Event Profile: Dino's 4th Dimension

DuveteuxAngel Islay (right) hosts

So... this was an interesting one.

Winner take all, L$500 prize, twenty questions, and you send your answer to host DuveteuxAngel Islay in IM. You have sixty seconds to do so after she asks the question -- all of them are multiple choice -- and although she shares the correct answer after the time is up, she neither announces who won each question nor tells you personally. Although you can keep track of your own correct answers, you have no way of knowing how you stand compared with others.

She occasionally asks everyone to teleport friends in, despite the winner-take-all payout format. If you do so, and the club fills up with at least fifteen people, she'll double the prize for the game, which is good news for those already there, but it's uncertain whether this creates any incentive for those you are persuading to arrive late.

At the beginning of the game, I mentioned that I came because of the listing for the trivia event, and she was very, very excited, calling the trivia her "little baby." I recognized a few other familiar trivia faces but only one who stayed for the entire game. Pop music flowed through the stream, and people danced, while there was very little interaction in local chat. Every so often, Duve commented on it but said she liked it because it meant 1) people were IMing her their answers, and 2) there was more room for her to talk.

Sample questions:

[2009/08/04 14:59] DuveteuxAngel Islay: 9. Other than Marlon Brando which other actor has played the part of Vito Corleone in the Godfather series?
A. Robert De Niro B. Al Pacino C. James Caan D. Robert Duvall

[2009/08/04 15:16] DuveteuxAngel Islay: 12. This boxer holds the record for youngest professional debut:
A. Jimmy Young B. Sean O'Grady C. Baby Arizmendi D.Jack Dempsey

She didn't mention in the rules whether she would be counting all correct answers or only the first one she received, but it turned out to be the former. Lucy Torok and I tied with the most correct answers out of twenty, and Duve gave us a tiebreak question for just the two of us (Lucy won). This game had an uncommon format, to say the least, with both pros and cons attached.



The cons are probably more obvious: a winner-take-all game might be fun for casual players who would come to the club anyway but is frustrating for those who rely on their trivia winnings for their SL income. Spending two hours playing and leaving with nothing (or in the hole, after tips) isn't the usual rhythm for "serious" "trivia people," and I believe few of us would go to a game with that system on a regular basis unless there were a draw other than the trivia or unless you consistently win, but seeing only one person win week after week will end up being frustrating for all the others. Hence, the potential for that to happen is another con: imagine the animosity that would probably develop toward a consistently winning Bucc Bowl team if the game were winner-take-all.

I am undecided on the matter of IMing answers to the host rather than responding in local chat. I will acknowledge that it worked better for this particular game than it has for others I've attended with that practice. The major problem with IMed answers is usually that unless the host closes out all of his or her IM windows in between every question, there is no reliable way to see who answered first. At Dino's, you don't have to be first for your answer to count; you simply have to answer within sixty seconds. This does, of course, create both time and incentive for players to use google, but whether this is a good thing or a bad thing is a matter of perspective. Duve didn't ask players not to google, and one person admitted to doing so on one question, but judging by the game's results, it seemed not to have been a popular choice, since the high scores were fifteen, and mine was one of them.

My biggest gripe about IMing answers, though, is that it eliminates the social aspect among players during questions. You don't get the chance to brainstorm tough ones or to laugh at each other's typos. You don't get to show off your topic strengths and observe those of others. These are some of the elements of a good trivia event that make it not just a mental test but a game. Games are supposed to be fun. Even at Marine Park, where socializing between questions is prohibited, there is a separate level of communication taking place during the questions themselves, when you can watch others' thought processes, find yourself copying the most ludicrous answers, and IM with other players about controversial results. Games that lack interaction like this are missing a part of what I, for one, look forward to when I go to trivia.

There are some pros to this uncoventional game format, as well, but they're all specific to this context and probably wouldn't work so well elsewhere. First, the fact that the questions are multiple choice makes it more likely that people will answer in IM at all. It gives people permission to guess. When I have been to other IM-answer games in the past, I've felt a lot of pressure not to respond with stupid answers. Mind you, multiple choice questions in local chat, when more than one answer is permitted, are fail. They're simply fail. They just shouldn't be done. But when one of those two conditions isn't present, they can sometimes work. For instance, switching to multiple choice at my strip trivia yesterday actually seemed to enhance the game (only one answer was allowed), and I have no complaints about its use by Duve (you can change your answer, but only the last answer you've given when she calls time will be accepted).

Second, this occurred to me right at the end of the game, when I was relieved to find that I'd done well but not ridiculously well: giving answers in IM means that the likelihood of getting plinked the first time you come to a new game is low. This means that I never felt like holding back my answers when I knew them, whereas when there are very few other hardcore players around in an open chat game, I like to do well without being too conspicuous. I call out plinking at Shiraz, Blaizing Inferno, or Double Standards, but plinking that takes place on otherwise non-trivia turf is understandable, and I'd rather not court it.

Overall, it was an interesting experience. Tuesdays are a really busy trivia day now, though for what reason I have no idea. If you go, make sure you get there on time so that you're there for all of the questions. L$500 is a nice little bundle to go home with.


The specs:
==> Time/Day: Tuesdays, 2:00 to 4:00pm, though Duve is off next week, so look for the next one on August 18.
==> Location: Dino's 4th Dimension, http://slurl.com/secondlife/Franks%20Place%204/87/101/30
==> Host: DuveteuxAngel Islay
==> Prizes: L$500 plus a 50% off gift certificate good at over 50 stores, only one winner per game

Answers to sample questions:

#9:
[2009/08/04 15:02] DuveteuxAngel Islay: The story begins as "Don" Vito Corleone, the head of a New York Mafia "family", oversees his daughter's wedding. His beloved son Michael has just come home from the war, but does not intend to become part of his father's business. Through Michael's life the nature of the family business becomes clear. The business of the family is just like the head of the family, kind and benevolent to those who give respect, but given to ruthless violence whenever anything stands against the good of the family. Don Vito lives his life in the way of the old country, but times are changing and some don't want to follow the old ways and look out for community and "family". An up and coming rival of the Corleone family wants to start selling drugs in New York, and needs the Don's influence to further his plan. The clash of the Don's fading old world values and the new ways will demand a terrible price, especially from Michael, all for the sake of the family.

#12:
[2009/08/04 15:19] DuveteuxAngel Islay: Alberto Arizmendi, AKA Baby Arizmendi (March 17, 1914 – December 31, 1963) was a featherweight and welterweight boxer who is famous for being the youngest boxer to turn pro. He got the nickname "Baby" from the smile he always had on his face. He fought his first pro fight at age 13 and never looked back. Baby used a charging, bruising style, making him a very strong two-fisted fighter. He won his first title in November of 1931 when he won the Mexican bantamweight title. With victories over such names as Fidel LaBarba, Baby established himself as a worthy contender for the featherweight crown. Unfortunately, Arizmendi was beaten by Freddie Miller in a 10-round bout for the featherweight crown. However, Arizmendi didn't give up, as he defeated Mike Belloise for the New York state featherweight crown. On January 2, 1935, Arizmendi won one of 5 bouts with Henry Armstrong for the Mexican featherweight title. His last bout with Armstrong was his last shot for a World title, where he dropped a 10-round decision.

********