Path: ...!2.eu.feeder.erje.net!feeder.erje.net!eternal-september.org!feeder3.eternal-september.org!news.eternal-september.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail From: Rhino Newsgroups: rec.arts.tv Subject: Re: Mattel Dumbs Down Scrabble to Make it 'More Inclusive' Date: Fri, 12 Apr 2024 17:51:12 -0400 Organization: A noiseless patient Spider Lines: 55 Message-ID: <20240412175112.000020cd@example.com> References: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Injection-Date: Fri, 12 Apr 2024 23:51:14 +0200 (CEST) Injection-Info: dont-email.me; posting-host="cc6b1970738edbc968e3ee2fa5568d4b"; logging-data="2715942"; mail-complaints-to="abuse@eternal-september.org"; posting-account="U2FsdGVkX1/lHTkDmy2HznNulO6noFqT5wYwqXHYkQI=" Cancel-Lock: sha1:WwyiSK4hAGx+7kCt4Toscz13CBA= X-Antivirus: Avast (VPS 240412-4, 4/12/2024), Outbound message X-Newsreader: Claws Mail 4.2.0 (GTK 3.24.41; x86_64-w64-mingw32) X-Antivirus-Status: Clean Bytes: 3912 On Fri, 12 Apr 2024 18:31:32 +0000 BTR1701 wrote: > ..and less competitive. 'Cause being competitive is just the worst. > > ------------------- > https://scrippsnews.com/stories/new-scrabble-edition-aims-to-make-game-more-inclusive-less-intimidating/ > > Scrabble's fan base is full of people who take their board games > seriously. If you're intimidated by the classic word game, a new > version might be just right for you. > I'm at a loss to think of any way in which the game is "intimidating". Sure, you can lose but most people don't find that intimidating, just discouraging at the most. If you're intimidated by Scrabble, may I suggest test some counselling by a mental health professional? Or maybe just reading so that you can build a vocabulary. A vocabulary of words is pretty much all you need to be able to play Scrabble. I'm not talking about playing at a competitive level either, just the level of friendly games with strangers. I have a version of Scrabble called Words By Post on my phone and typically have half a dozen games on the go at once. Over the course of literally a few thousand games, I have lost almost exactly as many games as I've won. I've never once been frightened to play or suicidal as a result of playing. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose: it's that simple. > Scrabble Together Mode seeks to make the game more accessible and > easier to play. The emphasis in the updated game is on cooperation > and collaboration rather than competition. For those who found the > original Scrabble a little too intense, the new version could be a > breath of fresh air. This sounds like what they did with Sorry, a board game we used to play as kids. A few years back, when my mother was in her final months, I wanted to find a way to spend time with her that wasn't too taxing for her so went to the toy store to find a game she already knew. I found a copy of Sorry! and thought it was a perfect fit. There was some verbiage on the box about "Fire and Ice power-ups" which was completely unfamiliar but I didn't realize they'd altered the game rather dramatically. When we actually started playing it, it was only barely recognizable and the "improvements" really didn't make it better in my opinion. In fact, the box was even missing a couple of things needed to use the new power-ups, although I quickly figured out a workaround for those. These Scrabble "improvements" actually sound like a calculated decision to take the competition out of the game entirely, which is essentially the whole point of it. I can hardly wait until Jeopardy follows this path and the whole point of the game is for ALL THREE PLAYERS TO WIN by collaborating to clear the board! -- Rhino