Variation (game)

Variation, in game design, is the process whereby the community of players, rather than any officiating authority, adapts the rules for informal play. If a variant becomes popular, it will often be published in a rules document like Hoyle's Rules of Games. It may supplant the original game. For example, Hearts is usually played with a variation whereby the Jack of Diamonds carries a -10 (desired, since points are penalty) point value, in a variant known as "Omnibus hearts".