Encyclopedia
Paper, Rock Scissors, also known in Japan as
Janken, is a hand game most often played by children. It was designed in Japan at the end of 1800's and it was transmitted from Japan all over the world in 1900's.
It is often used as a selection method in a similar way to coin flipping, Odd or Even,
throwing dice or drawing straws to randomly select a person for some purpose, though unlike truly random selections it can be played with skill if the game extends over many sessions, because one can often recognize and exploit the non-random behavior of an opponent.
Various sports may use Rock, Paper, Scissors to determine which team gets the opening play . Similarly, uncertain calls, or even the whole game in case of rain, may be decided by the game. It is also often used as a method for creating appropriately non-biased random results in
live action role-playing games, as it requires no equipment.
Game play
| | | |
| Each of the three basic hand-signs beats one of the other two. |
The players count together to 3 counts, most commonly either using the name of the game or simply numbers. At the end of the third count, the players simultaneously change their fists into any of three "objects", which they then "throw" by extending it towards their opponent:
- Rock: a clenched fist.
- Paper : all fingers extended, palm facing downwards, upwards, or sideways.
- Scissors: forefinger and middle finger extended and separated into a "V" shape.
The objective is to defeat the opponent by selecting a weapon which defeats their choice under the following rules:
- Rock smashes Scissors
- Scissors cut Paper
- Paper covers Rock
If both players choose the same weapon, the game is a tie and is played again.
In International competition, the weapon is thrown on the fourth count . This is called "International Style." In "American Style," the throw comes on the third count .
Typically, the game is played in a "best 2 out of 3" match.
Cheating
One of the first tricks learned by a Rock-Paper-Scissors novice is to hold back a throw of paper until the last possible moment to dupe an opponent into believing that one may actually be throwing a rock. Both paper and scissors have this ability; however, unless one is employing a "double-back" strategy, cloaking a paper throw is likely to draw an instinctive paper from one's opponent.
A common variation on the opening ritual is to have both players hold their hands behind their backs and reveal their already formed throw after the count of three. The intention is to prevent any sort of timing based cheating.
Another way to cheat is to prime three times instead, if the opponent primed twice only, the other could see his opponent's throw without revealing his own, claiming that he though "I thought we are doing three primes".
Note: priming is the number of bounces one does before revealing the throw.
Variations
There are many different variations of Rock, Paper, Scissors which range from simple changes in the names of the objects to increasing the number of players or objects. While interesting, most rule variations suffer from one problem or another, making them less interesting games. Versions of this game are also observed in many different cultures. It is usually known by direct translations of "Rock, Paper, Scissors" although some cultures have slightly different names or even entirely different elements representing the different objects. For example in Japan there is a variation which uses a tiger, a chief and the chief's mother as the three elements . In Indonesia another version is played with the elements as an elephant, a man and an ant . The Chinese, not counting Taiwanese, and Koreans use Cloth along with Rock and Scissors, while the Japanese have adopted Paper. Minor variation is also observed in the standard game play.
Mathematics and non-transitivity
Rock, Paper, Scissors is also often used as an example of the mathematical concept of non-transitivity. A transitive relation
R is one for which
a R b and
b R c implies
a R c. A
reflexive,
antisymmetric, and transitive relation on a set is known as a
partial ordering, from which notions of "greater" and "less" follow. A game option which is "greater" than another is closer to being optimal, but such a notion does not exist in Rock, Paper, Scissors: The relation used to determine which throws defeat which is non-transitive. Rock defeats Scissors, and Scissors defeat Paper, but Rock
loses to Paper. In fact, Rock-Paper- Scissors could be called
"antitransitive" because if A strictly defeats B, and B strictly defeats C, A necessarily loses against C.
Pop culture trivia
Because of its widespread use by children and adults, Rock Paper Scissors has received substantial references in popular culture.
Seinfeld is an American [i] television [i] situation comedy [i] set in New York City [i] ...
,
The Simpsons is an Emmy [i] and Peabody [i]-winning American [i] animated [i] ...
, and
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all poke fun at particular characters' incompetence at understanding the game rules. In other shows, mischievous characters are often able to "win" the game by deploying new objects which beat all the others and are subsequently able to convince their slow-witted competitor that deploying the new object is a legitimate move. In
video games, intransitive relationships often appear either in strategy choices or in weapons' abilities.
"Rock is Dead. Long live Paper and Scissors." is a popular t-shirt among young people wishing to express disdain for the lack of quality rock music available.
Federal case
In 2006, Federal Judge Gregory Presnell from the Middle District of Florida ordered opposing sides in a lengthy court case to settle a trivial point over the appropriate place for a deposition using the game of rock-paper-scissors. The ruling in
Avista Management v. Wausau Underwriters stated:
Auction house RPS match
When Takashi Hashiyama, CEO of a Japanese television equipment manufacturer, decided to auction off the collection of Impressionist paintings owned by his corporation, including works by Cezanne, Picasso and van Gogh, he contacted two leading U.S. auction houses -- Christie's International and Sotheby's Holdings -- and sought of their proposals on how they would bring the collection to the market as well as how they would maximize the profits from the sale.
Both firms made elaborate proposals, but neither side was persuasive enough to get Hashiyama’s business. Willing to split up the collection into separate auctions, Hashiyama asked the two firms to decide between themselves who would get the Cezanne's "Large Trees Under the Jas de Bouffan," worth $12-16 million.
They couldn't decide. Enter Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Hashiyama told the two firms to play RPS to decide who would get the rights to the auction, explaining, "It probably looks strange to others, but I believe this is the best way to decide between two things which are equally good."
The auction houses had a weekend to come up with a choice. Christie's went to experts: 11-year-old twin daughters of an employee, who suggested "scissors" because "Everybody expects you to choose 'rock.'" Sotheby's admitted that they treated it as a game of chance and had no particular strategy for the game, but went with "paper."
Christie's won the match, with millions of commission that went to the auction house.
Evolutionary strategy
Biologist Barry Sinervo from the
University of California, Santa Cruz has discovered a Rock-Paper-Scissors
evolutionary strategy in the mating behaviour of the
side-blotched lizard species
Uta stansburiana. Males have either orange, blue or yellow throats and each type follows a fixed, heritable mating strategy:
- Orange-throated males are strongest and do not form strong pair bonds; instead, they fight orange-throated males for their females. Yellow-throated males, however, manage to snatch females away from them for mating.
- Blue-throated males are middle-sized and form strong pair bonds. While they are outcompeted by orange-throated males, they can defend against yellow-throated ones.
- Yellow-throated males are smallest, and their coloration mimicks females. Under this disguise, they can approach orange-throated males but not the stronger-bonding blue-throated specimens and mate while the orange-throats are engaged in fights.
This can be summarized as "orange beats blue, blue beats yellow, and yellow beats orange," which is similar to the rules of rock, paper, scissors.
The proportion of each male type in a
population is similar in the long run, but fluctuates heavily in the short term. For periods of 4-5 years, one strategy predominates, after which it declines in frequency as the strategy that manages to exploit its weakness increases. This corresponds to the stable pattern of the game in the replicator dynamics where the
dynamical system follows closed orbits around the mixed strategy Nash equilibrium.
Tournaments
WRPS Sanctioned Tournaments
Starting in 2002, the World Rock Paper Scissors Society standardized a set of rules for international play and has overseen annual International World Championships. These open, competitive championships have been widely attended by players from around the world and have attracted widespread international media attention. WRPS events are noted for their large cash prizes, elaborate staging, and colourful competitors.
In 2004, the championships were broadcast on the U.S. television network
Fox Sports Net.
Professional poker player
Phil Gordon conducted what he called "The World Series of Rock-Paper-Scissors" during the 2005 World Series of Poker in which 64 contestents of the WSOP competed in a tournament similar to the NCAA tournament.
World Championship results since 2002
| Year | Host City | Medal | Champion | Gender | Nationality |
|---|
| 2002 | Toronto | | Peter Lovering | Male | Canadian |
| Moe Asem | Male | Canadian |
| Dave Ferris | Male | Canadian |
| 2003 | | Cameron McDougall | Male | Canadian |
| Marc Rigaux | Male | Canadian |
| Patrick Merry | Male | Canadian |
| 2004 | | Lee Rammage | Male | Canadian |
| Heather Birrell | Female | Canadian |
| Chris Berggeren | Male | American |
| 2005 | | Andrew Bergel | Male | Canadian |
| Stan Long | Male | American |
| Stewart Waldman | Male | American |
Tour events
In addition to the International World Championships the WRPS also endorses or sanctions a year-round series of tournaments world wide. "Endorsed" tournaments agree to abide by the WRPS standardized international rules of play and code of conduct, while "Sanctioned" tournaments will net the winner a trip to compete at the International World Championships. Some of the major events of this tour include:
- , Healdsburg, California
- , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- , Potsdam, New York
- , Brooklyn, New York
USARPS Tournaments
USARPS League is an organization sponsored by Bud Light. USARPS has been often criticised by the World RPS Society of using sex appeal to promote RPS. Matti Leshem is the co-commissioner of the USA Rock Paper Scissors League
In April 2006, the inaugural USA Rock Paper Scissors League Championship was held in Las Vegas, Nevada. Following months of regional qualifying tournaments held across the US, 257 players were flown to Las Vegas for a single-elimination tournament at the House of Blues where the winner received $50,000. The tournament aired on A&E on June 12, 2006.
At the first ever USA Rock Paper Scissors League Championship, "Drill" McGill defeated "Fast Twitch" Twitchel to win the tournament.
RPS the Movie
RPS the Movie is currently in production.
"Flip Flop Films announces that a cut of the four-years-in-the-making epic documentary RPS The Movie is complete and has been sent to film festivals for consideration in the 2006/07 festival circuit."
http://www.rpsfilm.com/
RPS Radio
A podcast dedicated to rock paper scissors. Content includes news coverage of various rock paper scissors tournaments, interviews of rock paper scissors celebrities, upcoming rock paper scissors related events, strategies of rock paper scissors, etc. Hosted by Alex Apter and Chris Hernandez .
http://www.rpsradio.com
Programming competitions
In Rock Paper Scissors programming competitions, competitors will play hundreds of rounds in order to give them an opportunity to detect patterns in their opponents, less than optimal play which can be exploited.
References
- Sogawa, Tsuneo . "Janken". Monthly Sinica, Vol.11, No.5.
- Culin, Stewart. . Korean Games, With Notes on the Corresponding Games at China and Japan.
- Gomme, Alice Bertha. . The traditional games of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 2 vols.
- Opie, Iona and Peter . Children's Games in Street and Playground Oxford University Press, London.
- Alonzo, S.H. and Sinervo, B. . "Mate choice games, context-dependent good genes, and genetic cycles in the side-blotched lizard, Uta stansburiana". Behavioral Ecology Sociobiology Vol.49, pp.176-186
- Sinervo, B., and Lively, C. . "The Rock-Paper-Scissors Game and the evolution of alternative male strategies". Nature Vol.380, pp.240-243
- Walker, Douglas & Graham . "The Official Rock Paper Scissors Strategy Guide" Fireside .
External links
- , from the "Multiculturalpedia"
- , an AIM Rock Paper Scissors bot that allows two people to play RPS over AIM
- , an artificial intelligence RPS player
- , an arcade version of RPS using custom glove controllers
- , Rock Paper Scissors expanded to 25 different symbols
