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Comment on How to win at rock-paper-scissors

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Interesting how the pattern "rock-paper-scissors" is followed. If this is because of the name, Swedish people, for example, would follow another patterns as they call the game "rock-scissors-paper" (Sten-sax-påse).

I wonder if it has less to do with the name and more to do with which hand beats which.

That is, if you lose with a rock, you have lost to a paper, hence a paper might start looking like a better option.

Ah, that makes sense. It would lead to a lot of rock-rock etc., as the winner stays and the loser moves to the winner hand. I wonder what the players pick then? If both move up one it would lead to an even larger number of same-hand encounters.

That's what I remember from looking into this a few years back.

I have this strategy to rearrange the order when I ask someone to play. For example I'd say "Hey, to settle our discussion, let's play scissor rock paper!" While pronouncing a little bit the last option. My opponent still caught off guard will more likely play the last option, in this example "Paper". The next time I will say "ok let's play rock paper scissors". And then I'll play Rock, haha. I don't know if it really works, but I was always good in this game. At least I think so ;)

I never thought of that actually. In Dutch we say paper-rock-scissors (blad-steen-schaar).

I would have said "steen schaar papier" (rock scissors paper).

I guess, taken all over the world, most permutations show up.

The order is presumably the same in Chinese as in English, given the conclusion.

in German it is "scissors-rock-paper" (Schere Stein Papier). I guess all combinations are possible...

And in Australia it's scissors-paper-rock.

Same in Chinese: 剪刀石头布: scissors stone cloth

in Cantonese, it is called 包剪揼, cover-scissors-hammer

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