The story of Kriegsspiel, a complex war game developed in the 19th century, serves as a compelling example of how games can shape our understanding and manipulation of reality. Invented as a more realistic alternative to chess, Kriegsspiel involved detailed maps, wooden blocks representing military formations, and dice-based calculations to simulate battlefield combat. Its influence was profound, leading to the development of new military tactics, the prediction of ammunition shortages, and even the simulation of Blitzkrieg strategies during World War II.
Kelly Clancy, a neuroscientist and physicist, delves into this fascinating history in her book, showcasing how games have played a crucial role in shaping our world since the Renaissance. Mathematicians of that era, seeking to understand games of chance, pioneered probability theory, a field that later found applications in medicine, population studies, and scientific error analysis. Gottfried Leibniz, a German polymath, saw games as models of the world and believed that studying them could refine our thinking.
The development of Kriegsspiel further fueled the evolution of game theory, a branch of mathematics that aimed to understand human behavior through the lens of strategic interactions. Concepts like the Nash equilibrium and the prisoner’s dilemma emerged, offering frameworks for analyzing how adversaries adjust their strategies in response to one another. Game theory played a pivotal role in the Cold War era, underpinning the idea of mutually assured destruction, and has since found applications in diverse fields like economics and evolution.
The 21st century has witnessed a new wave of game-like mechanisms shaping our digital world. Social media platforms function like games where users compete for attention, while dating, fitness, and language-learning apps have incorporated gamification elements. Our online reputation, measured through ratings on platforms like eBay, Uber, and Airbnb, adds another layer of game-like dynamics to our lives.
Games have also been instrumental in the development of artificial intelligence. Modern AI systems rely on the computational power of graphics chips originally designed for video games, and games have served as testing grounds for AI progress, from chess and Go to image recognition contests.
While acknowledging the undeniable power of games to shape reality, Clancy cautions against viewing them as perfect reflections of the world. She argues that the neat models provided by game theory can distort our understanding and even manipulate our behavior. Humans are not the rational, reward-maximizing agents that game theory often assumes, and economists’ attempts to incorporate psychology into decision-making through behavioral economics are met with skepticism by Clancy. She criticizes the field for being heavily funded by corporations and for viewing cognitive biases as defects rather than inherent aspects of human thought.
Clancy contends that the overzealous application of game theory underlies various societal problems, including economic exploitation, manipulation of public opinion, racism, and neoliberalism. She accuses data-hungry technologists and business interests of using games to perpetuate dubious beliefs and calls for a more critical and ethical approach to game design and implementation. Ultimately, Clancy challenges us to find ways to harness the power of games for good, advocating for fairer voting systems and other game-like structures that promote equity and justice.
