MATHEMATICAL GAMES

Mathematical games are a sort of multiplayer game whose rules, strategies and results can be studied and explained by mathematics.

Mathematical games vary from very simple to involved problems. Numerical and geometrical games, or combinational structures and networks are among the usual and best known examples of games involving many areas of mathematics and their multiple applications.

Fascination with mathematical and numerical games is nothing new. People have enjoyed these contests for as long as the human race could count, with historical evidence of the Egyptians playing a variation of our modern Sudoku as far back as 1,850 B.C.; or in the ancient China, with games involving tangrams.

More recently in history, there are many examples of this long-lasting interest in mathematical games, such as the Rubik’s cube, which was invented by Ernö Rubik in 1,974, selling millions of copies in all the world so far; or Sudoku, which has reached unprecedented levels of popularity.

In fact, the whole history of mathematics is interwoven with this sort of games, many of them still unsolved, which led to the development of mathematical theories and areas.

In the other hand, mathematical games need not seem complicated to still be considered in this category, because may not require any knowledge of mathematics to play them, in opposition to mathematical puzzles, which require maths to solve them. They can be equivalent of doing long mental multiplications, which can be a difficult task for most people, even though they understand the underlying principles of multiplication extremely well.

Mathematical games are very simple in themselves. Lurking underneath the surface of each game to discover and analyze mathematical structures and progressions in order to understand the inner-workings of the game is more important and much more difficult and challenging.

There are many psychological studies showing that mathematical games are an excellent way to develop mental abilities, improve the understanding of mathematical concepts, and strengthen analytical logic structures related to systematic thinking in an enjoyable experience that provides also a high degree of social interaction, playing very important role in the social development of children and adolescents.

MCT - Meb Johnsons Jatto is more than a toyshop. We dedicate special attention to the design, development and production of diverse gaming options, and among them a variety of mathematical games, offering our support to those interested in obtaining information or details on this particular sector, and inviting them to visit our game and toy catalog.