Game Tournament is an individual contest. The main part of the contest is a tournament of short two-player games. The tournament takes about one hour. Top scorers will qualify to play a final game to break ties and determine winners.
During the tournament, contestants play one of the tournament games (against each other). Contestants are expected to know the rules of these games and have a strategy in mind. The game to be played will be announced at the start of the tournament. All game materials will be provided.
The contestants are randomly divided into small groups (approximately 5-8 players, depending on the total number of participants). Each contestant plays with each (or almost each) of the other players in their group twice. More precisely, each (or almost each) pair in the group will play two times: the first time one of the players chooses whether they want to go first or second, and the second time the other player chooses. All scores are recorded. All players play the same number of games (about 8-12 games; exact number depends on the number of participants and how long the games take to play).
There will be a short break while all scores are tallied. Top-scoring contestants will qualify to play the final game.
The final game is not a tournament. All eligible contestants will compete individually to determine their final score. The final game is expected to take about 15 minutes.
The possible games, along with rules and scoring, can be found here:
Intended for students in grades 9 to 12. Lower grade levels may compete. They are encouraged, however, to participate in Game Tournament 6-8, which is very similar in nature but is open to lower grades only.
Intended for students in grades 6 to 8. Lower grade levels may compete. Students in grades 9 and higher are not eligible.