{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/engagement-retention--family-10","type":"mechanic","id":"engagement-retention--family-10","lang":"en","title":"Creativity, identity and attachment","summary":"A personal drawing, character or construction makes the result meaningful. Expressing an idea can support interest.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/engagement-retention--family-10/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/engagement-retention--family-10.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/engagement-retention--family-10.md","aliases":["Creativity and personal meaning"],"tags":["Engagement, retention and addictive patterns","Mechanics catalog"],"sourceIds":["source-65e5ba080294a528"],"sources":[{"id":"source-65e5ba080294a528","title":"Chicory: A Colorful Tale","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1123450/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Creating your own outcome and connecting with the characters enhances the personal significance of the experience."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants and applications\n\n<a id=\"family-10-variants\"></a>\n\n- Creating your own character: the player invests in an individual image <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-01\"></a>\n- Cosmetic personalization: appearance becomes a way of self-expression <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-02\"></a>\n- Construction and decoration: your own world remains an unfinished creative project <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-03\"></a>\n- Designing builds, decks and teams: new combinations support experimentation <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-04\"></a>\n- Caring for Creatures and Characters: Developing relationships creates emotional attachment <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-05\"></a>\n- Long-term consequences of decisions: the character's story reflects personal choices <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-06\"></a>\n- Creation of user content: the game continues with its own levels, scenarios and modifications <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-07\"></a>\n- Public authorship: publications, ratings and use by other players give creativity additional significance <a id=\"variant-engagement-retention-10-08\"></a>"},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"A map of 160 techniques for analyzing interest, returns, costs and pressure on the player. Involvement in itself does not mean dependence; the presence of separate mechanics does not determine the diagnosis or prove causation. This is the author's classification for critical analysis of design, and not a scientifically established list of the causes of gaming disorder. Assess context, audience, voluntariness of participation, and opportunity to stop."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"engagement-retention","id":"family-10","title":"Engagement, retention and addictive patterns","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/engagement-retention/#family-10","categoryIds":["section-1"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Creativity and personal meaning","description":"A personal drawing, character or construction makes the result meaningful. Expressing an idea can support interest.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/interface-chicory-05.webp","width":1440,"height":812,"game":"Chicory: A Colorful Tale","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1123450/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/1123450/ss_c972c1518fa981a619b5487b35f513d453392242.1920x1080.jpg?t=1783360001","credit":"Wishes Ultd. / Greg Lobanov / Alexis Dean-Jones / Lena Raine / Madeline Berger / A Shell in the Pit / Finji","rights":"© Wishes Ultd. / Greg Lobanov / Alexis Dean-Jones / Lena Raine / Madeline Berger / A Shell in the Pit / Finji. All rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"Chicory: creating a custom T-shirt design","alt":"Chicory: creating a custom T-shirt design","markers":[{"x":48,"y":49,"label":"The drawing becomes an item’s design"}]},"tips":["Let players save and export what they create."],"examples":[{"title":"Chicory: A Colorful Tale","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1123450/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original editorial design catalog consolidated from project discussions on 2026-10-20. Complete discussion item lists and contextual limitations are preserved; linked primary sources support specific techniques, not the entire classification. English translation was prepared with machine assistance and editorial review.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/engagement-retention"}}