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We introduce a general framework for positional games in which players score points by claiming a prescribed portion of each winning set, extending the notion of scoring Maker-Breaker games. In the scoring variant, Maker gains a point by…

Discrete Mathematics · Computer Science 2026-03-06 Eric Duchêne , Valentin Gledel , Miloš Stojaković

In a two-player zero-sum graph game the players move a token throughout a graph to produce an infinite path, which determines the winner or payoff of the game. Traditionally, the players alternate turns in moving the token. In {\em bidding…

Theoretical Economics · Economics 2020-12-22 Guy Avni , Ismaël Jecker , Đorđe Žikelić

In the Avoider-Enforcer convention of positional games, two players, Avoider and Enforcer, take turns selecting vertices from a hypergraph H. Enforcer wins if, by the time all vertices of H have been selected, Avoider has completely filled…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2025-03-28 Florian Galliot , Valentin Gledel , Aline Parreau

We consider three variants of a partisan combinatorial game between two players, Left and Right, played on an undirected simple graph. Left is able to delete vertices (and incident edges) while Right is able to delete edges. This natural…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2021-01-06 Nathan Shank , Devon Vukovich

We study the parameterized complexity of several positional games. Our main result is that Short Generalized Hex is W[1]-complete parameterized by the number of moves. This solves an open problem from Downey and Fellows' influential list of…

Computational Complexity · Computer Science 2017-04-28 Édouard Bonnet , Serge Gaspers , Antonin Lambilliotte , Stefan Rümmele , Abdallah Saffidine

We consider 2-player stochastic games with perfectly observed actions, and study the limit, as the discount factor goes to one, of the equilibrium payoffs set. In the usual setup where current states are observed by the players, we show…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2014-12-11 Jérôme Renault , Bruno Ziliotto

Consider the following Maker-Breaker game. Fix a finite subset $S\subset\mathbb{N}$ of the naturals. The players Maker and Breaker take turns choosing previously unclaimed natural numbers. Maker wins by eventually building a homothetic copy…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2026-01-28 Hannah Alpert , Liam Barham , Brian Freidin , Ian Tan , Alexandra Weiner

Mean-payoff games are important quantitative models for open reactive systems. They have been widely studied as games of full observation. In this paper we investigate the algorithmic properties of several sub-classes of mean-payoff games…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2017-10-10 Paul Hunter , Arno Pauly , Guillermo A. Pérez , Jean-François Raskin

This paper considers a game version of the general position problem in which a general position set is built through adversarial play. Two players in a graph, Builder and Blocker, take it in turns to add a vertex to a set, such that the…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2024-07-03 Sandi Klavžar , Jing Tian , James Tuite

Waiter-Client games are played on some hypergraph $(X,\mathcal{F})$, where $\mathcal{F}$ denotes the family of winning sets. For some bias $b$, during each round of such a game Waiter offers to Client $b+1$ elements of $X$, of which Client…

We introduce a new two-player game on graphs, in which players alternate choosing vertices until the set of chosen vertices forms a dominating set. The last player to choose a vertex is the winner. The game fits into the scheme of several…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2025-10-31 Sean Fiscus , Glenn Hurlbert , Eric Myzelev , Travis Pence

We investigate a two player game called the $K^4$-building game: two players alternately claim edges of an infinite complete graph. Each player's aim is to claim all six edges on some vertex set of size four for themself. The first player…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2023-09-06 Nathan Bowler , Florian Gut

In the game of $n-Sim$, two players take it in turn to claim unclaimed edges from a complete graph on $n$ vertices, with the first person to create a triangle in his own edges being the loser. We present some strategy-stealing arguments…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2020-01-29 Alexandru Malekshahian

We investigate zero-sum turn-based two-player stochastic games in which the objective of one player is to maximize the amount of rewards obtained during a play, while the other aims at minimizing it. We focus on games in which the minimizer…

Logic in Computer Science · Computer Science 2022-05-20 Pablo F. Castro , Pedro R. D'Argenio , Luciano Putruele , Ramiro Demasi

A combinatorial game is a two-player game without hidden information or chance elements. The main object of combinatorial game theory is to obtain the outcome, which player has a winning strategy, of a given combinatorial game. Positions of…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2025-11-27 Kengo Hashimoto

Given a fixed graph $H$ and a positive integer $n$, a Picker-Chooser $H$-game is a biased game played on the edge set of $K_n$ in which Picker is trying to force many copies of $H$ and Chooser is trying to prevent him from doing so. In this…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2015-12-23 Małgorzata Bednarska-Bzdȩga , Dan Hefetz , Tomasz Łuczak

We study the $b$-biased Oriented-cycle game where two players, OMaker and OBreaker, take turns directing the edges of $K_n$ (the complete graph on $n$ vertices). In each round, OMaker directs one previously undirected edge followed by…

Combinatorics · Mathematics 2025-03-24 Anita Liebenau , Abdallah Saffidine , Jeffrey Yang

We consider zero-sum games in which players move between adjacent states, where in each pair of adjacent states one state dominates the other. The states in our game can represent positional advantages in physical conflict such as high…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2024-07-11 Farid Arthaud , Edan Orzech , Martin Rinard

We compare games under delayed control and delay games, two types of infinite games modelling asynchronicity in reactive synthesis. In games under delayed control both players suffer from partial informedness due to symmetrically delayed…

Computer Science and Game Theory · Computer Science 2025-03-19 Martin Fränzle , Paul Kröger , Sarah Winter , Martin Zimmermann

We study a version of the classical zero-sum matrix game with unknown payoff matrix and bandit feedback, where the players only observe each others actions and a noisy payoff. This generalizes the usual matrix game, where the payoff matrix…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2021-06-15 Brendan O'Donoghue , Tor Lattimore , Ian Osband