Risk is a noble cause

 At high speed, the Formula 1 car is approaching the pit stop. Stop or drive? Driving into the pits is lost seconds, during which rivals rush forward. But will the tires last to the finish line if you rush past? Drive or stop? Why am I? I just remembered the games where you have to make a similar decision.

 I have two such games in my collection. And if the first one is quite well-known, then few people have probably heard of the second one...

CAN'T STOP

 You don't need to be a smart board or probability expert to figure out that two dice can only add up to a number between 2 and 12, with the middle values more often than the extremes.

 The playing field for Can't Stop is not a regular octagon, as it may seem at first glance, but eleven independent tracks of different lengths, numbered from 2 to 12. The outer tracks consist of only three cells, but the central one, corresponding to the seven, is almost in five times longer. The task is simple - to be the first to run the track to the end.

 It actually looks like this. During his turn, the player receives four cubes and three chips of neutral (white) color - they are shared by everyone who plays. He throws the dice and at his own discretion divides them into pairs, thereby determining the numbers of the two tracks that he has the right to move. Now he has two moves, one for each pair of dice. If the corresponding track already has a white chip, it moves forward one space; if not - the player is obliged to place a white chip on the appropriate track (even if he does not want to). Of course, for this he must have this white chip - and there are only three of them...

 Yes, we must say about the forbidden tracks. Where someone (perhaps you yourself) has already reached the end, you cannot place another white chip.

 If movement on one of the tracks is impossible (the track is prohibited or there is no free white chip) - no problem, instead of two moves, one move will be made. Moreover, sometimes it is advantageous to combine the dice in such a way as to advance only in one place (for example, in order to save a white piece). It is much worse if - no matter how you form pairs - you cannot make a single move. Then you must forget about all your progress, remove the white pieces and pass them, the dice and the right of move to the next player.

 In order not to lose what he gained by hard work, the player has the right at any moment not to roll the dice, but to stop and voluntarily end his turn. Then the place of white chips is taken by chips of his color, and the next time he will go along this track not from the start, but from the stop point. If, of course, he manages to get on the same track...

 According to the basic rules of the game, the winner is the one who reaches the end of the three tracks first. However, it is good with four participants, but with three and especially two it impoverishes the game. (And if you still carelessly read the rules and skip everything related to the forbidden tracks, as we managed to do at first, it's so boring.) Therefore, lately we prefer modified rules, when when playing together you need to complete five chips, and when playing with three - four. By the way, this is not home rule, but an official version. With this refinement, the game becomes less predictable and therefore more interesting: I once managed to win after my wife was on the finish line on four (!) tracks before I finished on at least one. It's just that usually the easiest paths are the first to become forbidden, and the rest still need to be accessed before reaching the end.

 Of course, there is no strategy in Can't Stop, instead there are enough tactical solutions. What to choose — to go the long way to values that often fall out, or to risk starting with a short track? Stop when you reach, say, the middle of the path, or risk continuing to move, hoping to reach the finish line in one move? All the time the choice between a more relaxed and a more risky game; it is no coincidence that many years ago this game was released by one of the domestic manufacturers under the name "Risk". By the way, observations show that it is possible to go all the way from start to finish without stopping either through the central (6, 7, 8) tracks, or - in case of some luck - through the outer ones (2 and 12). On the rest, it is an exceptional rarity, possible only in cases where the situation requires action.

 The name Can't Stop translates as "Impossible to stop". In my opinion, these words better characterize not the course of a single game, but the game in general. It is like a seed: it started to bite, and it is impossible to stop until it is finished. We had a period where we played Can't Stop several times a day. But it was worth taking a forced break - and it became clear that we were bored with completely other games.

 To some, Can't Stop will seem like a game that depends entirely on dice. I won't argue, although it's not "roll-walks" and not even dice poker. Are you not satisfied? Then I am ready to offer you "Ovija".

OUIJA

 This game was brought to me from Canada. Probably, it is more correct to pronounce it as "Ouija" or - if we believe the hypothesis that the name consists of the word "yes" in French (oui) and German (ja) - in general as "Vi-ya".

 "Ovija" is a card game. It is based on 50 cards, each of which is characterized by three parameters: value (from 1 to 13), color (white or black) and "answer" ("yes" or "no"). There is also a letter on each card, but this is a separate conversation. Although there are equal white and black cards in the deck, as well as "yes"/"no" values, they are unevenly distributed: yes, all "threes" are white, and if out of four "fives" all three blacks have the answer "no". Since there are two fewer cards than traditional 52s, the values 1 and 12 are missing (inexplicably to me). It's hard to say whether this unevenness improves the game.

 The fact is that the participant's task is to predict what the next card from the deck will be. He can try to guess the color or the answer or make a prediction on the value of the card relative to the previous one (more less). At the same time, in the latter case, regardless of the bet made, the appearance of a card with the same denomination means "didn't guess". Theoretically, the probability of guessing can be increased if you remember the cards that came out, practically - taking into account the mentioned unevenness of the distribution of values - it is extremely difficult.

 Yes, the game still has semi-jokers (stars) - cards that do not have a numerical value. If such a card is revealed at the moment when the "over/under" prediction is made, the player is considered to have guessed. As a "payoff", the next prediction can only be on the color or on the answer, but not on the denomination.

 The following is the same principle as in Can't Stop: at any moment you can stop and turn the guessed cards into the "unburnt amount" of scored points, which is marked with a special Stop card. Or risk further...

 The round ends when someone guesses 11 cards correctly. The winner receives 15 points (11 + 4 bonus points), the losers - according to the number of recorded cards. It is recommended to play five rounds.

 And now about the unusual feature of "Oviji". The thing is, it's a magic game. (By the way, according to the dictionary, ouija (English) is a board for spiritual sessions.) To use magical possibilities, before the start of the game, each player asks his question to the Higher Powers. The winner of each round has the right to know the answer. If the question was formulated in such a way that it involves an assertion or a denial, then it is quite simple to count your 11 cards: which one is more - this is the answer given by Heaven. In other cases, the answer must be composed of 11 letters that are on hand. As in all such games, the "star" replaces any...

 For those who, like me, are far from occult entertainment, there are two ways. You can just ignore the letters. And you can use home rule for those who know a foreign language or, better, are studying it. Then the winner has to make a word from his letters, the longer the better. And instead of the traditional 4 bonus points, get 1 point for each letter used.

 In general, "Ovija", despite the greater influence of the player on the situation, which seems to be more primitive than Can't Stop. And even (taking into account 5 rounds) not faster. Therefore, if you make a choice between these two games, "Ovija" I recommend in two cases: if you need to somehow force the child to learn foreign words and if you play in derivative conditions. Because there is no doubt: a deck of cards on the go is more convenient than a rather large plastic one (that is, a field that does not shrink in size).

 Otherwise, both toys are easy fillers for luck, risk and a little knowledge of the basics of probability theory.