[dilyevsky]

Not really about “winning” but about having everyone on the same page. And yes you can do it async too but it’s more difficult. The result I think is more likely to evolve into either a bdfl style arrangement or everyone pulls in their own direction.

[wpietri]

I agree other ways are more difficult if you aren't used to them. And some other ways may be more difficult for you personally. But I disagree you can universalize your feelings here.

I've been part of in-person pair programming teams that had frequent pair rotation. We only rarely had meetings, and never had any formal design meetings with pitching and persuasion and whatnot. All our communications were synchronous and high bandwidth, but our design choices happened gradually and over time. It worked fine. Better, really.