Paper-and-pencil game

A paper-and-pencil game is any game that can be played using only paper and a pencil or other writing implement, generally without erasing marks once they are made. These games ask nothing more of their players than something to write on and something to write with, which has made them a durable way to pass time, break the ice among strangers, or exercise the mind without any specialized equipment. Well known examples include tic-tac-toe, hangman, dots and boxes, sprouts, paper soccer, spellbinder, and the party game MASH, and some board games such as Gomoku and Connect Four can also be played in paper-and-pencil form when pieces are placed but never moved or removed. The category is distinct from the pen-and-paper label used for tabletop role-playing games, which describes non-digital roleplaying rather than pencil-based puzzle and strategy games. In recent years mobile phone games have displaced much of the everyday use paper-and-pencil games once had, though they remain common in classrooms, waiting rooms, and casual social settings.