Logic Simplified

JULY 31, 2023

There is one area every game designer must focus on to ensure that their games are captivating enough to entertain and provide an impactful experience to the user: game mechanics. When creating a new game, video game mechanics are often considered the most important factor. What are game mechanics? So let’s get started.

Mechanics 95

Mechanics Puzzle Games Game Design 95

Ask a Game Dev

DECEMBER 27, 2024

Thanks to skill-based matchmaking and ranking systems, the players get dispersed into their different skill buckets where matches tend to be more balanced and less lopsided, which also makes killstreaks less common.

Mechanics 52

Mechanics Dev Fighting Balance 52

PreMortem.Games

FEBRUARY 10, 2025

“The balancing of the game between two players,” Olczyk explains. We throw ideas around, different puzzle mechanics, narrative elements and unique interactions,” Olczyk says. “Our games improve significantly thanks to the feedback we receive and we take it seriously when refining mechanics and puzzles.”

Puzzle 138

Puzzle Mechanics Communications Studios 138

Game Wisdom

OCTOBER 16, 2024

Mechanics of Luck and Skill: Balancing Gameplay in Online Casino Games Josh Bycer josh@game-wisdom.com Luck and skill work in unison in the world of gaming. This, of course, doubly applies to online casinos. Players design and experience games as a result of both elements.

Balance 52

Balance Mechanics Games 52

Game Refinery

MAY 4, 2023

In the past, hybridization was mainly seen in 4X strategy games that merged with puzzle and idle RPG mechanics , but in recent months this phenomenon has spread to titles of all shapes and sizes across the market – not just the hybrid-casual genre. Mechanically, the mode is relatively similar to Blizzard’s Hearthstone.

Mobile Gaming 252

Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile Mechanics 252

iXie gaming

NOVEMBER 27, 2024

Synchronization Deep-Dive: Managing Real-Time Player Actions Across Regions Ensuring stability across regions requires network protocols tailored for scalability, with fallback mechanisms to handle high traffic loads. AI’s ability to learn from these tests helps in refining load-balancing strategies to prevent issues in live environments.

Cross platform 52

Cross platform Data Balance AI 52

iXie gaming

MARCH 2, 2025

to deliver fluid animation, layered environments, and tight control mechanics. Fighting Games: Clarity & Competitive Balance Street Fighter IV and Guilty Gear Strive use 3D character models but restrict movement to a 2D plane, ensuring precise hitboxes and predictable spacing. Grid-based gameplay thrives in a fixed 2.5D

Art 52

Art Game Design Game Designer Hitbox 52

PreMortem.Games

JANUARY 30, 2025

And of course, balancing everything like coding, art, marketing, and playtesting can be exhausting. I sketch things out by hand, hang up the drafts all over my wall using tape and sit on the ideas, prototype mechanics, and just see what clicks. Motivation can also be tricky. Whats your creative process?

Development 138

Development Playtesting Prototyping Point and Click 138

PreMortem.Games

NOVEMBER 20, 2024

We have really worked hard on making each mission a different and fun experience that introduces a unique mechanic.” It was definitely a challenge,” Olsson admits, referring to balancing player freedom with cohesive level design. Beyond the joy of destruction, Deliver At All Cost offers players a wide variety of missions.

Open World 104

Open World Games Studios Development 104

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 28, 2024

The control mechanics are integral to the gameplay, allowing players to operate Kazimir and his staff both together and independently. The way you control the old man and the magical staff at the same time is a neat mechanic that I am proud of,” Khoroshavin says.

Prototyping 104

Prototyping Indy Games Concepts 104

Grid Sage Games

NOVEMBER 14, 2023

Beta 11 was a huge milestone in Cogmind development, having completed a comprehensive review of all items and their stats and mechanics in order to rebalance where necessary, a process I wrote about in detail last year. As part of this drive, for months I’ve been creating over 100 new items, most of them including new mechanics.

Balance 52

Balance Mechanics Beta Alpha 52

PreMortem.Games

JANUARY 3, 2024

The collaboration extends to game mechanics and gameplay loops, where player feedback plays a crucial role in shaping the final product. Compelling gameplay loop Balancing the creation of assets, the Mojsovski brothers share that the assets are a mix of marketplace acquisitions and in-house development. “I say it’s 50/50.

Horror 211

Horror Build Playtesting Animation 211

Deconstructor of Fun

FEBRUARY 3, 2025

Titles like Match Factory , Triple Match 3D , and Tile Busters have successfully carved out space by introducing fresh mechanics to the puzzle category. These games blur the lines between hypercasual simplicity and deeper, more engaging puzzle mechanics. These games are intentionally designed to minimize friction for players.

Puzzle 52

Puzzle Mechanics Tile Games 52

PreMortem.Games

FEBRUARY 24, 2025

According to Carlos Casals , 3D Artist and Co-founder of Ticking Clock Games, “We were throwing around all sorts of mechanics and game genres, but we kept coming back to one image; a flying ship.” “With a small team and some pretty big ambitions, balancing priorities, time, and skills has been tough and still is!”

Point and Click 104

Point and Click Games Feature Balance 104

Brand Game Development

SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

As I said last week , “rules regulate the way mechanics are implemented. A mechanic is the concept behind the game and the rule is the way that it’s handled to ensure balance.” ” Rules are really tricky to do right because you have to serve two purposes: balance the game and communicate clearly.

Balance 130

Balance Games Communications Mechanics 130

iXie gaming

APRIL 16, 2024

Establishing a sustainable and balanced game economy is crucial to the success of any game, as it helps drive player satisfaction and engagement. This has made it difficult to find the right balance between numerical indicators, such as player engagement and rewards, and in-game spending incentives. Where Do You Start? But worry not!

Balance 52

Balance Games Data Game Design 52

Game Refinery

OCTOBER 26, 2023

The ever-changing nature of the mobile market means that new monetization mechanics are constantly emerging and evolving. One of the most popular monetization mechanics is the subscription-based battle pass , which was introduced via Valve’s DOTA 2 in 2013 but popularized by the worldwide phenomenon, Fortnite.

Mobile Gaming 220

Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile Co-op 220

Brand Game Development

JULY 17, 2017

The following excerpt is from Games Speak through Mechanics, Not Rules (Dev Diary: 04/28/17). If you strip out all the mechanics that put obstacles in your players’ path, what’s left? The core engine is the bare minimum set of mechanics you need to have a functioning game. That’s a mechanic. Chess tells a story.

Communications 130

Communications Game Development Game Developer Development 130

Filmustage

DECEMBER 30, 2024

Multiple actors balance different projects, personal commitments, and contractual obligations at the time. Let's examine everything involved in creating a balanced shooting schedule that benefits everyone involved. Production teams must direct complex scheduling while balancing creative vision and budget limitations.

Film 52

Film Balance Software Puzzle 52

Brand Game Development

MARCH 13, 2017

In this breakdown, we’ll delve deep into the enigmatic balance of leaders running away and losers catching up. I’m going to use the term “runaway leader” to refer to a specific, purposefully included design mechanic. Colony has a “runaway leader” mechanic, but it reigns this in with different mechanics that act as counterbalances.

Mechanics 130

Mechanics Games Advertising Build 130

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 25, 2024

It’s a brutal journey of persistence, frustration, and constant restarts, where the stakes are as emotional as they are mechanical. Internal debate The development of Ascending Inferno wasn’t just about embracing punishing mechanics though. For Oppolyon Studio’s co-founder, Isaac Iozzi , this hellish struggle is all too familiar.

Studios 118

Studios Indy Mechanics Games 118

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 9, 2023

What originally started out as a treehouse building simulator prototype, slowly evolved as the duo gradually added different mechanics. “It From the building mechanics, all the way to the third person character movements. Does it improve the mechanics of the game? We judge each feature based on three criteria.

Engine 129

Engine Engineering Build Mechanics 129

AWS Games

DECEMBER 19, 2024

Balancing build compared to buy Launched in 2019, QORPO features more than 700,000 registered users globally and logs more than 100,000 daily users across its collection of first-party games. Thats why its so important to create games with unique mechanics and story; thats how you stand out, Bakala concluded.

AI 85

AI Feature Technology Cross platform 85

Deconstructor of Fun

DECEMBER 2, 2024

AppLovin is seeing high-IP games use ad-based monetization from the hyper-casual world, while casual titles layer in complex mechanics. Revamping Mechanics to Match User Expectations Mechanics like tile placement have surged in popularity as they blend accessibility with high engagement.

Mechanics 52

Mechanics AI Games Studios 52

Brand Game Development

DECEMBER 11, 2017

Game rules are how we regulate the mechanics of our games so that they are consistent with the messages we want to send to players. Short-term mechanic testing. Brandon: At the short-term mechanic testing stages, you’re really just using rules to help underlying mechanics manifest themselves! Private testing.

Mechanics 130

Mechanics Writing Concepts Games 130

PreMortem.Games

MARCH 29, 2024

So, what sets our game apart is its blend of authentic ’90s rally racing experience with modern gaming mechanics. The handling definitely leans towards arcade-style physics and is designed to offer a balance between being accessible and challenging. “We We want it to appeal to both casual gamers and racing enthusiasts.

Pixel 156

Pixel Racing Terrain Asset 156

iXie gaming

MAY 24, 2024

As game analytics advances and data collection becomes more pervasive, the need to strike a balance between leveraging data and respecting player privacy becomes more crucial. In this article, we dive into the ethical considerations developers must consider in-game analytics to ensure a balance between data usage and player privacy.

Data 52

Data Balance Games Game Development 52

Brand Game Development

JUNE 20, 2019

The reason is that Cover Your Assets’ core mechanic is deceptively quite compelling. The core mechanic of stealing and defending sets of cards that increase in value is essentially the whole game. Wide audiences find the core mechanic of Cover Your Assets really compelling. Two Stacks Per Player.

Asset 130

Asset Mechanics Games Balance 130

iXie gaming

MARCH 2, 2025

The answer lies in scalable art production pipelines that balance speed, quality, and cross-platform optimization. A simple texture change or model update can impact gameplay mechanics, UI design, and monetization strategies. Resource Constraints Balancing in-house teams vs. outsourcing remains a major challenge.

Art 52

Art Asset Texture AI 52

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 16, 2024

The complexity of player AI, dribbling mechanics, and zonal positioning in football translates into a massive technical challenge for game developers. Developers also have to balance realism and fun, something that Moss found fascinating. It’s this balancing act what separates iconic games from their less successful counterparts.

Balance 156

Balance Games Writing Editing 156

PreMortem.Games

APRIL 17, 2023

But the morale and quality of life it can bring can be quite motivating, balancing & inspiring – if not all the above.” And I see it as the ultimate compilation of art(s) – light, sound, visuals, narrative, mechanics, psychology – a crafted or distilled experience. Balance your mental health.

Game Development 197

Game Development Game Developer Development Games 197

PreMortem.Games

SEPTEMBER 13, 2024

Combining these elements with sim mechanics meant we could come up with some exciting, innovative gameplay.” But it took some tweaking to get the right balance. Wu emphasizes the importance of creating a game that strikes a balance between realism and player enjoyment. It showed that players preferred a less hardcore approach.

Studios 104

Studios Content Balance Mechanics 104

Brand Game Development

FEBRUARY 6, 2017

rule book, I use visual examples to explain how the energy mechanic works. It’s a tough balance. Yet if you strike this balance, the reward is precious: you can prime a player’s experience. Examples provide excellent context for players to understand how a game is played. In my own game, War Co. , In the War Co.

Balance 130

Balance Concepts Render Mechanics 130

Brand Game Development

JANUARY 13, 2020

Sure, cooperative play is not exactly some exotic unseen mechanic too. Balanced asymmetry leads to greater variety. The trick, of course, is to make sure all varying powers are definitely distinct while remaining balanced. Lastly, the variable player powers are balanced in such a way that the game stays fresh for a long time!

Game Design 130

Game Design Game Designer Games Balance 130

PreMortem.Games

MAY 24, 2023

Combining these elements with sim mechanics meant we could come up with some exciting, innovative gameplay.” But it took some tweaking to get the right balance. Wu emphasizes the importance of creating a game that strikes a balance between realism and player enjoyment. It showed that players preferred a less hardcore approach.

Studios 104

Studios Content Balance Playtesting 104

PreMortem.Games

OCTOBER 18, 2024

The key idea was to use the gameplay mechanics from Vampire Survivors in a different genre. “We Gamecraft is placing a heavy emphasis on the weapon stacking mechanic, which sets it apart from other shooters. The game features a corridor-like mechanic, which they want to fully explore. “We And it was!”, The solution?

Concepts 104

Concepts Mechanics FPS Studios 104

PreMortem.Games

JANUARY 15, 2024

With my artistic background, I focused less on programming and mechanics, and more on storytelling and visuals.” Quickest method “I then fine-tuned the resolution level of the pixel art, seeking a balance that would spark players’ imaginations while leaving enough room to fill in the details.

Pixel 138

Pixel Point and Click Art Games 138