Something that I've been thinking about for a long time is how exactly can I define an abstract strategy game when asked about it by other people. I find it very curious that I know exactly what an abstract strategy game is but can't find exactly how to define it other than "simple gameplay", something that isn't unique to them.

The most used characteristics to describe them I've seen are simple gameplay, perfect information, and theme-less. But no abstract strategy is the same even when they do fit into these points, and many just don't fit into all of those. I've played Chess, Go, Beez, Azul, Blokus, Patchwork, Hive, and Pai Sho (Fan ATLA board game) and I can't find what all of those games share to be called abstract strategy, yet just seeing them, I know what they are. So how would you define it?