{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-day-night-cycle","type":"mechanic","id":"game-mechanics--gm-day-night-cycle","lang":"en","title":"Day & night cycle","summary":"Game time changes world lighting in a repeating cycle. Day and night may affect visibility, world behavior and route choices.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-day-night-cycle/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-day-night-cycle.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-day-night-cycle.md","aliases":["Day–night cycle"],"tags":["Game design techniques","Immersion","Weather"],"sourceIds":["source-3f732f278509dd4b","source-b4a5264fe9cef122","source-ae0975eeee0b23ed","source-6f2bb8fd2b17bf58"],"sources":[{"id":"source-3f732f278509dd4b","title":"Game Mechanics: Day & night cycle","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/day-night-cycle","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-b4a5264fe9cef122","title":"Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint (2019)","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/day-night-cycle/game/tom-clancys-ghost-recon-breakpoint","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-ae0975eeee0b23ed","title":"Far Cry 3 (2012)","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/day-night-cycle/game/far-cry-3","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-6f2bb8fd2b17bf58","title":"Minecraft","url":"https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/minecraft/creator/documents/commandsintroduction?view=minecraft-bedrock-stable","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"A repeating time-of-day cycle changes world lighting."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### How the technique works\n\n<a id=\"gm-day-night-cycle-rule\"></a>\n\n- A repeating time-of-day cycle changes world lighting. <a id=\"gm-day-night-cycle-definition\"></a>"},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"All 199 Game Mechanics entries at the check date: player actions, systems, presentation techniques and contested patterns. Entries are grouped by their first source-card category; all categories appear in their descriptions. Definitions use original wording. References link to game-specific galleries; images and videos remain at the source."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"game-mechanics","id":"gm-day-night-cycle","title":"Game design techniques","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/game-mechanics/#gm-day-night-cycle","categoryIds":["gm-category-immersion","gm-category-weather"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Day–night cycle","description":"Game time changes world lighting in a repeating cycle. Day and night may affect visibility, world behavior and route choices.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/minecraft-day-night.webp","width":1170,"height":500,"game":"Minecraft","sourceUrl":"https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/minecraft/creator/documents/commandsintroduction?view=minecraft-bedrock-stable","originalUrl":"https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/minecraft/creator/documents/media/commands/introduction-to-commands.jpg?view=minecraft-bedrock-stable","credit":"Mojang Studios / Microsoft; comparison screenshot via Microsoft Learn","rights":"Minecraft imagery © Mojang AB / Microsoft. All rights reserved; excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"Minecraft: lighting at different times of day","alt":"Minecraft: Minecraft: lighting at different times of day.","markers":[{"x":12,"y":59,"label":"Nighttime darkness"},{"x":63,"y":60,"label":"Daylight"}]},"tips":["Account for darkness affecting landmarks, threats and available actions."],"examples":[{"title":"Minecraft","url":"https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/minecraft/creator/documents/commandsintroduction?view=minecraft-bedrock-stable"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Editorial reference index based on the 199 public Game Mechanics pattern pages checked on 2026-10-20. Original concise RU/EN definitions by gamemechanics.pro; pattern names, category associations and game-reference URLs retained from gamemechanics.org. The source gallery includes a film analogy. Linked materials retain their original rights; references are upstream attributions, not independent verification.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/game-mechanics"}}