The Tungsten PDA

Surely more than a game it brings back memories of his time in college, wasting time with the fellow playing classic game of squares, dots and boxes for the English or Timbiriche as it is called in Mexico. For those who do not know, is simply to take a leaf gridded (because if you do not have to draw a grid by hand and is heavier, though much depends on what is the boring class), and define a square. Then each player is ticking on the order lines within the square, length of the side of a square of the grid. When a player marks the last of the four sides of one of them, filled the square with its color and mark another line. The player who most fill with color, wins. There is an online version to try it in 3x3 grid of 4x4.

Example of one game per Timbiriche

At the top is easy but, as they mark all the lines, it is difficult to find a free, to mark it, do not let a move to the next player to enable it to a close ... or many, because another of the graces of the game is that, as we approach the end of the game, the squares can leave at the close of the side is also ready to be completed, leading to the feared chain moves that could give the Victory directly to one of the players.

But we know the strategy of the game:

• Beginners more or less perform their movements at random until almost all the lines are marked, leaving the chain squares, ready to fill in a single move of the opponent. On the other hand, when the other player leaves them ready to fill a series of boxes, strive to do so, without thinking about it then they will have to make a line, perhaps leaving served more squares to another player, and losing the game.
• An expert player, in anticipation of this situation, marked all the boxes available to fill in at a stretch, minus the last two. Thus forcing the other player to fill in these two boxes, and then mark the line that in principle he played the first player, thus changing the course of the game. In a game between experts, the game becomes a battle for control, in which each tries to force the other to fill the first long chain.

Initial situation and played bad and good

From the viewpoint of game theory COMBINATIONAL, the Timbiriche is very close to being a game completely impartial, and many positions can be analyzed using the theory Sprague-Grundy. For those interested in mathematics behind this game, as there analysis conducted by David Wilson, Elwyn Berlekamp and Ilan Vardy.

If we want to go back to our years young men playing a game with a friend or against Palm, or just waste time at work just like you did in school, but with a more "professional" version available for Timbiriche PalmOS, which is also free. Its main features are:

• One to four players.
• Two levels of difficulty to play against the machine.
• In Spanish, Portuguese and English.
• Compatible with monochrome screens, and gray in color.
• Requires at least version 3.5 of the Palm operating system.

Playing in the Palm Timbiriche

For those moments when our Palm is charging the battery, we can also play online or on our PC.

As a curiosity, commenting that this game is not limited to square, you can also play in triangles and hexagons. There is also a dual game, with coins and chains, where it is assumed that all currencies (vertices) are bound with chains (edges) and the players have to be withdrawn one by one the chains. When a currency loses chains connected, the player is covered. Gana who has more coins at the end of the game. It has even invented a new version combining it with chess. And perhaps the most geek to play this game (and many others by the way) or by email on this server.

By: Mark Gonzalez Troyes in Palm Analysis
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