{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/detective--family-10","type":"mechanic","id":"detective--family-10","lang":"en","title":"Surveillance and behavioral observation","summary":"The player observes a character’s actions in the world and compares them with the claimed routine.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/detective--family-10/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-10.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-10.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Detective games","Witnesses and information sources"],"sourceIds":["source-ce786c639336367e","source-090ee83445744667"],"sources":[{"id":"source-ce786c639336367e","title":"Shadows of Doubt","url":"https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-090ee83445744667","title":"The Operator","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1771980/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"The player observes a character’s actions in the world and compares them with the claimed routine."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants\n\n<a id=\"family-10-branch-1\"></a>\n\n- Tailing a target: maintain visual contact without arousing suspicion under the game’s rules. <a id=\"family-10-variant-1\"></a>\n- Scheduled observation: reach a location when a recurring event takes place. <a id=\"family-10-variant-2\"></a>\n- Record comparison: check camera footage or an entry log against a character’s account. <a id=\"family-10-variant-3\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"A courier leaves the work route every evening. The player chooses a vantage point to discover the meeting place."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"A working map of detective design: 32 families and 96 variants. The core loop is to find information, form a hypothesis, test it and explain a conclusion. Answer formats, hints and investigation structure are treated separately. Families overlap, design examples are hypothetical, and released-game examples cite primary sources without revealing case solutions."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"detective","id":"family-10","title":"Detective games","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-10","categoryIds":["testimony"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Surveillance and behavioral observation","description":"The player observes a character’s actions in the world and compares them with the claimed routine.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/narrative-the-operator-11.webp","width":1440,"height":810,"game":"The Operator","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1771980/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/1771980/ss_016b45729ee402502b0784a3d1a8492a3f7996f9.1920x1080.jpg?t=1778485297","credit":"Bureau 81 / Bureau 81 / indienova","rights":"© Bureau 81 / Bureau 81 / indienova. All rights reserved.","caption":"Comparing a camera recording with a live feed","alt":"Comparing a camera recording with a live feed","markers":[{"x":66,"y":43,"label":"The second feed allows observation of current behaviour"}]},"tips":["Label recording times so they are not confused with live observation."],"examples":[{"title":"The Operator","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1771980/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original editorial taxonomy authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-19. Primary developer and publisher sources support specific released-game examples, not the whole classification; design examples are hypothetical.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/detective"}}