Playing for Real

jmvidal — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:26:15 -0400

If you are interested in develving deeper into game theory I highly recommend Binmore's new edition of his textbook Playing for Real: A Text on Game Theory. I have read many game theory textbooks and most of them focus on non-cooperative game theory and on the proofs associated with various solution concepts. Multiagent designers, on the other hand, don't generally care about proofs but instead need to delve deep into cooperative game theory (characteristic form games for coalition formation and negotiation) and bargaining.

The Binmore text stands out in that it focuses on the application and deep understanding of the game theory concepts instead of working out proof details. I was also pleasantly surprised with its in-depth coverage of cooperative game theory and its applications, Nash bargaining theory, and learning in games (repeated games). Finally, the book is exceptionally easy to read, for a game theory textbook. As someone who thinks in pictures, I especially liked the many visualizations included in the books, some of which I had never seen before.

Multiagent Systems - Playing for Real - Comments

Playing for Real