Most arena games 2 player now - why?

[Mathew5000]

There's an obvious first turn advantage in Ticket To Ride's rules

In Arena games is it a random function who goes first? In the case of two players encountering each other in Arena for the second time, does BGA check who went first last time and switch, or is it just a fresh coin-flip?

In particular Arena games like TTR, the server ought to look at each player's fraction-of-times-playing-first during the current season of Arena, and then assign the player with the lower such fraction to go first in the current game. I don't suppose it does that?

please change it back to how it was.

To whom exactly are you directing this request? This decision is locked in for this season and isn't going to change. You can play an absurd number of games of whichever game you're dissatisfied with and become a guru to vote for the settings for next season. You'll only have one vote, but you'll be able to argue your case to other gurus.

What's the best way for a non-guru to make suggestions to the gurus for a particular game?

[Nekojin]

When should I start plotting to become a guru of Robo Rally?

[Meeplelowda]

When should I start plotting to become a guru of Robo Rally?

Is this in alpha? It's one of my favorites that almost never gets to the table.

[Meeplelowda]

What's the best way for a non-guru to make suggestions to the gurus for a particular game?

Maybe you can hope that people with a vote read the forums, but the point of my statement was to correct the apparent misperception that this is the kind of change that will be reverted mid-season.

[Nekojin]

When should I start plotting to become a guru of Robo Rally?

Is this in alpha? It's one of my favorites that almost never gets to the table.

It's a joke. It's died off so hard in my own gaming community, that I never hear it even suggested, much less rejected.

[Jellby]

What's the best way for a non-guru to make suggestions to the gurus for a particular game?

I would start by posting it in the relevant game's forum, not in the generic discussion forum, in a thread that's just asking why 2-player games are popular...

Actually, I'd start by thinking that most suggestions I could do regarding Arena, especially something as trivial as "I like 3-player games better", would be simply ignored by gurus: they will vote according to their preferences, not mine.

[JoysJoy]

I have been a guru several times and I am a guru in 2 games right now. It is not what you’re thinking. It’s not some powerful group you can lobby for changes the way you think. And change only occurs a few times a year when it *could* happen. Change might not happen at all.

In order to vote on the next format for the arena, you have to be a guru in that exact month. It seems to do no good in the month to become a guru in between.

There is a time where you can suggest or vote on a new game format. And I can thumb up or thumb down other suggestions.

That is it. There is a place people can post comments to each other about why they wanted a particular format. Other than that, it is just a simple, yes or no vote and the majority wins.

All we can do is find another way if we don’t like the current format. Tournaments for yourself and your friends. You get exactly what you want and you get to play with who you want.

If you truly want to be a guru, you Just need to play that game over and over again. Doesn’t matter if you play in the arena or not to become a guru.

And current arena format does affect that. For example, in super mega Lucky box, pretty much anybody,p *except* the arena players will become the gurus because it takes way way way too long to play the three player game turn based and is just no fun turn based. I could play five or six 2 player games in the time it takes to get through one 3 player game that is the current and awful format

[Jontia]

I would like to know why most multiplayer games are now 2p in arena? Some of them just dont play well as 2 player.

As far as I can tell this is basically baked in to the guru/arena system.

Gurus choose/vote on the arena settings for next season.
Gurus are people that play the game a lot.
2 player games are quicker than 3/4/5 player games.
Therefore people who play/like 2 player games play more games than 3/4/5 player game fans.
So Guru's are more likely to be 2 player game fans.
So arena choices lean towards 2 player games.