No-win Situation - in Game Theory

In Game Theory

In game theory, a "no-win" situation is one in which no player benefits from any outcome. This may be because of any or all of the following:

  • Unavoidable or unforeseeable circumstances causing the situation to change after decisions have been made. This is common in Text adventures.
  • Zugzwang, as in chess, when any move a player chooses makes him worse off than before
  • A situation in which the player has to accomplish two mutually dependent tasks each of which must be completed before the other or that are mutually exclusive (a Catch-22)
  • Ignorance of other players' actions, meaning the best decision for all differs from that for any one player (as in the Prisoner's Dilemma).

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