In a constant sum game, the sum of all players' payoffs is the same for any outcome.
Hence, a gain for one participant is always at the expense of another, such as in most sporting events.
Given the conflicting interests, the equilibrium of such games is often in mixed strategies.
Since payoffs can always be normalized, constant sum games may be represented as (and are equivalent to)
zero sum game in which the sum of all players' payoffs is always zero.
updated: 15 August 2005
HOW TO CITE THIS ENTRY
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