alt Hacker NewsThe idea is that if you're winning you can just do a binary search, but if you're losing, it's better to take some risks by making narrower guesses.
For example, let's say it's the last turn and your opponent is about to win. Say you may have 2 options but your opponent has 4 options. Instead of whittling it down to 2 options, it's better to guess one of the four. How outrageous should your guesses be is the content of the result and paper.
Paper is on archive (and linked from the video):
Replies
I find it somewhat surprising that the optimal play when you're ahead is still just binary search. Is there an intuitive reason why it's not productive to make riskier guesses? Why not use my lead to have some chance of sealing my victory immediately, while still maintaining my lead if I'm wrong?
> For example, let's say it's the last turn and your opponent is about to win.
Or lose. Last month I played Guess Who with my Indian wife who hadn’t encountered it before, and in a couple of rounds she made mistakes in eliminating tiles, so that my wild guess saved her from losing to her own incorrect final guess.