On Existence and Computational Complexity of Quasi-strict Equilibria

Abstract

Quasi-strict Nash equilibrium, introduced by Harsanyi in 1973, is the Nash equilibrium refinement that requires every pure best response to be played with positive probability. Norde established that any bimatrix game admits a quasi-strict Nash equilibrium. We give a substantially simpler proof of this result that in particular avoids an intricate limit argument used in the final step of the proof by Norde. Our existence proof allows us to positively resolve the outstanding open question of PPAD membership of the problem of computing a quasi-strict Nash equilibrium, thereby settling its precise complexity. In games with three or more players, a quasi-strict Nash equilibrium is not guaranteed to exist, leading to the natural problem of deciding the existence of a quasi-strict Nash equilibrium in a given strategic form game. We show that this problem is $\exists\mathbb{R}$-complete, strengthening a previous NP-hardness result.