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Consider the following two player game based on the Euclidean algorithm: Positions are given by $(a,b)$ in $\mathbb N^2\setminus\{(0,0)\}$ (where $\mathbb N=\{0,1,2,\ldots\}$) defining a greatest common divisor in $\mathbb N$. Moves are given by $(a,b)\longrightarrow (\min(a,b),\max(a,b)-k\min(a,b))$ for $k$ in $\{1,\ldots,\lfloor \max(a,b)/\min(a,b)\rfloor\}$ where we assume $\min(a,b)>0$. Two players move in turn until arriving at $(d,0)$ or $(0,d)$. At this point, the player who can no longer move announces the greatest common divisor $d$ of $a$ and $b$ defining the initial position $(a,b)$ and wins.

Winning positions are easy to describe: $(a,b)$ is winning if and only if $\min(a,b)/\max(a,b)$ is smaller than the inverse $(-1+\sqrt{5})/2$ of the golden number $(1+\sqrt{5})/2$.

Has this game be described somewhere?

The variation where the last player with a move (i.e. playing a position $(a,b)$ with $\min(a,b)$ a divisor of $\max(a,b)$) wins is also easy to describe: A position $(a,b)$ is winning if either $(a=b)$ or if $ab>0$ and $\max(a,b)/\min(a,b)>(1+\sqrt{5})/2$.

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  • $\begingroup$ It seems familiar. I think that there may be a challenge related to this game or a similar one on projecteuler.net $\endgroup$ May 23, 2022 at 21:27
  • $\begingroup$ Only problem 433 (Step's in Euclid's algorithm) was mentioned by Professor Google. It is however only vaguely related. $\endgroup$ May 24, 2022 at 3:38
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    $\begingroup$ Found it: Project Euler problem 325: Stone Game II. The win condition is the variation of your last paragraph. $\endgroup$ May 24, 2022 at 8:01
  • $\begingroup$ @PeterTaylor : Indeed, I searched with the keyword 'Euclid' which turned up nothing (By the way, the name "Stone Game II" really does not say a lot on the nature of the game). Thanks. $\endgroup$ May 24, 2022 at 8:08
  • $\begingroup$ The variation is described in A. J. Cole and A. J. T. Davie, A Game Based on the Euclidean Algorithm and a Winning Strategy for It, The Mathematical Gazette vol. 53, no. 386 (1969), pp354-357. $\endgroup$ Jun 29, 2022 at 16:11

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Following up on Peter Taylor's answer, here's a fairly complete annotated bibliography.

What you describe as the variant came first:
A. J. Cole and A. J. T. Davie, A game based on the Euclidean algorithm and a winning strategy for it, Math. Gaz. 53 (1969) 354-357. https://doi.org/10.2307/3612461

The analysis of your initial game was posed and answered in Mathematics Magazine:
J. W. Grossman, A Nim-type game, Problem #1537, Math. Mag. 70 (1997) 382. https://doi.org/10.1080/0025570X.1997.11996580
P. D. Straffin, Solution to Problem #1537, Math. Mag. 71 (1998) 394-395. https://doi.org/10.1080/0025570X.1998.11996686

Using continued fractions in the analysis:
T. Lengyel, A Nim-type game and continued fractions, Fibonacci Quart. 41 (2003) 310-320. https://www.fq.math.ca/Scanned/41-4/lengyel.pdf

Refining the N-positions of your initial game*:
G. Nivasch, The Sprague-Grundy function of the game Euclid, Discrete Math. 306 (2006) 2798-2800. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.disc.2006.04.020

Using the structure of the Calkin-Wilf tree in the analysis:
S. Hofmann, G. Shuster, J. Steuding, Euclid, Calkin & Wilf--playing with rationals, Elem. Math. 63 (2008) 109-117. https://doi.org/10.4171/EM/95

Refining the N-positions of your variant game*:
G. Cairns, N. B. Bao, T. Lengyel, The Sprague-Grundy function of the real game Euclid, Discrete Math. 311 (2011) 457-462. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.disc.2010.12.011

*The N- and P-position analysis of the two versions of the game is the same, but refining the N-positions by their Sprague-Grundy values differs.

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  • $\begingroup$ Great! Thank you very much. $\endgroup$ May 1 at 15:03

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