The implicit rules of board games: on the particulars of the lusory agreement

Seeking to explore the implicit rules surrounding the playing of board games in order to facilitate design and add to the understanding of gamers and gaming, this paper describes the result of an interview study of eleven experienced board gamers. A set of implicit rules commonly used are outlined, along with the points of contention where the gamers do not agree or there exists significant discussion. These are further divided in categories of game-focused rules, group-focused rules and in-between rules. How violations of the implicit rules are handled by the players are discussed, as is the implications for computer gaming and game design.