Archisian wrote: ↑12 December 2025, 06:35
I think people who concede aren't conceding because they don't want to waste the time of a player to make a particular move, but rather that they know the game is lost regardless of what happens. I look at it similarly to how chess is played. Conceding can be an act of courtesy. It can also be that handing the win early in a lost effort is a way to gracefully admit defeat why saving some bit of face for the loser. Because who wants to see all their pieces get wiped out when it's already a forgone conclusion? The only thing it that does is give enjoyment to the winner. It, in no way, benefits the loser.
Your post seems contradictory, because how can it be graceful and an act of courtesy when you are, as you say, robbing your opponent the satisfaction of ending the game in the way they want and planned for? Calling it courtesy is evidently disingenuous. You yourself admit that conceding benefits the loser.
When you lose a game, it's basic decency to recognize that and let the player dictate how they want the game to end. It certainly shouldn't be the losing player who gets the benefit of doing that, they lost the game. Deciding to ruin the fun and all the efforts their opponent put into constructing a good game because they want to "save face" seems quite immature and goes against the spirit of why games exist in the first place. Why would you choose to defend the person who wants to dismantle the board in the end, rather than the one who is trying to play well?
It's also important to note that most board games don't work like chess, where it's possible to just wipe out the whole opponent's board when you have the advantage. The "beautiful" way to win chess is to devise a smart checkmate, which is more along the lines of what conceding players on this site are trying to prevent, not letting the winning player get their beautiful ending, but instead an unfinished board and a lame 1-0 win.