Wikiracing is a game in which players compete to navigate from one Wikipedia page to another using only internal links.[1][2][3][4][5] It has many different variations and names, including The Wikipedia Game, Wikipedia Maze, Wikispeedia, Wikiwars, Wikipedia Ball, Litner Ball, Wikipedia Racing, and Wikipedia Speedrunning.[6] External websites have been created to facilitate the game.[7]

The Seattle Times has recommended it as a good educational pastime for children[8] and the Larchmont Gazette has said, "While I don't know any teenagers who would curl up with an encyclopedia for a good read, I hear that a lot are reading it in the process of playing the Wikipedia Game".[9]

The Amazing Wiki Race has been an event at the TechOlympics[10] and the Yale Freshman Olympics.[11]

The average number of links separating any English-language Wikipedia page from the United Kingdom page is 3.67. Thus, it has been occasionally banned in the game. Other common rules such as not using the United States page increase the game's difficulty.[12]

As of 2005, a website and game known as The Wiki Game has been created, allowing players to Wikirace against each other in a server, for more points and recognition on the server. The game achieved more recognition as Internet stars such as Game Grumps played it on their channels. There is a version on the App Store as well, in which players can do a variety of Wikirace styles from their phone.

Variations

Wikiracing has many different variants, but the two most popular ones are:

Speed Wiki, in which participants compete to reach the finish page (previously concurred upon), within a limited time. The first to reach the final page within the time limit is thereby crowned the winner.[13]

Click Wiki, in which participants race to reach the final page with the fewest clicks or within a certain number of clicks.

The Wikipedia Game, detailed on Wikipedia's Twitter page and Protocol.com, is a game where Internet users can challenge themselves to find one path from one Wikipedia article to another.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Whelan, Aubrey (21 July 2010). "'Wikiracing' picking up speed among college students". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  2. ↑ Jones, Ben (20 June 2010). "Latest game for bored students? Wikiracing". Star Tribune.
  3. ↑ Doctoroff, Ariel (22 July 2010). "Want To Waste An Hour (Or Three)? Go On A Wikirace". Huffington Post.
  4. ↑ Colin Hepke (2008). "On Your Mark, Get Set, Wikipedia"! Archived 2012-04-03 at the Wayback Machine Cornerstone 2(3), 8.
  5. ↑ Jones, Ben (8 July 2010). "Students glued to computers turn Wikipedia into a game". College Times. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012.
  6. ↑ Stefan Thaler, Katharina Siorpaes, Elena Simperl and Christian Hofe (2011). "A Survey on Games for Knowledge Acquisition". Archived 25 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine Semantic Technology Institute International. pgs 14-17.
  7. ↑ Walker, John (10 June 2010). "Searching For Fun: Wikipedia Game". Rock, Paper, Shotgun.
  8. ↑ Stevens, Heidi (14 August 2011). "Zero in on your child's lack of focus"". The Seattle Times.
  9. ↑ Plumez, Jacqueline Hornor (25 September 2008). "The Career Doctor". Larchmont Gazette. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
  10. ↑ Denise Smith Amos. "500 teens converge for TechOlympics". Cincinnati Enquirer, 3/5/2010
  11. ↑ Griswold, Alison (11 April 2011). "Saybrook frosh win". Yale Daily News. Archived from the original on 17 June 2011. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
  12. ↑ Read, Brock (28 May 2008). "6 Degrees of Wikipedia". The Chronicle of Higher Education.
  13. ↑ "The Wiki Game". Archived from the original on 9 September 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
  • Wikipedia's Wikirace project page
  • Wikipedia's Wiki Ladders project page
  • Harrison, Stephen (26 September 2023). "The Art of Wikiracing". Slate. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
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