ettiquette

[hipplecoggin]

I don't understand why the winner of a game says gg 1st, they won of course it was a good game, am I being petty or just a quirk of mine to wait for another player who did not win to go gg 1st. prolly both let me know if i'm alone with this.

[Jest Phulin]

Just because I won doesn't mean it was a good game. First, separating winning from having fun really increases the fun of board games. Second, if the opponent was terrible and played poorly it isn't a good game.

There are so many people on this site that just leave the table the instant it is finished. I see no need to wait until someone who didn't win to comment before you extend the nicety of acknowledging the other players' abilities.

[voriki]

This discussion has been here so often, and everyone has their own opinion.

Good game = I enjoyed playing with you. You had been a pleasant challenge, you made your moves on time, I would play with you again anytime.

There have been games where I won the game in the 1st or 2nd turn, I literally said in chat that I was unable to say that it was a good game because it was so short, even if I won. Because it had more luck involved and not as much skill.

[RobertBr]

... am I being petty or just a quirk of mine to wait for another player who did not win to go gg 1st. prolly both let me know if i'm alone with this.

You are not alone, but you are misunderstanding. This is hard to get, but remember that there was a time when game clubs existed only physically and most people who attended had grown up playing games, so etiquette was fairly standardized within any particular community. After the euro-game craze (1996-2006) had hit, there was a huge expansion in the community of players (huge, probably ten-fold or more). But these players had no prior experience (had not played board games as kids, gone to Chess, Bridge, clubs, etc), and they, therefore, had not taken on board any of the etiquette that is actually important in the social experience of a competitive activity.

As a result there are often situations where people get worked up about some point of etiquette. I am not a huge fan of 'gg' and prefer 'thank you for the game', but the point of the signing off comment is to simulate the casual politeness that follows club games or the handshake which would traditionally follow a competitive game. Its a formal act that communicates adherence to the social rules around the game, and thus the desire to create a positive, friendly, and fun, experience for everyone involved. And those contexts do not have an initiation order, so gg should not either.

[Meeplelowda]

... am I being petty or just a quirk of mine to wait for another player who did not win to go gg 1st. prolly both let me know if i'm alone with this.

You are not alone, but you are misunderstanding. This is hard to get, but remember that there was a time when game clubs existed only physically and most people who attended had grown up playing games, so etiquette was fairly standardized within any particular community. After the euro-game craze (1996-2006) had hit, there was a huge expansion in the community of players (huge, probably ten-fold or more). But these players had no prior experience (had not played board games as kids, gone to Chess, Bridge, clubs, etc), and they, therefore, had not taken on board any of the etiquette that is actually important in the social experience of a competitive activity.

As a result there are often situations where people get worked up about some point of etiquette. I am not a huge fan of 'gg' and prefer 'thank you for the game', but the point of the signing off comment is to simulate the casual politeness that follows club games or the handshake which would traditionally follow a competitive game. Its a formal act that communicates adherence to the social rules around the game, and thus the desire to create a positive, friendly, and fun, experience for everyone involved. And those contexts do not have an initiation order, so gg should not either.

Well put, but no matter how many times this topic comes up and this point is made, in a few months there will be someone who sees it as the greatest affront that someone said "gg" if they didn't feel it was a good game. Someone recently called the practice "inane." I don't say it, personally, but I also don't flip my lid either if someone else says it.

Just because you don't say it or you think it's inane doesn't mean that someone is trying to show you up by saying it. Take...a...chill..pill.

[hipplecoggin]

ty for the responses, they make sense

[Varianor]

I am not a huge fan of 'gg' and prefer 'thank you for the game'...

Since we don't seem to have a thumb's up or upvote option, I'm quoting this because it's my preferred statement as well so thanks for the post. I heartily appreciate everyone who enjoys their games ending the time spent with a brief thought, be it a longer phrase to type out or just 'gg'.

[Pelleban]

Good game is an expression from sports that means far more than that the game was good. It means shaking hands and admitting defeat and is used to rise above childish expressions of sore losers that are so common in video games.

[Irwin1966]

Good sportsmanship includes acknowledgement of one's opponents and their effort (win or loss) at game's end, I think. I find it strange that so many folks just leave without any acknowledgement. No one would do that in person after finishing playing a board game (or any other game, for that matter), would they? Just a thought.

[frogstar_A]

Good game is an expression from sports that means far more than that the game was good. It means shaking hands and admitting defeat and is used to rise above childish expressions of sore losers that are so common in video games.

Exactly. 'gg' is not really saying the game was good, in the same way that people who say 'how are you today?' don't really care how you are. Its just a quick polite expression for saying 'thank you for playing this game with me, I enjoyed it'