone, we just play once unless it's a tie, so there are no patterns.

Re:This is useless

[wonkey_monkey]

This may come as a surprise to you, but you're not the only person in existence.

Re:This is useless

[Nkwe]

When I play rock, paper, scissors with someone, we just play once unless it's a tie, so there are no patterns.

If you play to the death there are no patterns either.

Wait. What?

[typing ape]

OK, so two people play this game, each has about the same chance of winning, and that chance is 1 in 3? BTW, nowhere in the original article does it state that.

Re:Wait. What?

[PolygamousRanchKid]

When you play high stakes Rock, Paper, Scissors in a Casino in Las Vegas, the house wins on a tie. That's how they make their money.

Also note that in Las Vegas, they can boot you for life for trying to "play smart", like just happened to Ben Affleck, for allegedly counting cards.

It doesn't seem fair to me . . . if you are good at math, and can count cards, why shouldn't you be able to use your intellectual skills at a game?

Those Las Vegas Casinos are discriminating against geeks. Someone outta sue.

Re:Wait. What?

[Anubis IV]

The New York Times made a Rock-Paper-Scissors Flash-based bot a few years back. It's essentially exactly what the summary is talking about, since it learns your patterns and will in short order begin winning against you far more than merely 1-in-3 times. Alternatively, if you play the Veteran version of the bot, it has knowledge of all of the patterns from anyone who has ever played it, and it starts off beating you right from the start. If you could smuggle that into the casino, I'd be willing to bet that you could increase your winnings rather significantly

Telling a Pinocchio?

[tepples]

I thought the more common protocol was to win 2, as seen in the arcade game Fist Talks.

Obligatory

[QilessQi]

Lisa's Brain: Poor predictable Bart. Always takes 'rock'.
Bart's Brain: Good ol' 'rock'. Nothin' beats that!
Bart: Rock!
Lisa: Paper.
Bart: D'oh!

Re:Only most of the time?

[alexhs]

It's because you are typing too fast, if you had taken the time to follow all the links in TFS, you wouldn't have posted :)

But who RTFAs anyway, right ? :)

Well, I don't know..

[hyfe]

Well, I don't know. Let's get a game started to test this..

Rock!

Friend of Mine and I Play

[Greyfox]

A friend of mine and I play to determine exit order on the aircraft. I've beaten him 4 out of the last 5 times we've done it playing rock. Next time we play I'm going to point that out to him in advance and then the head games begin! Will I play rock again, because it's the predictable move, or am I just setting him up to throw paper because I'm planning to throw scissors?