play-by-mail

English

Adjective

play-by-mail (not comparable)

1. (games) Describing a game that can be played in a turn-based fashion through postal mail or email.
   • 2011, Roberto Bolaño, translated by Natasha Wimmer, The Third Reich, New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, page 25:

     Heimito Gerhardt, a fan of gaming by mail, presented Conrad and me with our own play-by-mail kits as he accompanied us to the bus station. It so happened that Heimito corresponded with Rex Douglas (one of Conrad's idols), the great American gamer and star writer for one of the most prestigious of the specialized journals, The General.

Synonyms

• PBM (initialism)

Related terms

• play-by-email
• play-by-snail-mail

Noun

play-by-mail (plural play-by-mails)

1. (games) A play-by-mail game.
   • 1997 December 9, Christopher A. McNair, “Re: world war: smart gamers needed”, in alt.games.wargames‎^[1] (Usenet):

     THE COST is $25 per month or $60 for 3 months. Each month includes one grand strategy turn and 4 or 5 weekly situation turns. This is an average of less than $4 per turn, just a little more expensive than other play-by-mails, and you get detailed descriptions and color maps with each turn.