Sortis: A Paper Empire Game with Computational Turn-Skipping Mechanics
By
jhylands
Toasted golden, schmeared with insight. Top of the rack.
Summary
The article describes the design and development of "Sortis," a paper-based empire-building game that uses a unique computational mechanic where players skip individual turns and calculate outcomes at key decision points. The name derives from Latin meaning "of the lot/fate/oracle," reflecting the game's core mechanic of computationally reducing sequential turns. The author explores the etymology and hopes "sortis" becomes a general term for computationally reducible processes.
Key quotes
· 4 pulledI settled on the name Sortis from the latin because you don't play every turn in the game instead you skip ahead and calculate what happened at the point you want to make a genuine change to what's going on.
Its a way of having the mechanics of the computer adding 1 wheat each turn without you having to manually add 1 wheat each turn.
The literal translation is 'of the lot/ of fate/ of oracle'.
I'd love for the word to come to mean computationally reducible, a generalisation of closed form.
You might also wanna read
Viberia: A spatial command center for managing multiple AI agents on an isometric map
Viberia is a spatial command center for AI agents, visualized as an isometric map similar to a strategy game like Civilization. It allows us
Product Hunt·29d ago
The Linguistic Origins of Chess Terms: A Global History
The article explores the linguistic origins of chess terminology, tracing words like 'chess' and 'checkmate' back to Persian and other langu
Duolingo·10mo ago
Agent Memory Is Distributed State Management, Not Magic
The article argues that "agent memory" in AI systems is fundamentally just distributed state management rebranded. It draws parallels betwee
The erosion of human agency in the age of AI and how to resist it
The article explores how human agency and cognitive abilities are eroding in the age of AI, as we increasingly outsource thinking, memory, a
psychologytoday.com·12d ago
Zubhai: A Gamified Platform for Practicing AI Skills with Personalized Daily Challenges
Zubhai is a gamified AI skill-building platform created by solo developer Shubh from Maharashtra, India. It functions like "LeetCode for AI
Product Hunt·1mo ago