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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 committed attacks
02Compare threatened targets
03Choose limited counters
04End the turn and verify

Turns and tacticsOne rule

Visible enemy intent

Save the most threatened unit or use one move to invalidate two attacks?

Reference gamesInto the Breach · Phantom Brigade

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Core loop

01Read positions and terrain
02Predict displacement
03Push, pull or swap
04Resolve collisions and threats

Turns and tacticsOne rule

Displacement and terrain

Deal direct damage or move the enemy off its attack line or into a hazard?

Reference gamesInto the Breach · Fights in Tight Spaces

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Core loop

01Assess possible routes
02Lock visible or hidden orders
03Execute and resolve conflicts
04Update predictions

Turns and tacticsLinked states

Simultaneous orders

Rush the shortest route or detour around a likely contested crossing?

Reference gamesFrozen Synapse · Phantom Brigade

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Core loop

01Predict a route
02Set an overwatch arc
03Advance enemies
04Resolve triggers and charges

Turns and tacticsOne rule

Reserved overwatch reactions

Shoot a weak target now or watch the next choke point?

Reference gamesXCOM 2 · Gears Tactics

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Core loop

01Read attack directions
02Preview lines from a move
03Choose a position
04Resolve protection on both sides

Turns and tacticsOne rule

Directional cover and flanking

Fire safely with poor odds or spend movement to flank and expose yourself?

Reference gamesXCOM 2 · Gears Tactics

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Core loop

01Read the budget
02Preview costs
03Execute one action
04Recompute legal options

Turns and tacticsOne rule

A shared action-point budget

Spend movement for a better position or save points for two actions?

Reference gamesGears Tactics · XCOM 2

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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.