Logic Games - How Many Different Types Are There

[ptoomey]

Hi All,

I had my first encounter with those lovely little Logic Games last night.

During the day, I read a couple of quick samples of the
3 different types of questions on the lsat at novapress.com.
Looked like a piece of cake. I was pumped - visions of 170's in my head:-)

Then at night I did a couple of full questions from the atlaslsat.com site:
http://www.atlaslsat.com/logic-games-practice.cfm
 
Boy was I wrong. Those little guys are tough. After reading the answers though,
I can see where you could easily improve your score with lots of practice.

How many different types of those logic games are there though? I'm hoping it's
something manageable like 5 - 10.

I still can't see my speed improving enough to complete 4 of those guys in 35 minutes.
Maybe 3 out of 4, but I don't know about 4 of them.

I've read that the logic games section is the one where it's easiest to improve your
score. I'd love to know if that has been the experience of you guys on here.

Thanks,
ptoomey

[EarlCat]

It's hard to say, because it really depends on how you categorize them.

The way I think of them, there are nowadays three basic types.  Ordering (aka sequencing), Grouping, and In/Out.  Under these, there are several variations (e.g. loose or strict ordering, games with multiple categories, etc.).  There are also hybrid games that combine more than one category (e.g. in/out with ordering).  I don't know how many total combinations that would end up being.

[rejectmaster]

Logic games are procedural and hardly involve any logic at all. Just set up a couple of tables properly and the answers are all there.

Logical Reasoning (the short passages) are what are most important and "thought provoking", even though it all sucks. If you want, I can [violate the Copyright Act].

--post edited by EC
Don't offer pirated materials.

[ptoomey]

EarlCat,

Thanks for the info. That doesn't sound too bad. I'm going to hit the Logic Games hard, and try to get myself in good shape with them. I think I'll be alright with some practice. Reading comprehension is the one that's going to kill me. I read slooooow.

rejectmaster,
Thanks for the offer - I would love to see that Logic Games Bible. I PM'd you my email address. I really appreciate it.

[Traciela Publications]

How many different types of those logic games are there though? I'm hoping it's
something manageable like 5 - 10.

Each test preparation company has their own classifications of "game types".

PowerScore uses the following in the Logic Games Bible: Linear Games, Advanced Linear Games, Grouping Games, Grouping/Linear Combination Games, Pure Sequencing Games and The Forgotten Few (Pattern Games, Circular Linearity Games, and Mapping Games).

On the other hand, Kaplan Mastery uses the following classifications: Sequencing Games, Matching Games, Grouping Games, Hybrid Games, and Rare Games.

The general consensus is that PowerScore's Logic Games Bible has the most effective techniques for solving logic games.  Keep in mind, though, once you learn the techniques for solving each of the game types, you're not done yet.  In order to really master the analytical reasoning section, you should practice doing as many games as possible (and even repeat the ones that you have difficulty with).

You may also find this link helpful: http://www.powerscore.com/LSAT/help/game_types.cfm

[ptoomey]

Traciela,

Thanks very much for the info. The breakdown of the frequency of the different types of games in that link is very useful.
It looks like it's heavily tilted toward just a few different kinds of games. That's good news.

Thanks.

[ptoomey]

llsat1,

Thanks for all the info and the encouragement. I haven't looked at the PowerScore book at all, so I was just winging it on the one prep test I've done so far. So I'm not too discouraged. I think I'll have to put in some serious work on the LG section, but I think I'll get there. It does seem hard to believe that I'll be able to do 4 of those, but I'll take your word for it.

I'll start with the old exams like you suggested. What number exam would you suggest starting with?

How much were you able to improve on the LR section? I'm curious to see how much I can improve there. I'm not too optimistic about my chances of improving on the RC section, but I'm definitely going to try. You probably saw the post by Jeffort saying that people often don't spend enough time trying to improve there. I'm going to give it a shot, but I'm very curious about the LR section. I scored 15/25 on the first LR section of the prep test I did and 20/25 on the 2nd. I have to go back and see whether I just got used to it and went faster on the second one, or if there were certain types of questions I got wrong and there were more of them in the first section. I'm definitely going to pick up the PowerScore books for LG and LR and get cracking.

So where are you in the process? Have you taken an official LSAT yet? What schools are you thinking of applying to?

[ptoomey]

llsatt1,

I got busy the past couple of weeks, haven't been on here much, and never thanked you for your response. Thanks for answering all my questions and for the tips on RC.

I think I'll need pretty close to a 170 to get into Fordham, even the part time program. They're admissions patterns are hard to figure out, so I'm not even sure a 170 will guarantee admission to the part time program. I have a hideous GPA, and Fordham doesn't seem to be very splitter friendly. On lawschoolnumbers.com, I've seen them waitlist a couple of splitters who ended up at Columbia and U Penn. So, I'm going to need a high LSAT to even have a chance.

So how do you feel about the Dec 5th test that you took? Do you think you underperformed your practice tests? Where did you have the most trouble? Hopefully you'll end up with a better score than you think. Even if you don't, you have plenty of time to take it again, right.

OK, well good luck. When I finally get serious about studying, I'll probably have a bunch of questions for you.