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- quami16, on 10/12/2007, -2/+140Cheating at Rock-Paper-Scissors? Is nothing sacred?
- mrfreeziexp, on 10/12/2007, -2/+120"Earlier this month, our YouTube Hunter found some riveting rock-paper-scissors footage."
What's wrong with the internet? Did we run out of porn or something? - TheFightForGood, on 10/12/2007, -7/+85wordpress is sacred. i've never seen what one actually looks like
- xsuite, on 10/12/2007, -9/+73Sorry for the comment abuse:
How to Win at Rock-Paper-Scissors (and also how to cheat)
Earlier this month, our YouTube Hunter found some riveting rock-paper-scissors footage. Today, Rocketboom has more, including classic interviews with the world’s best RPS athletes.
(That’s right, I said RPS. If you want to sound like an insider at the upcoming World RPS Championships, you should too.)
Want to play like a champion, and compete for the $10,000 prize? From the World RPS Society:
Contrary to what you might think RPS is not simply a game of luck or chance. While it is true that from a mathematical perspective the ‘optimum’ strategy is to play randomly, it still is not a winning strategy for two reasons.
First, ‘optimum’ in this case means you should win, lose and draw an equal number of times (hardly a winning strategy over the long term). Second, Humans, try as they might, are terrible at trying to be random, in fact often humans in trying to approximate randomness become quite predictable. So knowing that there is always something motivating your opponent’s actions, there are a couple of tricks and techniques that you can use to tip the balance in your favour.
The top secrets to winning at RPS — courtesy of Graham Walker, Director of Management of the World RPS Society — are after the jump.
1 - Rock is for Rookies
In RPS circles a common mantra is “Rock is for Rookies” because males have a tendency to lead with Rock on their opening throw. It has a lot to do with idea that Rock is perceived as “strong” and forceful”, so guys tend to fall back on it. Use this knowledge to take an easy first win by playing Paper. This tactic is best done in pedestrian matches against someone who doesn’t play that much and generally won’t work in tournament play.
2 - Scissors on First
The second step in the ‘Rock is for Rookies’ line of thinking is to play scissors as your opening move against a more experienced player. Since you know they won’t come out with rock (since it is too obvious), scissors is your obvious safe move to win against paper or stalemate to itself.
3 - The Double Run
When playing with someone who is not experienced at the RPS, look out for double runs or in other words, the same throw twice. When this happens you can safely eliminate that throw and guarantee yourself at worst a stalemate in the next game. So, when you see a two-Scissor run, you know their next move will be Rock or Paper, so Paper is your best move. Why does this work? People hate being predictable and the perceived hallmark of predictability is to come out with the same throw three times in row.
4 - Telegraph Your Throw
Tell your opponent what you are going to throw and then actually throw what you said. Why? As long as you are not playing someone who actually thinks you are bold enough to telegraph your throw and then actually deliver it, you can eliminate the throw that beats the throw you are telegraphing. So, if you announce rock, your opponent won’t play paper which means coming out with that scissors will give you at worst a stalemate and at best the win.
5 - Step Ahead Thinking
Don’t know what to do for your next throw? Try playing the throw that would have lost to your opponents last throw? Sounds weird but it works more often than not, why? Inexperienced (or flustered) players will often subconsciously deliver the throw that beat their last one. Therefore, if your opponent played paper, they will very often play Scissors, so you go Rock. This is a good tactic in a stalemate situation or when your opponent lost their last game. It is not as successful after a player has won the last game as they are generally in a more confident state of mind which causes them to be more active in choosing their next throw.
6 - Suggest A Throw
When playing against someone who asks you to remind them about the rules, take the opportunity to subtly “suggest a throw” as you explain to them by physically showing them the throw you want them to play. ie “Paper beats Rock, Rock beats scissors (show scissors), Scissors (show scissors again) beats paper.” Believe it or not, when people are not paying attention their subconscious mind will often accept your “suggestion”. A very similar technique is used by magicians to get someone to take a specific card from the deck.
7 - When All Else Fails Go With Paper
Haven’t a clue what to throw next? Then go with Paper. Why? Statistically, in competition play, it has been observed that scissors is thrown the least often. Specifically, it gets delivered 29.6% of the time, so it slightly under-indexes against the expected average of 33.33% by 3.73%. Obviously, knowing this only gives you a slight advantage, but in a situation where you just don’t know what to do, even a slight edge is better than none at all.
8 - The Rounder’s Ploy
This technique falls into more of a ‘cheating’ category, but if you have no honour and can live with yourself the next day, you can use it to get an edge. The way it works is when you suggest a game with someone, make no mention of the number of rounds you are going to play. Play the first match and if you win, take it is as a win. If you lose, without missing a beat start playing the ‘next’ round on the assumption that it was a best 2 out of 3. No doubt you will hear protests from your opponent but stay firm and remind them that ‘no one plays best of one for a kind of decision that you two are making’. No this devious technique won’t guarantee you the win, but it will give you a chance to battle back to even and start again. - macaddct1984, on 10/12/2007, -5/+67"Good ol' rock, nothing beats that!"
"Poor, predictable Bart. Always picks rock." - 4degrees, on 10/12/2007, -3/+31"athletes" I love it!
- humperdeath, on 10/12/2007, -1/+20"interviews with the world’s best RPS athletes."
WTF? This is a sport now? If it is, maybe there is hope for me yet. - oesj, on 10/12/2007, -2/+20"Did we run out of porn or something?"
you could combine the two:
rock, rock, rock, rock, rock, rock, rock, rock, rock, rock, paper
wanking jokes ftw - yournamehere, on 10/12/2007, -0/+16why does this sound like the main plot in a Will Farrell movie?
- Snorglorf, on 10/12/2007, -0/+15Easily the most useful article I've read on Digg.
- JPhantom, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13Google Cache caught it:
http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/2032&hl=en&lr=&c2coff=1&sa=G&strip=1 - ihate2regist, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11RPS 25!
http://www.umop.com/images/rps25.jpg - tHePeOPle, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Every time I think that the internet has run out of porn, it always comes through for me. Plus, I remember every porn pic I've ever seen. I instantly know if I've seen it and if I have, it gets ignored. Thank you internet, for your bountiful, um... bounty.
I wish I could somehow harness this ability for something useful. Not that I'm suggesting that porn isn't useful. - nathanwalker, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9Write it first, take it to Hollywood. It's so crazy, it just might work!
- Thuktun, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8"God beats everything, but of course is a draw against another God throw. So what's the catch? You can only use it once in your life."
KURGEN: A game of Rock, Paper, Scissors, then?
RAMIREZ: Fine. 1, 2, 3, -
KURGEN: Rock!
RAMIREZ: God!
KURGEN: You've already used that! THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!
(KURGEN lops off RAMIREZ's head.) - glui2001, on 10/12/2007, -3/+11RPS "Athletes"...puh lease.
- LiquidChimera, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Oh the memories of great times past:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-Znm75bCek - Emachine, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6LoL, Scissoring..
- wiirdo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7You can always give your opponent the middle finger. That's the holy grail.
- Gerikes, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6The way to win at RPS:
Throw God.
"God" is thrown by touching your thumb and index finger to create a circle and allowing your three other fingers to point towards the sky, slightly curved (it's the "ok" symbol), and of course, announcing "God".
God beats everything, but of course is a draw against another God throw. So what's the catch?
You can only use it once in your life. Typically, the "God" throw (sometimes called the "perfect" throw) is restricted to once in your career at a certain organization. For example, if you commonly play in a pickup sports group, and getting first pick is a RPS contest, you typically get one "God" throw with that group. Of course, most people use it in more extreme situations with that group, such as who sits bitch on the eight-hour ride home from the tourney. - fivestarsoul, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6Good catch!
- TheTaoOfBill, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Yeah! everyone knows you're only an athlete if you have a shoe deal and get paid millions of dollars!
- iSamurai, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Sorry for the comment abuse :
World RPS Society website : http://worldrps.com/
LOTS and LOTS more info there. - re0turin, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5lonely man beats rock for entertainment
- nathanwalker, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Man, I never paid attention to the dynamics of a paper-rock-scissors game... that was actually a good read haha.
What I got from this article: Throw paper first, and if that doesn't work, play scissors.
...I should have paid more attention. - dxtr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3The 1939-1945 Championship is a classic
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Talk:Rock%2C_Paper%2C_Scissors&oldid=91782574#1939-1945_Championship - Lieske, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I just play whatever the other person played last, it works for me most of the time.
- maeon3, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Wikipedia talks about it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock,_Paper,_Scissors#Cheating - nathanwalker, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2That is kinda weird... I have always hear it as paper rock scissors... dont ask me why. That's just how it was said where I am from.
As for the grey duck thing, man that is ***** weird. - bnoj13, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2RPS 101!
http://www.umop.com/rps101.htm - TheWorm, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I wish people would stop saying "sorry for the comment abuse". Seriously, no one cares. Everyone does it. Just say what you have to say.
- Thuktun, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I'm a transplant to the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, where I've personally spotted the "duck, duck, gray duck" thing. It's sad, too, because there are a lot of Canadian geese in the area, so everyone really ought to know the difference.
- AceTracer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Apparently Canadians dominate the sport of RPS. 9 of 15 medalists since its inception in 2002 have been Canadian.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper%2C_Scissors%2C_Rock#World_Championship_results_since_2002
I can only assume it's because they have nothing better to do up there. - mahoneyxp, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Yay!, there is someone else in the world that references this game as "Paper-Rock-Scissors" instead of "Rock-Paper-Scissors." On another note, "Duck duck goose", is "Duck Duck Gray Duck" where I grew up... Messed up.
- csnoke, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Ahh... double cross the double cross... I love it!
- Smeed, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Sorry for the comment abuse.
- fuzzboxer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I have just learned more about Rock Paper Scissors than I ever wanted to know.
- nathanwalker, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1That was kinda messed up... I got home to try to mind ***** my roommate with my new found paper-rock-scissors skill, and got bitched out for calling it that instead of rock-paper-scissors.
- djbeefcurtain, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1The real way to win at RPS: throw your Fire.
A better version of "God" is called "Fire." Fire is thrown by holding your hand out, palm up, and waving your fingers and thumb upright. You only have one to use in your entire life, and it beats rock, paper, and scissors. It can be beaten, however, by "Piss." Piss, which is thrown as a downward-pointing Scissors with the thumb between the fingers (you know what it's supposed to look like), beats fire but loses to Rock, Paper, and Scissors. It's like the Marshal and the Spy from Stratego.
I'm not sure where Fire and Piss come from, but any self-respecting Ultimate player knows Fire. - LogicBomB, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Don't call them athletes...
- seabre, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Oddly enough, a few months ago I had to do a Computer Science assignment where the computer played against a human player using a "strategy". I actually read this article and looked around the worldrps website and found some of their particular strategies helpful. The best method though, which I used in my program, was to store all of the human player's moves (remember them) and either randomly choose from the two most frequently chosen moves *or* to randomly choose a move, and the one of the two decisions were chosen randomly. It doesn't seem very practical at all to apply this method in playing rock-paper-scissors, unless you have a really really good memory..
- ihate2regist, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1now thats just crazy
- icebreaka, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Rock always wins. Tried it myself. Rock first all the time, got 13 wins in a row against 13 ppl b4 i lost. It seems ppl go scissors first, or rock then scissors.
Even when you tell them rock always wins, they still do scissors and let you win :D - Thuktun, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJ-Y4yI4rk8 (see 0:37)
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1LOL)))
- Sikes, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1While on vacation a few months back I saw a t-shirt that made me laugh:
Rock is dead.
Long live paper and scissors!
The picture had a rock with X's through its eyes and a triumphant paper and scissors smiling in their glory. T-Shirts, buttons, bumper stickers, etc. using various takes on this theme appear to be available on the web. - Malachai, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1No one looks good in that.
Especially that guy.
That's Ann.... - milomilomilo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It may just be because i'm pretty high right now, but I think that rps can almost be considered a primal interaction and has a feeling of human competition simply for the sake of winning.
Just think about what the guy in the article says about explaining the rules of the game and how to play simply by displaying it played. That the human desire to better his brother is so ingrained that no verbal communication ever needs to happen to: have someone learn the game, compete and understander who was the victor, all on nothing but our internal understanding that the other person has a mind just like us.
Who ever thought such an amazing example of primal human social interaction could be displayed in a dumb game of rock paper scissors, that we played as kids to decide who was "IT".
Makes you sort of rethink *****
/semi-coherent rant - Thuktun, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I was thinking Ben Stiller, wearing 1980's shorts and t-shirt (both far too short) complete with sweat bands on head and wrists.
- FreddieD, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yeah, I for some reason envision Borat in his ping pong playing outfit..
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