Atlas/Design
Core Design Principles
The loop, choices, feel, difficulty, and clarity that make a game work at all.
The Game Loop and Its Rhythms
The game loop is the fundamental cycle of actions that a player repeats while playing a game. It is the heartbeat of interactive design, the sequence…
Read sector →Designing Meaningful Choices
Meaningful choices are the heart of interactive experiences. In game design, a choice is meaningful when it presents players with options that lead to different, noticeable…
Read sector →Game Feel and Responsiveness
Game feel describes the moment-to-moment sensation of controlling a game. It is the difference between pressing a button and feeling like a character actually jumped, swung…
Read sector →Difficulty Curves and Flow
Difficulty curves and flow describe how a game's level of challenge changes over time and how that changing challenge interacts with a player's skill. A difficulty…
Read sector →Writing Clear Rules
Rules are the formal instructions that define how a game is played. They specify what players can do, when they can do it, and what happens…
Read sector →Playtesting and Iteration
Playtesting is the systematic process of having people play a game while designers observe and record their experiences. It is not merely asking whether someone liked…
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