In a two-player game, why would one player ever trade with another?
(I'm working on a new game for my publisher at the moment, and this question is coming up at work.)
Let's say you have a three player game, with Alice, Bob, and Charlie. Alice and Bob are considering making a deal. This deal would help Alice a lot, and it would help Bob some, but not as much. Alice is certainly getting more out of it than Bob, but Bob still might agree to it, as it still helps Bob get ahead of Charlie.
Now imagine the same game with only two players -- Charlie isn't in the picture. Alice proposes the same deal to Bob, one that helps Alice a lot and Bob only a little. Bob has no reason to agree to this deal now, since it doesn't help him get ahead of anyone.
How can a two player game have trade deals between players?