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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

01Locate the target tile
02Route the vacancy
03Slide a neighbor
04Recheck local order

Spatial and path puzzlesOne rule

Sliding tiles through a vacancy

Displace a correct tile temporarily to make room for the target's turn?

Reference gamesFifteen · Sixteen

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Core loop

01Read edge connections
02Select a tile
03Rotate and inspect
04Lock confirmed pieces

Spatial and path puzzlesOne rule

Rotating tile constraints

Lock edge orientations first or connect the center to reduce uncertainty?

Reference gamesNet · Twiddle

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Core loop

01Choose entry drop
02Orient the exit
03Traverse and inspect
04Adjust geometry

Spatial and path puzzlesLinked states

Portal exits and momentum

Change exit angle or increase the drop before entry to gain range?

Reference gamesPortal · Portal 2

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Core loop

01Read current and next pieces
02Choose orientation and landing
03Lock and clear
04Plan remaining space

Matching and mergingOne rule

Falling pieces and stack planning

Clear a row now or preserve a well for a better upcoming piece?

Reference gamesTetris® Effect: Connected · Puyo Puyo™Tetris®

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Core loop

01Preview a group
02Predict collapse
03Remove it
04Inspect new groups and singles

Matching and mergingOne rule

Group removal and collapse

Take the large group now or remove a small group to join separated colors?

Reference gamesSame Game · Puyo Puyo™Tetris®

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Core loop

01Read the frontier
02Choose a color
03Merge neighbors
04Plan remaining moves

Matching and mergingOne rule

Flood-fill frontiers

Absorb the largest nearby patch or take a small corridor toward a distant region?

Reference gamesFlood · KAMI

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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.