Games are broadly classified according to their purposes. A game is basically a structured form of outdoor play, normally undertaken for fun or entertainment, and at times used as an academic tool. Games are different from work, which is usually done for remuneration, though some have been found to be applied to enhance productivity. The main objective of most games is to take the player outside of his or her comfort zone, in order to find novel solutions to problems, while having fun. However, this is not always the case.
One of the first categories is the abstract board games, such as Monopoly, Clue, Scrabble, etc., which require no special skills for playing, though the rules are fairly simple. These are mainly games of chance, where players accumulate resources (such as property, food, etc.) and try to buy off other players. Some abstract games are also family friendly, with parents and children sharing the excitement.
Another type of board games are the strategy games, such as Chess, Quiclyte, Stratego, etc. chess is probably the one that received the most popular acclaim, due to the enormous competitive world championship matches that have been held across the world. The object of the strategy games is to “strategize” and to achieve a certain set goal. The main appeal of these games is that the player need not possess any specific playing ability; he only needs to have the ability to think carefully and effectively to obtain the most desirable result. Another strategy game that received widespread attention was chess, with the famous Fischer-Kantar chess matches. With the success of chess, a new genre of games involving chess pieces were also created.
One of the next major categories is the game theory. The game theory attempts to define and separate the strategic thinking skills from the cognitive skills needed to play a certain game. In short, the game theory tries to define a set of rules or parameters on which a player can strategize and choose his moves.
The third major category is the token genre. This is closely related to the game theory, being more focused on the mechanics of play. tokens may consist of lands, gems, other lands, animals, etc., depending on the theme of the game. A token may also carry the values of a certain number of counters, for example a gold counter, and in some cases, it may be required to match a certain number of different colored tokens with a certain value. tokens are very often associated with farming; they represent food, although in some cases, they can also represent other resources.
Finally, there are the abstract games and the simulation games. The abstract category represents games such as Space Invaders, maze games, etc., while the simulation category includes Chess, Backgammon, etc. Simulations require no knowledge of the underlying rules and the players may use any tool that may help them to reach a predetermined goal. There are many examples of abstract games and one of the most popular is the backgammon. There are many different types of game simulators available online.