# What's supposed to be fun about Mao? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 20, 2007, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600 "2007-07-20T23:27:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2007, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600/21 "2007-07-21T21:01:34Z")
The first and last time I played or ever will play Mao, I got handed some cards. They did something. It went around. I was completely unable to figure out what they were doing, except that it seemed like a psychotic version of Hearts with unfathomable rules. The basic rules of the game rules then changed with every round. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2007, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600/22 "2007-07-21T21:07:22Z")
[QUOTE=mr. jp] The fun is when you learn it, and start making challenging plays for them to figure out. [/QUOTE] I keep coming back to this quote and thinking, “Then why doesn’t the game **start here?** ” If this truly were the fun part, there seems to be no point to the whole figure-out-the-rules-yourself-you-dumbass part of gameplay except for perverse cruelty. ---
**Author:** ![mr.jp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@mr.jp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mr.jp)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2007, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600/23 "2007-07-22T00:13:27Z")
[QUOTE=Fish] I keep coming back to this quote and thinking, “Then why doesn’t the game **start here?** ” If this truly were the fun part, there seems to be no point to the whole figure-out-the-rules-yourself-you-dumbass part of gameplay except for perverse cruelty. [/QUOTE] That is the whole gameplay. Later you get to make rules that they are to figure out. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2007, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600/24 "2007-07-22T03:13:37Z")
But during the period when you’re learning the rules, and the other players already know them, what’s in it for them? ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2007, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600/25 "2007-07-22T17:56:35Z")
[QUOTE=mr. jp] That is the whole gameplay. Later you get to make rules that they are to figure out. [/QUOTE] Which is exactly like hazing. Members of a fraternity make the pledges suffer not because it makes any sense but because _they_ had to suffer to get in. I’m with **Fish.** Count me out of the “asshole” version of this game. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2007, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600/26 "2007-07-22T18:05:04Z")
Am I the only one who thought this thread was about a dead Chinese dictator? I opened it thinking “who the hell says he’s supposed to be fun?” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-supposed-to-be-fun-about-mao/412600.md?page=1)