Game Design Frameworks

Thinking tools for analyzing and designing game experiences.

Quick Reference

Framework Selection Guide

One-Liner Summaries

MDA Framework

Mechanics → Dynamics → Aesthetics

Designers build mechanics. Players experience aesthetics. Dynamics are what emerge in between.

The 8 Aesthetics

Using MDA for Planning

1. Pick 1-2 target aesthetics — your game can't excel at all 8
2. Design mechanics that produce dynamics leading to those aesthetics
3. Test by asking: "Does this mechanic create moments of [target aesthetic]?"

Common mistake: Designing mechanics that feel logical but don't produce the target aesthetic. A "challenge" game needs mechanics that create near-misses and skill growth, not just difficulty.

Core Loop Design

Action → Reward → Reinvestment

    ┌──────────┐
    │  ACTION  │ ← Player does something
    └────┬─────┘
         │
    ┌────▼─────┐
    │  REWARD  │ ← Game responds positively
    └────┬─────┘
         │
    ┌────▼──────────┐
    │ REINVESTMENT   │ ← Reward enables/motivates next action
    └────┬──────────┘
         │
         └──→ Back to ACTION

Evaluating Loop Strength

Nested Loops

Games have loops at multiple timescales:

Rule: Get the micro and core loops right first. Meta and macro loops can't save a boring core.

Difficulty & Challenge → see difficulty-design

Flow state, difficulty curves, challenge types, accessibility, recovery mechanics, and boss design are covered in the dedicated difficulty skill. Key concepts:

• Flow channel — challenge must match skill; too easy = boredom, too hard = frustration
• Difficulty curve patterns — linear, sawtooth, exponential, player-driven, sine wave
• Challenge types — kinesthetic, strategic, puzzle, knowledge, social
• Accessibility — removing barriers to reach challenge, not eliminating challenge

Player Motivation (SDT)

Three innate psychological needs driving intrinsic motivation:

The Overjustification Effect: Adding extrinsic rewards to an intrinsically fun activity can reduce motivation. If players wouldn't do the activity without the reward, the activity needs redesign.

Game Feel, Juice & Onboarding

MLP Juice Checklist — minimum feedback to make core actions feel good:

• Screen shake on impactful actions
• Hit pause (1-3 frames freeze on contact)
• Sound effect for every player action
• Visual feedback for state changes (damage flash, pickup glow)
• Particle effects on key moments

The Juice-Is-Not-A-Substitute Rule: Juice makes a fun game feel amazing. It does NOT make an unfun game fun. Priority: fun mechanics → functional feedback → juice.

Onboarding Patterns:

Deep Dives

• (see design-frameworks/systems.md for Systems Thinking: feedback loops, emergence, interaction planning)
• (see design-frameworks/narrative.md for Narrative Integration: 4 levels, choosing integration level, ludonarrative dissonance)
• (see design-frameworks/progression.md for Progression Systems: types, horizontal vs vertical, meta-progression, red flags)

See Also

• scoping — Apply these frameworks to scope decisions (see scoping → MLP Scoping Process)
• antipatterns — Common mistakes when applying these frameworks incorrectly (see antipatterns/catalog.md → Kitchen Sink Design)
• economy-design — Resource systems, taps & sinks, progression curves (see economy-design)
• playtesting — Validate design decisions with real players (see playtesting → The 3-Question Framework)
• scenario-walkthrough — Narrate the player experience to test framework application (see scenario-walkthrough → The 5-Beat Structure)
• difficulty-design — Flow state, difficulty curves, challenge types, accessibility, boss design (see difficulty-design → Flow State & Difficulty)
• content-planning — Level design, pacing, content scope estimation, procedural vs handcrafted (see content-planning)
• mechanics-palette — Browse and combine mechanics from a curated catalog (see mechanics-palette)