Gaming in operations research

Using games for scenario building

Description

Gaming in operations research involves constructing simulated decision-making environments to model complex, competitive, or cooperative scenarios. This strategy enables organizations to test policies, forecast outcomes, and optimize resource allocation by replicating real-world interactions among stakeholders. Its practical intent is to identify effective solutions, anticipate unintended consequences, and improve strategic planning, particularly in situations where direct experimentation is costly or impractical. Gaming thus remedies uncertainty and enhances decision quality in fields such as logistics, defense, and public policy.

Implementation

Operational gaming is a special type of model-building structured so as to permit multiple simultaneous interactions among competing and cooperating players. If a computer is used, the game situation can be manipulated and the effects analysed by an observer. Open gaming (when there are no constraints to the individual steps) is restricted in many cases to manual operation because the programming effort and the storage required to handle all possible moves would be uneconomic, even if technically feasible. Gaming is an effective means of forecasting the impact of events and new technologies. Games may be used to provide participants with experience in adapting to an unfamiliar environment and making decisions under conditions of uncertainty, and also to develop understanding of basic organizational relationships. Functional games may be used to provide participants with experience in dealing with well-defined problem situations.