Ghost (game)
Encyclopedia
Ghost is a spoken word game
in which players take turns adding letters to a growing word fragment, trying not to be the one to complete a valid word. Each fragment must be the beginning of an actual word, and usually some minimum is set on the length of a word that counts, such as three or four letters. The player who completes a word loses the round and earns a "letter" (as in the basketball game horse
), with players being eliminated when they have been given all five letters of the word "ghost".
Ghost can be played by two or more players of any age and requires no equipment, although it can be played with pencil and paper instead of being spoken aloud.
If any score is kept at all, the traditional method uses the letters of the word "Ghost" in the same fashion as the basketball game horse, with each loss giving the player the next letter of the word, and a player being eliminated when they have all five letters.
In some versions of the game, players that obtain all the letters of "ghost" continue to participate by trying to distract other players and turn them into ghosts. If a player does not have all the letters of the word "ghost" and he or she talks to an existing ghost, they immediately become a ghost. This rule serves to accelerate games of Ghost with many players. This is also a rule in the games of Llama and Llano.
" to find a winning strategy for one player.
Alan Frank, a member of the National Puzzlers' League
, constructed a sample winning strategy in 1987, based on the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary. Randall Munroe
posted a sample winning strategy in 2007 on the news page of his webcomic
, xkcd
. He based his solution on the Ubuntu
dictionary.
or Llano) is played by choosing either the beginning or end of the growing word fragment and adding a letter there. For example, given the fragment ERA, a player might offer BERA or ERAD. This version was played by James Thurber
and his circle of friends.
Superduperghost is played by deciding whether to reverse the letters of the word fragment before adding a letter to the fragment's beginning or end. For example, given the fragment ERA, a player might offer BERA, ERAD, NARE, or AREN. This variant was first broadly adopted at the 1978 World Science Fiction Convention in Phoenix, Arizona (IguanaCon) and is credited to Cary Hammer and Mark Malamud
.
Xghost (sometimes also known as Superduperghost or Llama) is played by adding a letter anywhere in the growing word fragment, including between letters. For example, given the fragment ERA, a player might offer BERA, ERAD, EBRA, or ERMA. This version was invented by Daniel Asimov around 1970. Originally and still often known as Superduperghost, it was played by his circle of mathematics grad student friends at U.C. Berkeley.
Spook is played by adding letters to a "pool" in which no fixed order is assumed. In this game, one's objective is to avoid completing a letter pool which can be ordered to form a word. For example, given the pool {A,B,F,L,S,U}, a player would be unwise to add H, which would form the word BASHFUL. However, he or she might add B, and cite the word FLASHBULB if challenged.
These variants usually require much more effort and time to play than the conventional game, and as such are lesser-known and less popular.
Cheddar Gorge is played by adding a word to the end of a growing sentence fragment, and avoiding the completion of a sentence. This variant was popularized on the BBC Radio show I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue
in the "Who is Max Mouse?" story arc.
Word game
Word games and puzzles are spoken or board games often designed to test ability with language or to explore its properties.Word games are generally engaged as a source of entertainment, but have been found to serve an educational purpose as well...
in which players take turns adding letters to a growing word fragment, trying not to be the one to complete a valid word. Each fragment must be the beginning of an actual word, and usually some minimum is set on the length of a word that counts, such as three or four letters. The player who completes a word loses the round and earns a "letter" (as in the basketball game horse
Variations of basketball
Variations of basketball are games or activities based on, or similar to, the game of basketball, in which the player utilizes common basketball skills. Some are essentially identical to basketball, with only minor rules changes, while others are more distant and arguably not simple variations but...
), with players being eliminated when they have been given all five letters of the word "ghost".
Ghost can be played by two or more players of any age and requires no equipment, although it can be played with pencil and paper instead of being spoken aloud.
Game play
A player is chosen at random to start the game, and begins by naming any letter of the alphabet. Players then take turns to add letters to this fragment, with the aim being to avoid completing an actual word. The player whose turn it is may - instead of adding a letter - challenge the previous player to prove that the current fragment is actually the beginning of a word. If the challenged player can name such a word, the challenger loses the round; otherwise the challenged player loses the round. If a player bluffs, or completes a word without other players noticing, then play continues. When a round ends, play generally passes to the left.If any score is kept at all, the traditional method uses the letters of the word "Ghost" in the same fashion as the basketball game horse, with each loss giving the player the next letter of the word, and a player being eliminated when they have all five letters.
In some versions of the game, players that obtain all the letters of "ghost" continue to participate by trying to distract other players and turn them into ghosts. If a player does not have all the letters of the word "ghost" and he or she talks to an existing ghost, they immediately become a ghost. This rule serves to accelerate games of Ghost with many players. This is also a rule in the games of Llama and Llano.
Winning strategy
Since the game tree of Ghost can be derived from the list of combinations of letters that are considered to be words, the game (as played by two players) can be easily "solvedSolved game
A solved game is a game whose outcome can be correctly predicted from any position when each side plays optimally. Games which have not been solved are said to be "unsolved"...
" to find a winning strategy for one player.
Alan Frank, a member of the National Puzzlers' League
National Puzzlers' League
The National Puzzlers' League is a nonprofit organization focused on puzzling, primarily in the realm of word play and word games. Founded in 1883, it is the oldest puzzlers' organization in the world...
, constructed a sample winning strategy in 1987, based on the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary. Randall Munroe
Randall Munroe
Randall Patrick Munroe is an American webcomic author and former NASA roboticist as well as a programmer, best known as the creator of the webcomic xkcd...
posted a sample winning strategy in 2007 on the news page of his webcomic
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
, xkcd
Xkcd
xkcd is a webcomic created by Randall Munroe. The comic's tagline describes it as "a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language." It has been recognized in such mainstream media as The Guardian and The New York Times....
. He based his solution on the Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
dictionary.
Variants
Superghost (also known as LexicantLexicant
Lexicant is a paper and pencil word game for two players. A letter is written on a sheet of paper, and each player takes turns adding a letter either to the beginning or the end of this ever-growing word stem. Any word-stem you create must form part of a valid English word, without actually being...
or Llano) is played by choosing either the beginning or end of the growing word fragment and adding a letter there. For example, given the fragment ERA, a player might offer BERA or ERAD. This version was played by James Thurber
James Thurber
James Grover Thurber was an American author, cartoonist and celebrated wit. Thurber was best known for his cartoons and short stories published in The New Yorker magazine.-Life:...
and his circle of friends.
Superduperghost is played by deciding whether to reverse the letters of the word fragment before adding a letter to the fragment's beginning or end. For example, given the fragment ERA, a player might offer BERA, ERAD, NARE, or AREN. This variant was first broadly adopted at the 1978 World Science Fiction Convention in Phoenix, Arizona (IguanaCon) and is credited to Cary Hammer and Mark Malamud
Mark Malamud
Mark Malamud is the Principal and Manager of , LLC, a consultancy company focused on advanced user interface and design.During his 10-year tenure at Microsoft, Mr...
.
Xghost (sometimes also known as Superduperghost or Llama) is played by adding a letter anywhere in the growing word fragment, including between letters. For example, given the fragment ERA, a player might offer BERA, ERAD, EBRA, or ERMA. This version was invented by Daniel Asimov around 1970. Originally and still often known as Superduperghost, it was played by his circle of mathematics grad student friends at U.C. Berkeley.
Spook is played by adding letters to a "pool" in which no fixed order is assumed. In this game, one's objective is to avoid completing a letter pool which can be ordered to form a word. For example, given the pool {A,B,F,L,S,U}, a player would be unwise to add H, which would form the word BASHFUL. However, he or she might add B, and cite the word FLASHBULB if challenged.
These variants usually require much more effort and time to play than the conventional game, and as such are lesser-known and less popular.
Cheddar Gorge is played by adding a word to the end of a growing sentence fragment, and avoiding the completion of a sentence. This variant was popularized on the BBC Radio show I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue
I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue
I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, sometimes abbreviated to ISIHAC or Clue, is a BBC radio comedy panel game broadcast since 11 April 1972 at the rate of one or two series each year , transmitted on BBC Radio 4, with occasional repeats on BBC Radio 4 Extra and the BBC's World Service...
Popular culture
The game of Ghost was played in an episode of GhostwriterGhostwriter (TV series)
Ghostwriter is an American television program created by Liz Nelson and produced by the Children's Television Workshop and BBC One. It began airing on PBS on October 4, 1992, and the final episode aired on February 13, 1995...
in the "Who is Max Mouse?" story arc.