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Related papers: The Complexity of Tullock Contests

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We study the randomized query complexity of approximate Nash equilibria (ANE) in large games. We prove that, for some constant $\epsilon>0$, any randomized oracle algorithm that computes an $\epsilon$-ANE in a binary-action, $n$-player game…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2015-11-04 Xi Chen , Yu Cheng , Bo Tang

In an epsilon-Nash equilibrium, a player can gain at most epsilon by changing his behaviour. Recent work has addressed the question of how best to compute epsilon-Nash equilibria, and for what values of epsilon a polynomial-time algorithm…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2015-03-20 John Fearnley , Paul W. Goldberg , Rahul Savani , Troels Bjerre Sørensen

The framework outlined in [arXiv:2010.13024] provides an approximation algorithm for computing Nash equilibria of normal form games. Since NASH is a well-known PPAD-complete problem, this framework has potential applications to other $PPAD$…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2021-10-27 Aadesh Salecha

In this work, we seek a more refined understanding of the complexity of local optimum computation for Max-Cut and pure Nash equilibrium (PNE) computation for congestion games with weighted players and linear latency functions. We show that…

Computational Complexity · Computer Science 2020-02-25 Dimitris Fotakis , Vardis Kandiros , Thanasis Lianeas , Nikos Mouzakis , Panagiotis Patsilinakos , Stratis Skoulakis

This paper explores the design of contests involving $n$ contestants, focusing on how the designer decides on the number of contestants allowed and the prize structure with a fixed budget. We characterize the unique symmetric Bayesian Nash…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2025-02-14 Hanbing Liu , Ningyuan Li , Weian Li , Qi Qi , Changyuan Yu

We provide a complete characterization for the computational complexity of finding approximate equilibria in two-action graphical games. We consider the two most well-studied approximation notions: $\varepsilon$-Nash equilibria…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2022-10-03 Argyrios Deligkas , John Fearnley , Alexandros Hollender , Themistoklis Melissourgos

A long-standing open problem in algorithmic game theory asks whether or not there is a polynomial time algorithm to compute a Nash equilibrium in a random bimatrix game. We study random win-lose games, where the entries of the $n\times n$…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2025-10-16 Andrea Collevecchio , Gabor Lugosi , Adrian Vetta , Rui-Ray Zhang

We revisit the complexity of deciding, given a {\it bimatrix game,} whether it has a {\it Nash equilibrium} with certain natural properties; such decision problems were early known to be ${\mathcal{NP}}$-hard~\cite{GZ89}. We show that…

Computational Complexity · Computer Science 2019-07-25 Vittorio Bilò , Marios Mavronicolas

Noncooperative game theory provides a normative framework for analyzing strategic interactions. However, for the toolbox to be operational, the solutions it defines will have to be computed. In this paper, we provide a single reduction that…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2007-05-23 Vincent Conitzer , Tuomas Sandholm

We analyse the computational complexity of finding Nash equilibria in turn-based stochastic multiplayer games with omega-regular objectives. We show that restricting the search space to equilibria whose payoffs fall into a certain interval…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2015-07-01 Michael Ummels , Dominik Wojtczak

We consider structural and algorithmic questions related to the Nash dynamics of weighted congestion games. In weighted congestion games with linear latency functions, the existence of (pure Nash) equilibria is guaranteed by potential…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2011-11-14 Ioannis Caragiannis , Angelo Fanelli , Nick Gravin , Alexander Skopalik

We study the convergence of best-response dynamics in Tullock contests with convex cost functions (these games always have a unique pure-strategy Nash equilibrium). We show that best-response dynamics rapidly converges to the equilibrium…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2023-10-09 Abheek Ghosh

We investigate the model of multiple contests held in parallel, where each contestant selects one contest to join and each contest designer decides the prize structure to compete for the participation of contestants. We first analyze the…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2022-10-28 Xiaotie Deng , Ningyuan Li , Weian Li , Qi Qi

In this work, we study the sample complexity of obtaining a Nash equilibrium (NE) estimate in two-player zero-sum matrix games with noisy feedback. Specifically, we propose a novel algorithm that repeatedly solves linear programs (LPs) to…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2026-02-16 Jiashuo Jiang , Mengxiao Zhang

Collaborative competitions have gained popularity in the scientific and technological fields. These competitions involve defining tasks, selecting evaluation scores, and devising result verification methods. In the standard scenario,…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2024-08-22 Sergio Nava-Muñoz , Mario Graff , Hugo Jair Escalante

In a model of interconnected conflicts on a network, we compare the equilibrium effort profiles and payoffs under two scenarios: uniform effort (UE) in which each contestant is restricted to exert the same effort across all the battles she…

Theoretical Economics · Economics 2023-10-31 Xiang Sun , Jin Xu , Junjie Zhou

We study the existence of pure Nash equilibrium (PNE) for the mechanisms used in Internet services (e.g., online reviews and question-answer websites) to incentivize users to generate high-quality content. Most existing work assumes that…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2014-04-22 Yingce Xia , Tao Qin , Nenghai Yu , Tie-Yan Liu

A major open question in algorithmic game theory is whether normal-form correlated equilibria (NFCE) can be computed efficiently in succinct games such as extensive-form games [DFF+25,6PR24,FP23,HvS08,VSF08,PR08]. Motivated by this…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2025-07-16 Vincent Cheval , Florian Horn , Soumyajit Paul , Mahsa Shirmohammadi

In the contest design problem, there are $n$ strategic contestants, each of whom decides an effort level. A contest designer with a fixed budget must then design a mechanism that allocates a prize $p_i$ to the $i$-th rank based on the…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2026-04-07 Negin Golrezaei , MohammadTaghi Hajiaghayi , Suho Shin

Within the framework of Game Theory, contests study decision-making in those situations or conflicts when rewards depend on the relative rank between contenders rather than their absolute performance. By relying on the formalism of Tullock…

Physics and Society · Physics 2023-04-03 A. de Miguel-Arribas , J. Morón-Vidal , L. M. Floría , C. Gracia-Lázaro , L. Hernández , Y. Moreno