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ATLAS / IDEAS

Game design atlas

Find a mechanism, understand its tradeoffs and smallest useful scope, then build your game with a design card and sample project.

192 Mechanisms32 Mechanism domain48 Art styles12 Genre guides

Art styles My research shelf Rain Canopy Workshop · Try the complete prototype Pixel toolkit

Core loop

01Read growth direction
02Prune or steer
03Advance growth
04Check light and bloom

Growing and tendingOne rule

Pruning and directed growth

Keep current leaves or sacrifice a branch to reach sunlight?

Reference gamesPrune · Grow Home

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Core loop

01Read interaction range
02Place flowers/hives
03Advance visits
04Compare propagation/products

Growing and tendingOne rule

Flowers, pollinators and layout

Plant a directly sellable crop or a flower supporting nearby production?

Reference gamesAPICO · Stardew Valley

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Core loop

01Compare maturity/regrowth
02Plant a plot
03Harvest and update stage
04Retain or replace

Growing and tendingOne rule

One-off crops versus regrowth

Take quick one-off yield or wait for repeated later harvests?

Reference gamesStardew Valley · Farm Together

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Core loop

01Read local species
02Choose bait
03Resolve one catch
04Update stock/observations

Catching and trackingOne rule

Bait and target likelihood

Spend scarce targeted bait for an order or accept mixed catches with generic bait?

Reference gamesStardew Valley · Fishing Planet

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Core loop

01Place a trap
02Work elsewhere
03Return on schedule
04Rebait/repair/redeploy

Catching and trackingOne rule

Trap placement and collection routes

Choose a distant valuable site or a nearby low-maintenance route?

Reference gamesDREDGE · Stardew Valley

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Core loop

01Read target state
02Choose weakening action
03Check eligibility
04Use a tool and resolve

Catching and trackingOne rule

Weakening and capture windows

Attack again for better odds or attempt capture before knocking the target out?

Reference gamesMonster Hunter Generations · Pokémon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl

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Core loop

01Read deficits
02Choose food combinations
03Spend actions/stock
04Check remaining needs

Survival and environmentsOne rule

Multiple nutrition needs

Gather easy fruit or detour for the missing food category?

Reference gamesEco · Green Hell

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Core loop

01Estimate the route
02Travel or rest
03Advance time/supplies
04Reassess a safe return

Survival and environmentsOne rule

Fatigue and rest scheduling

Travel while light remains or rest before an exhausting night return?

Reference gamesThe Long Dark · Don't Starve

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Core loop

01Read provisional loot
02Continue or extract
03Reach and hold an exit
04Settle secured/lost rewards

Survival and environmentsOne rule

Extracting to secure rewards

Return with current gains or push deeper for more?

Reference gamesHunt: Showdown 1896 · Deep Rock Galactic

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Core loop

01Read the frontier
02Contain or clear
03Advance spread
04Inspect protected/newly threatened cells

Ecology and populationsOne rule

Spreading terrain and containment

Rescue a threatened cell or build a barrier protecting a larger region?

Reference gamesTerraria · Creeper World 4

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Core loop

01Read connected regions
02Place a linking tile
03Recompute shapes
04Check species patterns

Ecology and populationsOne rule

Connected habitats and corridors

Expand the largest region or bridge two existing patches?

Reference gamesCascadia: Rolling Rivers · Dorfromantik

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Core loop

01Identify the phase
02Restore conditions
03Introduce the next layer
04Remove infrastructure and verify stability

Ecology and populationsLinked states

Staged ecosystem restoration

Expand greenery now or reserve space for later wetlands and cleanup access?

Reference gamesTerra Nil · Reus 2

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Core loop

01Read known borders
02Scout
03Update memory/visibility
04Choose using new information

Maps and explorationOne rule

Map fog and scouting value

Take the shortest unknown route or spend a step scouting?

Reference gamesCivilization VI · The Battle for Wesnoth

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Core loop

01Find a one-way barrier
02Reach the far side
03Open the link
04Use the shorter return

Maps and explorationOne rule

Opening shortcuts and loops

Push into a new area or first open a return route to safety?

Reference gamesTeardown · Salt and Sanctuary

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Core loop

01Read branch previews
02Compare node sequences
03Commit to a stop
04Replan after its outcome

Maps and explorationOne rule

Branching route commitments

Take immediate rewards or a route with timely recovery after danger?

Reference gamesSlay the Spire · 80 Days

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Core loop

01Hear the line
02See the reply window
03Respond or stay silent
04Read the reaction

Events and narrativesOne rule

Timed replies and deliberate silence

Interrupt now or listen and risk losing the reply window?

Reference gamesOXENFREE · The Walking Dead

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Core loop

01Discover a fragment
02Extract time clues
03Place it on a timeline
04Revise from contradictions

Events and narrativesOne rule

Reconstructing fragmented chronology

Fit a new testimony into the current account or reorder the whole hypothesis?

Reference gamesHer Story · Tacoma

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Core loop

01Filter available storylets
02Choose an event
03Apply conditions/effects
04Refresh the next pool

Events and narrativesLinked states

State-gated storylets

Acquire a clue that opens another event or resolve the current relationship event?

Reference gamesFallen London (Echo Bazaar) · 80 Days

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Covers are original AI-generated style illustrations. Game names reference publicly visible design choices and remain the property of their owners. This atlas does not supply screenshots or assets from those games. Prompts and combinations are original drafts for new games.