I also think it’s more audience identification. Actually optimizing for that would give clearer game systems, though they’d probably be much more controversial. Like having sport categories consisting of “people that would inspire marginalized classes to see performing at the highest level”. But you know, phrased in a way that won’t probably ruin the whole thing.
I think it could also be more about dominance specifically. I can’t tell if this is actually true, but it feels like chess would be less popular/exciting if there weren’t one player clearly dominant over the others. There I don’t think it comes down to identifying, because having more equal players at the top would mean broader classes of people identifying with them.
I also think it’s more audience identification. Actually optimizing for that would give clearer game systems, though they’d probably be much more controversial. Like having sport categories consisting of “people that would inspire marginalized classes to see performing at the highest level”. But you know, phrased in a way that won’t probably ruin the whole thing.
I think it could also be more about dominance specifically. I can’t tell if this is actually true, but it feels like chess would be less popular/exciting if there weren’t one player clearly dominant over the others. There I don’t think it comes down to identifying, because having more equal players at the top would mean broader classes of people identifying with them.