List of abstract strategy games

Template:Short description An abstract strategy game is a board, card or other game where gameplay is mostly without a theme and a player's decisions affect the outcome. Abstract strategy games are combinatorial, i.e. they provide perfect information (instead of hidden or imperfect information), rely on neither physical dexterity nor non-deterministic elements (such as shuffled cards or dice rolls) during gameplay. Some board games which do not rely on the removal or movement of pieces can also be played as pen-and-paper games. Almost all abstract strategy games are designed for two players or teams taking a finite number of alternating turns.

"N-in-a-row" games

N-in-a-row games involve placing and/or moving pieces on a game board attempting to create a layout of N pieces in a straight line (often N=3, but not always). Positional games involve only playing pieces, with no movement or captures afterwards. Many of these positional games can also be played as paper and pencil games, and these are marked †. (Generally, 3D games are difficult to play on paper.)

Positional "N-in-a-row" games

Non-positional "N-in-a-row" games, i.e. games with movements and/or captures

Blockade games

Blockade games primarily involve moving your pieces, following the game rules, so as to block your opponent from having any move they can make. In symmetric blockade games, both players have the same number of pieces with the same movement capabilities. In asymmetric blockade games, players have different numbers of pieces with different movement capabilities—usually one player having a single piece of greater movement range and the other player having multiple pieces of lesser movement capabilities.

Symmetric blockade games

Asymmetric blockade games

Connection games

A connection game is a type of abstract strategy game in which players attempt to complete a specific type of connection with their pieces. This could involve forming a path between two or more goals, completing a closed loop, or connecting all of one's pieces so they are adjacent to each other. Those marked † can also be played as paper and pencil games.

Annihilation games

Annihilation games have as a central goal the idea of capturing or eliminating all of the opponent's pieces before they can capture yours. The rules for how a capture is accomplished vary greatly. A classic example of this category is checkers. Two of the most common forms of capture are jump (one piece jumps an opponent's piece) and custodial (one piece is surrounded by two or more opponent pieces). Both "capture and remove from the board" games and "capture and convert to one of your pieces" games are included in this list.

• Agon (1842)
• Alquerque (ancient)
• Apit-sodok (traditional)
• Armenian checkers (traditional)
• Astar
• Ataxx (1990)
• Awithlaknannai Mosona (traditional)
• Bizingo
• Brax
• Butterfly
• Camelot (1887)
• Canadian checkers (traditional)
• Checkers (also known as Draughts) (ancient)
• Choko (traditional)
• Cinc camins (traditional)
• Damath (1980)
• Dablot Prejjesne (traditional)
• Daldøs (traditional)
• Dameo (2000)
• Dash-guti (traditional)
• Egara-guti (traditional)
• Fanorona (traditional)
• Four-field kono (traditional)
• Gala (traditional)
• Gol-skuish (traditional)
• High jump
• Italian Damone (traditional)
• Jungle (Dou Shou Qi, The Game of Fighting Animals) (early 1900s)
• Jul-gonu (traditional)
• Kangaroo: The Jumping Game
• Keny (traditional)
• Kharbaga (traditional)
• Kolowis Awithlaknannai (fighting serpents) (traditional)
• Kotu Ellima (traditional)
• Lau kata kati (traditional)
• Liberian Queah (traditional)
• Mak-yek (traditional)
• Meurimueng-rimueng peuet ploh or Dam-daman or Ratti-chitti-bakri (traditional)
• Ming mang (traditional)
• Peralikatuma (traditional)
• Permainan-Tabal (traditional)
• Pretwa (traditional)
• Rek, and its variant min rek chanh (traditional)
• Sáhkku (traditional)
• Seega (ancient)
• Stay Alive (1971)
• Satoel (traditional)
• Sirius
• Sixteen soldiers (also known as Cows and Leopards or Sholo Guti) (traditional)
• Surakarta (traditional)
• Terhuchu (traditional)
• Tobit
• Tuknanavuhpi (traditional)
• Tukvnanawopi (traditional)
• Turkish draughts (traditional)
• Watermelon chess (traditional)
• Yoté (traditional)
• Zamma (traditional)

Counting games

These games involve some aspect of counting, especially to determine the relative outcomes of various alternatives at points along the way. Classic examples of this category include the various Mancala games.

• Chopsticks
• Mancala and related games

Positional games

Positional games allow no captures, but require some arrangement of pieces that constitutes a "win". This is a broad category that includes, as sub-categories, both the "All-in-a-row" games and the "Blockade" games. Only the positional games that do not fit into those two categories are included in this list.

• Abalone (1987)
• Chinese checkers (1892)
• Conspirateurs
• Diaballik (2005)
• Five-field kono (traditional)
• Halma (1883)
• Neutron (1978)
• Pyramid
• Salta (1899)
• Ugolki (traditional)

Hunt games

In "hunting" games, one player's pieces are "hunting" the other player's pieces, so that one player is trying to capture the second player's pieces, while the second player is trying to avoid captures, arranging their pieces to surround the hunters, to be protected from the hunters, etc. A classic example of this category is Fox and Geese. These games tend to have the hunter playing a "capture" game while the prey is playing a "positional" game.

• Aadu puli attam (traditional)
• Adugo (traditional)
• Asalto (19th century)
• Bagh bandi (traditional)
• Bagha-chall (traditional)
• Buga-shadara (traditional)
• Catch the hare (also known as Cercar la liebre or Corner the rabbit) (traditional)
• Demala diviyan keliya (traditional)
• Fox games, such as fox and geese (medieval)
• Hat diviyan keliya (traditional)
• Hnefatafl (Nordic) (ancient)
• Kaooa (traditional)
• Khla si ko (traditional)
• Komikan (traditional)
• Len choa (traditional)
• Leopard hunt game (traditional)
• Len cúa kín ngoa (traditional)
• Main tapal empat (traditional)
• Meurimueng-rimueng-do (traditional)
• Meurimueng-rimueng peuet ploh (traditional)
• Pulijudam (traditional)
• Rimau (traditional)
• Rimau-rimau (traditional)
• Sher-bakar (traditional)
• Sixteen soldiers (also known as Cows and leopards or Sholo guti) (traditional)
• Sua ghin gnua (also known as Tigers and oxen) (traditional)
• Tiger and buffaloes (traditional)
• Tiger game (traditional)

Other games

Those marked † can also be played as paper and pencil games.

References

Bibliography

• D. Hefetz, M. Krivelevich, M. Stojaković and T. Szabó: Positional Games, Oberwolfach Seminars, Vol. 44, Birkhäuser Basel, 2014.
• Engelstein, G., & Shalev, I. Building Blocks of Tabletop Game Design: An encyclopedia of Mechanisms (2nd ed.), Routledgem, 2020.
• Michaelsen, Peter, (2014) "Haretavl – Hare and Hounds as a board game", in Sport und Spiel bei den Germanen, M. Teichert, pp. 197–216
• Popova, Assia, (1974). "Analyse formelle et classification des jeux de calculs mongols" in Études Mongoles 5, pp. 7–60.