Games article

Backgammon is thought to be the oldest game in the world
and archaeologists have found backgammon sets that date from as long ago as 3
0
BC. It is a classic game of luck combined with strategy
as you must roll dice and then choose how best to move. The great thing about backgammon is that the rules are simple to explain
but mastering the game can take a lifetime. Unlike chess
the game is also quick to pick up and play
with games often lasting only a few minutes.

Basically
there are two sides on a backgammon board
each with twelve spaces
for a total of twenty-four spaces. These spaces are numbered from 1 to 24 in opposite directions for the two players
so player one’s space 1 is player two’s space 24
and so on. Where each players’ counters (checkers) are placed varies depending on the rules being used
but a common configuration is five on 6 and 13
three on 8
and two on 24.

To begin the game
you each roll one of the dice
and the player who rolls the highest gets the first turn using the numbers from both dice. The rule is that each number is a move
so if you roll a one and a six
you can move one checker one space and one checker six spaces.

This is where it starts to get a bit complicated
but stick with it. When you’re deciding which checker to move and where
you have to consider which moves are allowed. Your checkers can only move to spaces that have no checkers
only your checkers
or only one of your opponent’s checkers – you cannot move to any space that has two or more of your opponent’s checkers. However
if you land on a space where your opponent has only one checker
you have taken it and can put it on the ‘bar’ in the middle of the board. The bar counts as ‘space zero’ for dice rolls
and any checkers there must be moved before the others can be.

In backgammon you need to be able to alter your play in a blink. Occasionally you will have to restrain yourself from attacking and build your game
other times you'll need to attack full steam. In the very beginning of the game you need to be aggressive
fast and straightforward. If you can reach your early game targets it'll help you a lot later.

The early game targets

1. Make points in the homeboard
There are two reasons why this is important. First
it will mess your upponent's game by limiting his chances to enter from the bar if you hit his checker. If you make to additional points his chances are much worse to get back to the game than if you would have only the six-point. Second
by making points in your home board also means that you those checkers are already ready for bearing off when the time comes.

Please remember that some points are more important than others. If you maneuver your checkers to the edge of the board or very close to it you limit yourself as to which checkers you can move. On your home board the most important points are the 5-point
then 6 and 4-point and then the 3-point in this order.

If you are unable to make points in your homeboard
make points as near to the homeboard as possible. If you manage to block points 7 through 12 you'll see how difficult it is for your opponent to escape his back checkers. In addition
making any points between 7 and 12 are excellent storage points for bringing the checkers in to your home board.

2. Escape your back men
While you are attacking and building points in and near your home board you shouldn't forget about your back men. If you do
a few turns later they might've got blocked or the distance to the rest of your checkers could be very long and therefore the escape can become a very risky one and could easily cost you the game. Therefore
from the beginning
move your back checkers up slowly towards your home board. Try to keep them in relative proximity to the rest of the checkers.

Doubles are very good for bringing the back men towards your home board. Use half of the roll for that purpose and use the other half making points somewhere else. Sometimes you will be rolling combinations that doesn't allow you to move both of your checkers well. In that case split your back men. This can be a little risky but if you play safe you'll never be a real backgammon winner. As soon as you can
bring your back men again together.

Conculsion
You are doing yourself a big favour if you maintain your focus and work hard towards your early game goals. If you don't you'll soon find yourself firefighting problems after one another and that's the type of game you most certainly will lose. So stay calm
and don't let things distract you from what matters in the early phases of the game.

Baccarat is sometimes known as the cousin of blackjack. The reason for the comparison is due to the basic game rules. In blackjack
you need to achieve a hand closer to 21 than the dealer’s. In baccarat
the hand closer to 9 is the winner. Baccarat is also known as the king of casino games and is one of the oldest card games still played at casinos today.

Unlike blackjack
in baccarat a player can bet on whether his/her hand or the dealer’s will win. The three betting options in baccarat are player
banker
or tie. Betting on the player will play even money. Wagering on the banker is the most popular bet but it is important to know that casinos charge a 5 percent commission when the player bets for the house. Players shouldn’t let this discourage them
though
the reason the house charges this fee is due to the fact that the banker wins
statistically
more times than the player.

The least common of the wagers is the tie
which pays eight to one. This is one of the least-profitable wagers a person can place at a casino
the house edge is extremely high.

The card values are easy to remember
face cards and ten are worth zero
ace cards are worth one and number cards are face value. A player receives two cards and can only receive one more hand during the game play.

Similar to blackjack
baccarat is a game where a single player faces off against the dealer. Baccarat
even with its glamorous image
is primarily a game of chance. Also unlike blackjack
a solid strategy still does not make this a ‘beatable’ game.

Baccarat is considered one of the most glamorous of the casino games. Due
in part
to the fact that for centuries this was a game played by the French royalty and to the fact that it was featured prominently in many of the 007 films as James Bond’s game of choice.

Even though the game is fairly simple to learn and master
it is one of the more popular choices for high-rolling
VIP players. Online casinos offer an array of baccarat betting limits but many land-based casinos only offer baccarat in high-minimum limits and
oftentimes
in a separated area from the main casino to offer the VIP players privacy.

There is an array of online tutorials available for beginning baccarat players.

Some other good resources online for beginning players are Ildado’s (http://www.ildado.com/baccarat_glossary.html) baccarat glossary and Online-Casino’s (http://www.online-casino.com) free practice game play.

For those of you who don’t know
the Sims Online is undergoing a revolution. Having been left standing for the last few years with little to no input
EA are at last re-shaping the game
and the world of multiplayer gaming as we know it. Sound like hyperbole? Perhaps
perhaps not; check out their latest addition to the online gaming experience: AvatarBook.

Facebook made flesh

So what is Avatarbook? Well
the clue is in the name. What is one of the largest social networking websites on the planet at the moment? That’s right -– Facebook. With over 58 million users
Facebook is the primary reason that many of us log on in the morning. But
as we all know
it has its limitations. As do online games.

One problem with online games is that they can be too divorced from reality -– you have your online friends
and your real-world friends
and the two remain firmly divided. Ditto Facebook -– your user-circle is limited by who you already know
and it’s hard to get to know people outside of that circle on a one-to-one basis without sharing all your private data or being introduced by a friend of a friend.

All that is set to change
with a new application that could change our networking community forever. When Linden Labs made Linden Dollars (the currency of the hugely popular game Second Life) exchangeable for real-world currency
they opened up the world of online gaming by bringing it into the real world. Now EA want to do the same thing
by allowing users of the Sims Online to link their Avatars' accounts to their Facebook profiles.


Sharing Information

Avatarbook has two faces -- the in-game version and the Facebook version. In-game you can use it much like Facebook
in that you can find other Avatars and view their limited profiles. For friends the full profiles are visible
with walls for people to write on and updatable status. Your profile will also show if your lot is open or not
and the application an be used to quickly make your way around EA Land as you jump from friend to friend.

In Facebook
the application shows your Avatar's details (unless you have chosen a private setting) and picture
and whether or not you are logged on to the game. This is a useful way for players to find out who is online without having to log in themselves. You can also invite other users of Facebook who are not already Sims Online players to download the application and see your Avatar profile -- a move that EA hopes will attract more people to the game.

For the time being
then
the bulk of information that can be shared is Avatar-related. Their skills
properties and friends can all be viewed
and their Wall. The identity of the real-life person behind the Avatar is kept private
at least for now.

Privacy

Privacy is a major issue as far as EA are concerned
so at the moment Avatarbook is fairly limited in how much information can be shared. In the Sims game you can add people to your friends list
which will provide them with a link to your Facebook profile rather than making a direct link
though that is set to change as the application grows. Also
nobody in EA Land (the Sims Online world where the application will be available) will have access to your real name - you will be searchable only by your Avatar's name. EA have stated that they intend to allow players to lower their privacy settings so that more information can be shared
but at the moment they're playing it safe.

The Future

This application obviously shows great potential
and it is something that EA are going to continue to develop as they gain feedback from users. The Sims Online game is going through a revolution at the moment
with their free trial set to become permanent free play in the very near future (with limited gameplay for non-payers
much like in Second Life). For years now Second Life has been leading the pack in terms of innovation and social interactivity
but if EA keeps this up then we could be looking at a new contender for the crown. After all
they did come up with the two most popular games of all time (Sims and Sims 2)
so some would say that this is less of a surprise than a belated homecoming. Certainly one to watch
at any rate.

Board games have evolved massively over the years. As a child my memories of board games were Monopoly
Draughts
Cluedo
Guess Who and many many more. All games that we could play as a family to pass the time away. Hours of fun was had by all.

My favorite game was Monopoly a game that give me an insight to Real Estate (ironically enough
I now have a career as an Estate Agent). Is that a coincidence or did my childhood obsession with Monopoly play on by subconscious?

Many Sunday afternoons were spent with my four sisters playing
or should I say rowing over this fabulous game. The first row would normally be about who would like to be the iron
shoe
car etc (these were the items that you had to chose from to represent you on the board as you played). My favourite was always the dog!

The next row would be about who went first
and then the next would be about who would play the role of the Banker.

Finally the game would begin
and how much fun we had. Hours and hours of fun week after week.

How things have changed? Today
whilst we still have the old traditional Board games
and I guess we always will
Games are far more advanced
and are often played on computers
or via DVD Players using your Television sets.

You can now play a board game on your own against a Computer (who will act as your opponent) as opposed to playing with friends and/or family. I find this quite sad
especially knowing how much fun we had as children interacting with each other
and observing each other as we rowed over such meaningless but then important issues.

I now see my own nephews spending hours on their own in front of a computer playing games without any physical human interaction
whilst their parents get on with other things. I guess one advantage is that if you are an only child you don’t miss out on not playing games just because you had no-one else to play it with you. The Traditional games such as monopoly can now be played on a computer and the Computer can act as your opponent. You can even set what level of difficulty you want to play at.

The disadvantage to this
in my opinion is that the family getting together and interacting with each other seems to be a thing of the past.

Playing arcade games can be a lot of fun. It has varieties from simple games
such as ping-pong to more intense games like shooting. You can play all these games in your local arcade or at the mall.

A trip to the mall to play arcade games is worth it if you want to have fun. However
you can also play arcade games right in the comforts of your own home. There are many choices on the internet of websites that provide arcade game downloads.

You can even look for the game variety you are most interested in and you can download them right to your computer. You can download puzzle games
sports arcade games
old arcade games and even the most realistic shooting game right to your personal computer.

This means no more wasted time waiting in lines to play a single game and no more lines to change your bills into coins. Many websites offer arcade games for download. Some are free and some will charge you a little fee for their download services.

Arcade games can take your imagination anywhere. You can be in an X-Games tournament where you can compete against the best X-Games athletes. Visit the time of World War II where you can get the feel of being bombed
shot at
and experience interactive artificial intelligence where you can command what to do; or you can play simple word game puzzles to let time pass.

Downloading arcade games can also be a form of family entertainment. You can compete with one another and have fun with your family. You can invite friends to come over to your house to hang out and play arcade games.

You can even access long forgotten Arcade games that you feel are still good. For instance
you missed playing a particular arcade game that is not available anymore in arcade game establishment and you really want to play it again. You can have access of these old arcade games on the internet and download it to your computer.

However
downloading arcade games will not be as realistic as what arcade game establishments offer. They have joysticks for airplane games
guns for shooting games and steering wheel for racing games.

You can also have all of these by buying joysticks at your local computer store. It can provide more realism on whatever arcade games you are playing. You can even hook up your home entertainment system such as your wide screen TV and your stereo system to get a more realistic feel and excitement in your game.

Downloading arcade games is also more convenient than going to the mall. You can also play all you want
whenever you want and free. You can also save a lot of time.

Just count the number of minutes required to go to the mall and include the number of minutes or even hours waiting in line for a popular arcade game. Playing arcade games at home eliminates these inconveniences.

Downloading arcade games can provide fun and excitement to you
your family and friends right in your own home. All of you can play whenever you want and what games you want. However
you should also be careful on what website you download your arcade games.

Many websites offer arcade game downloads that might contain viruses and other malicious programs included in the installation. Be sure that you know and trust the website you are downloading your game from. This can ensure you of a great time with your friends and family.

Online anime has seen some amazing transformations in recent years. Due to the decreasing cost of anime production software
individuals are now able to develop amazingly creative stories and art. The anime community now has multiple outlets from which they can get a quick anime fix
anytime they want. This enormous consumption of new anime content has allowed the anime audience to interact with creators on a level never before possible. Feedback from viewers allows creators to develop plots and characters that the audience expresses an interest in. Creators can move away from traditional anime subject matter and move into more serious
thought provoking anime story lines using the medium. Or they can choose to tell stories that are more mundane with anime art
they need not stick with fanciful tales any longer. Distribution through the Internet will allow all types of new anime content to be accepted by a worldwide community.

While there will undoubtedly be anime creations that are solely out to shock and awe people to make money from online advertising
there will be new
truly creative works of genius that come from one or two person anime teams. Smaller anime outfits will be able to cater to hungry niches that exist on the Internet. And there is nothing wrong with paying these people for there time and creative output. This will truly allow anime to flourish and use its stunning visual imagery to attract potential viewers from all over the globe. While a niche may seem small on a local basis
compounded over a global audience
it can soon become relatively large. And this global reach will allow many new
small anime creators to show their work to the world. Because of the economics of distributing media online today
creators need not wait for a sizable demand before beginning work on an anime piece. They can create something
quite inexpensively
and release it to the world immediately. If there is demand
they can progress with the story line
if there is no audience interest
they can move onto something else.

And importantly
because anime is such a visual medium
there is no need for speech. An anime piece can convey its message with masterful facial expressions and drawings. That is what made anime popular in the first place
and is what will allow anime to thrive in a global environment. For instance
an anime about a child's first day at school need not have words to tell a story. The ability of anime to tell stories that are full of emotion is well known
and is one of the reasons why it is so loved. Anime transcends language. Its visual nature can speak to an audience on any continent. The language of the creator can always be translated by the audience
if need be
and then what was once a piece of art that could only be understood by one people can be understood by another. And the translation can continue until the piece is capable of being globally recognized. This translation becomes a labor of love for anime fans and is no longer figured into the production expenses of a Japanese production company. Anime can now become the work of everyone.

Online games are becoming more popular with each passing year. As more people connect to the internet and install Shockwave or Java on their computers
a huge market will open up for free online games. The prices on computers are dropping
and this means that more people with have access to independent games. Many seasoned gamers are annoyed by the politics which often exist in large video game companies.

Many gamers are also looking for games which allow them to interact with other players. Even with the success of online fighting games
many developers have not bothered to create them. MMORPGs are becoming more popular than ever before. Players want to interact with each other and create their own identities in the digital world. This is the direction in which I believe free online games are headed today. As the internet becomes more widely used
people want interaction more than graphics.

Because the video game market of today is so saturated
the cost of these games have dramatically decreased. It doesn't cost much money to develope a quality game if you know where to look. This will open the door for many independent game companies to design games which are an alternative to the mainstream console games which currently dominate the market. Shockwave and Java are tools that have allowed many people to cost effectively produce free online games.

As the graphics
gameplay
and storylines of these games continue to improve
more people will play them. While the PC game market declined at the end of the 1990s
it is expected that independent online games will fill this void. Multiplayer online games should be free or very cheap to play. Because the cost to produce them is so low
there is no reason why players should have pay $60 to buy one game. The low cost trend for online games can be seen at the Shockwave website
where they charge as littles as $9.95 for a game.

Many online games can be downloaded directly onto your computer. There is no need to go out to the store or order them through the mail. The games are available to play as soon as you download them. In addition to interactivity
people want things quickly. We live in a society in which virtually everything moves fast. When people want to play games
they want them as soon as possible. This is a demand that free online games can meet.

Many players go in for various video poker games for their high technology graphics
innovative animations and wild sounds. There are various video poker games available now in casinos. The list includes jacks or better
deuces wild
all American
joker poker
bonus poker
joker’s wild and king of the decks. Though all the video poker games involve standard cards to play with
the difference lies in the payout strategy and the number of decks each game uses for its play.

Every video poker game has an individual payout table in which it lists the payout for a full house and for a royal flush. According to the website poker-king.com
“jacks or better” is the most popular amongst the video poker games and has a payout of 99.5%. This game is comparatively simple to play and gives an experience that helps to play other complicated video poker games.

Jacks or better has a good payout table making it a good paying machine and it has good full house and flush payouts. For example
for a 9/6 payout table on full house the player gets 9 counts and on a royal flush
he gets 6 counts. This video poker game involves five cards and uses a single standard deck of 52 cards. The player starts with inserting a coin and pressing the play key. A set of five cards appear on the monitor .The player can hold any card and any number of cards. After he holds the desired cards he presses deal button
all the cards tend to shuffle except the held cards. When the whole set of cards make a deal the player wins and collects his coins or points. The maximum win is obtained when you play all five coins and royal flush.

Deuces wild uses the standard single set of 52 cards. In this video poker game
all the 2’s
that is all four deuces are considered as wild cards. This becomes a bonus to the players and increases the probability to make a full house. The minimum rank for a winning hand is three of a kind. The key rule here is that one should never discard a deuce.

Joker’s wild involves a complete set of standard 52 card deck. Here joker is taken as a wild card. That is this joker can be used to substitute any other card. This becomes a bonus to the players and the chances of a winning hand are increased. The minimum rank for a winning hand becomes two pair.

Another type of video poker games is the king of the decks. It uses 5 decks of a standard set of 52 cards. The game here is to collect 5 kinds of clubs. Since this video poker game involves a large number of cards the probability of a win comparatively is less. But on the complete collection of all 5 kinds of clubs the game is over and you win the jackpot. The three most popular video poker games according to the poker-king.com website are 9/6 jack’s or better
10
double bonus
and full pay deuces wild.

Even If you have just gotten started playing EVE Online
you are already probably aware of the existence of EVE Online ore. Mining for ore is one of the best ways to get ahead in this complicated
versatile game
and you'll find that with just a little bit of work and some basic information under your belt that you'll be in good shape to understand ore
it's place in EVE Online
and how you can make the ore you mine work the best for you!

As several awards and more than 220
0
active accounts
it is easily seen that the EVE Online game is one massive multiuser online role playing game that you want to get into! This game
created by the Icelandic company CCP
has been active and popular for the past five years
and continues to grow at an impressive rate. You'll find that with a little bit of knowledge about this game and brief idea of the game play
you'll be ready to get started and see what this fascinating game world has to offer.

The general premise of the EVE Online game is one where the Earth as we know it has been depleted of usable resources
and due to this
people were leaving the planet to colonize space. In the EVE Online game
people spread throughout the Milky Way and through out the galaxy
until resources were once again contested and wars broke out. The solution to this problem was a natural wormhole
through which another galaxy could be found. The EVE Gate
an artificial wormhole was constructed to link the galaxies when it was discovered that the natural wormhole was unstable.

The first thing to be aware of is that ore is a basic material that can be found in the asteroid fields that you will encounter in EVE. There are various types of ores
but they are unusable until they have been refined into the minerals that compose them
much like mining in real life. The minerals that result can be very valuable when it comes to things like the manufacture of ships and weapons
and this is how you can get a lot of money through this endeavor.

When you go looking for ore
remember that you want to start off in an area that has fewer than 60 pilots using it. You'll find that competition can be fierce
and when you are starting out
you might need to in a quieter area to make the most of your opportunity. Try to make sure that you are mining in an area that has a refinery nearby; as soon as your hold is full
make sure that you get the ore refined and taken in for ISK
the game's currency
as soon as possible!

When you are looking at ore
the best rule to keep in mind regarding whether the ore you've found is valuable is that the closer it is to A in the alphabet
the more valuable it will be. There are exceptions to this rule
but you'll find that it generally holds true. Also remember that the more valuable the ore
the less you will need of it to refine an amount of mineral that will net you a good profit. It is also fair to say the the more exotic and valuable ore will require some traveling to get to.

The first and most advanced race that can be played are the Amarr
who were the first of the colonies to rediscover space travel. They were on a crusade to spread their thoughts and ideals to the rest of the galaxy and in this
they were aided by the Minmatar
who were more primitive and not so advanced when it came to interstellar travel. After a confrontation with the Gallente and the Jove (the later being the non-playable race)
the entire Imperial Navy of Amarr was destroyed. The Gallante were at war for almost a century with the Caldari empire
and tensions between them continue to this day.

This is the general layout for the world of the EVE Online game and into this world
you create a character who can become a miner
a trader
a messenger or even a pirate. These are only some of the options
and you'll find that there are many different things that you can do to make your gameplay enjoyable. There are many different worlds to explore
and this is just the tip of the iceberg.

Sudoku is the latest puzzle craze to sweep the nation. If you search through various blogs and Sudoku game information sites
you will find that many people refer to this challenging game as the new Rubix Cube. If you grew up in the 80’s it would be difficult to forget the six-sided and six colored square
but Sudoku is doing just that.

If you think that Sudoku is a new game you would be incorrect. In fact
it was created in 1979 and published in an American puzzle magazine. The game was created by Howard Garns
a former architect. The craze hit Japan in 1986 but did not take the center stage until 2005 when websites
puzzle books and even significant media coverage made Sudoku game a worldwide sensation.

If you conduct a web search for Sudoku game you will find it has a massive following. The Internet has become a perfect haven for those logically inspired sleuths dedicated to filling in the boxes and solving puzzles. There are tons of websites dedicated to the game. There are also contests where contestants can actually win money or prizes. Contests
however
usually have to be done in person because there are computer programs available that can solve Sudoku game puzzles in a snap.

Sudoku is actually an abbreviation of the Japanese phrase suuji wa dokushin ni kagiru. Translated
it means the digits remain single. Normally
an ordinary Sudoku game puzzle is a 9 x 9 grid divided into nine 3x3 subgroups. Some of the cells have numbers and clues in them. Others are empty. The goal of the game is to pencil in the missing numbers in a logical fashion
but remember
each number one through nine can be used only once.

The difficulty levels of Sudoku game are varied. Puzzles can be crafted to fit highly experienced players or pure novices. Even the very young can get in on playing Sudoku game. If you found yourself a fan of the Rubix Cube back in the 1980s there is a good chance the Sudoku game craze would be right up your analytical alley. Give it a try and who knows
you might get hooked!

MMORPG stands for Massive(ly) Mutliplayer Online Role Play(ing) Game and an MMORPG is simply a genre of computer game in which there are hundreds (usually thousands or even millions) of players from all across the world.

In most MMORPGs the player takes the role of his or her own character and must navigate some sort of world or realm in order to complete quests and tasks. Usually these worlds will be persistent
hosted on a permanent server
and actions taken by the players will have an affect on the realm or world. Thus making it interactive
even when the player is not playing the game. This is known as being "real time" and is how MMORPGs emulate the real world. In one particular instance in World of Warcraft
an event occurred where a spell effect which lowered the players health slowly over time was spread from player to player. The disease effect got out of hand and as players ran back to towns and cities the virus spread and became an epidemic. Later
a patch was released to remedy the problem
but the community was shocked at how closely the behaviour seen in the game resembled real life.

Most MMORPGs
such as World of Warcraft and Guildwars
are based in fantasy and myth and involve magic and spells. Some are based in space
where you must command a spacecraft or your own planet. Some are even based on the real world
and with the invention of Google maps it may well be possible to have an MMORPG world which closely emulates the real world
perhaps even being able to visit your own home!

MUDs
or Multi-User Dungeons
were the first MMORPGs. They are usually simple text based programs where the players use commands to control and interact with their character
the world
and other players. Although simple 2D graphical versions and even 3D MUDs do exist. Similar to MUDs are browser based MMORPGs
like RuneScape
which are played entirely in the users browser. They can be simple pages of text or complex 3D renderings and offer similar functionality of more developed MMORPGs
usually for free.

MMORPGs were virtually unknown a few years ago and now they are commonplace for most gamers. In fact worldwide revenues for MMORPGs exceeded half a billion dollars in 2005
and Western revenues exceeded one billion USD in 2006.