Infinite Games
by jonl on March 29, 2011
Via Flemming Funch, a review of “Finite and Infinite Games – A Vision of Life as Play and Possibility” by James P. Carse: “A finite game is a game that has fixed rules and boundaries, that is played for the purpose of winning and thereby ending the game….An infinite game has no fixed rules or boundaries. In an infinite game you play with the boundaries and the purpose is to continue the game.”
All finite games have rules. If you follow the rules you are playing the game. If you don’t follow the rules you aren’t playing. If you move the pieces in different ways in chess, you are no longer playing chess.Infinite players play with rules and boundaries. They include them as part of their playing. They aren’t taking them serious, and they can never be trapped by them, because they use rules and boundaries to play with.
Phi Beta Iota: This is a perfect “capstone” commentary from Jon–himself a hacker pioneer–Epoch A is over. Epoch B has begin. Epoch B changes everything, including the rules. It bears emphasis, over and over again, that INTEGRITY is essential for infinite games to create infinite wealth. Corruption is a cancer.
