Nomicron is a long running internet-based game of Nomic run by my friend Jef. For those of you too lazy to click on the link, here’s how the inventor, Peter Suber, describes Nomic:

Nomic is a game I invented in 1982. It’s a game in which changing the rules is a move. The Initial Set of rules does little more than regulate the rule-changing process. While most of its initial rules are procedural in this sense, it does have one substantive rule (on how to earn points toward winning); but this rule is deliberately boring so that players will quickly amend it to please themselves.

Despite the fact that I’ve played all 8 rounds of Nomicron (Jef is the only other player to do so out of the dozens of people from around the world that have played with us), this is my first win. However, it’s a bit of a hollow victory as it came only because the rules for this round had gotten so convoluted and complicated that further play was essentially impossible. But hey, that’s part of the fun of Nomic.

If you’re interested in playing Nomciron, now’s a great time to check it out. We’ll be entering a “convention” phase during which we strip the rule set down to a minimum and begin Round 9. If for no other reason, getting to play around with Jef’s increasingly elaborate Nomic-management web-application is a real joy. And to think he’s doing it all in Java makes it all the more impressive.