{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-keycards","type":"mechanic","id":"game-mechanics--gm-keycards","lang":"en","title":"Keycards","summary":"A card with the required access opens a matching passage. Finding it and returning to the lock connects parts of the level.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-keycards/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-keycards.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-keycards.md","aliases":["Keycard"],"tags":["Game design techniques","Access & Security"],"sourceIds":["source-3f0b3f3545bbdc27","source-5a9ae56504002be7","source-f13a7ef902c97bfa"],"sources":[{"id":"source-3f0b3f3545bbdc27","title":"Game Mechanics: Keycards","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/keycards","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-5a9ae56504002be7","title":"Duke Nukem 3D (1996)","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/keycards/game/duke-nukem-3d","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-f13a7ef902c97bfa","title":"F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin (2009)","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/keycards/game/f-e-a-r-2-project-origin","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"An access credential unlocks matching routes."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### How the technique works\n\n<a id=\"gm-keycards-rule\"></a>\n\n- An access credential unlocks matching routes. <a id=\"gm-keycards-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-keycards","title":"Game design techniques","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/game-mechanics/#gm-keycards","categoryIds":["gm-category-access-security"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Keycard","description":"A card with the required access opens a matching passage. Finding it and returning to the lock connects parts of the level.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/interaction-keycards.webp","width":598,"height":332,"game":"Duke Nukem 3D","sourceUrl":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/keycards","originalUrl":"https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/webm/duke_nukem_3d_keycard.webm","sourceFrameSeconds":0.89,"credit":"3D Realms; frame from clip via GameMechanics.org","rights":"Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Source host: GameMechanics.org. Visible source watermarks preserved. All rights reserved; excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"A red card for an access panel","alt":"The hero’s hand uses a red access panel in Duke Nukem 3D, with Unlocked displayed above it.","markers":[{"x":48,"y":47,"label":"Access panel that accepts the card"},{"x":45,"y":21,"label":"Confirmation that the lock has been released"}]},"tips":["Repeat the card’s color or symbol on the matching door.","Help players recall where they encountered the matching lock."],"examples":[{"title":"Duke Nukem 3D","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/keycards"}]}},"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"}}