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Game

Structured form of play

A game is an activity defined by a challenge and a set of rules, typically done for enjoyment, competition, or development. Games may be played informally or in professional competitive settings before audiences. Popular formats include board games, card games, video games, and sports, distinguished from unstructured play by having rules. Scholars have long debated the essence of games, with no single definition achieving universal acceptance. Games are a universal feature of human culture. The Royal Game of Ur and Senet are among the oldest known games, dating back to at least 2600 BCE. Throughout history, games have served as tools for entertainment, teaching, ritual, and socialization. In the modern era, the global video game industry has grown to surpass both film and music in annual revenue, reflecting how central games have become to contemporary life. Philosophically, games have attracted attention as a test case for the nature of rules and meaning. Psychologists link play to cognitive development in children and to the intense, satisfying concentration called flow in adults. Game theory uses the structure of games to model decision making in fields such as economics and evolutionary biology.