this post was submitted on 18 Jan 2025
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[–] gibmiser 138 points 1 week ago (17 children)

If that surgeon can't force a cat's game then I don't want him operating on me

[–] BleakBluets 62 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (4 children)

Both surgeons are bad it seems. Assuming X went first and played in the middle (the most optimal and common move), He could have won a turn early because O would have had to miss a block on O's previous turn.

Edit: The only case where this isn't true is if X's most recent move was the X in the center which would mean that the center was open for every previous turn. That still doesn't bode well for either of their abilities.

[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 week ago (1 children)

The corner, where he played is actually more optimal because it is easier to force a fork from that position, though as you said the middle is the most common

[–] [email protected] -2 points 1 week ago (2 children)

100%. The only way to never lose when you go first is to always start in the corner.

[–] AEsheron 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

That's not true, you can force a tie at worst from a middle start. The issue is, if you start middle, you can only force a win if they take a side, not a corner. If you start corner you can force a win as long as they don't take the middle.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago

You can also force either a tie or a win every time from the corner. You have less control and garentees if you start from the middle, as counter intuitive as this is you gain more control over the board by taking the corner.

[–] TempermentalAnomaly 0 points 1 week ago (1 children)

And your second move has to be another corner whose line hasn't been blocked.

[–] AEsheron 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

While it is true that will always result in a winning line, it's not true that it is the only way to force a win. Half of their moves will allow you to play adjacent to you starting corner towards an open corner and still force a win, as long as their first play isn't the opposite corner or any of its 3 adjacent spaces. In fact, if they start in one of the adjacent sides or non-opposite corners, you have 3 winning moves. If they start on a side, you can take either the open, non-opposite corner, the side leading to that corner, or the middle. If they start in a non-opposite corner, you can take the first two moves above, or the opposite corner.

[–] lunarul 9 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

This is the order of play that makes most sense for that outcome. X starting in the corner or in the center is pretty much the same thing (can't lose if playing optimal moves, can only win if O plays the side). O played wrong by not taking the center.

 X |   |
   |   |
   |   |

 X |   |
 O |   |
   |   |

 X |   | X
 O |   |
   |   |

 X | O | X
 O |   |
   |   |

 X | O | X
 O | X |
   |   |
[–] MadBigote 2 points 1 week ago

Came to say this exactly. This should've be the order of play.

[–] wreckedcarzz 6 points 1 week ago

We got a tictactoeologist over here

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago (3 children)

tic-tac-toe is so pointless. It always ends in a tie unless if one player is just picking random spaces.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago

Try playing on a bigger grid.

[–] udon 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

technically the same is true for chess and go, we're just too dumb to grasp them to the extent we can grasp tic-tac-toe

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

sure, but those games require an IQ of 150 to master, while tic-tac-toe requires 30

[–] udon 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Chess and go don't need extremely high IQs, it's mostly about the amount of time you invest in practice. I get annoyed by that cliche that playing chess, go, or with a rubik's cube has anything to do with intelligence and it's cringy to watch students on campus posing with their cubes to make an impression :)

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago

ok sorry I didn't mean IQ in the literal sense, but you need to really think about your moves and practice helps a lot indeed

Rubik's cubes are different, you just have to learn the patterns and practice to do it very quickly

[–] jve 1 points 1 week ago
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