{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors","type":"mechanic","id":"game-mechanics--gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors","lang":"en","title":"Trying to open locked doors","summary":"Turning a handle or pushing a door confirms that it is locked. The hero’s reaction makes the blocked passage understandable.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors.md","aliases":["Try a locked door"],"tags":["Game design techniques","Doors"],"sourceIds":["source-445cc8d559323fa7","source-f1658c747f3ba240"],"sources":[{"id":"source-445cc8d559323fa7","title":"Game Mechanics: Trying to open locked doors","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/trying-to-open-locked-doors","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-f1658c747f3ba240","title":"Outlast (2013)","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/trying-to-open-locked-doors/game/outlast","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"A handle check or push communicates that a door cannot currently open."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### How the technique works\n\n<a id=\"gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors-rule\"></a>\n\n- A handle check or push communicates that a door cannot currently open. <a id=\"gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors-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-trying-to-open-locked-doors","title":"Game design techniques","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/game-mechanics/#gm-trying-to-open-locked-doors","categoryIds":["gm-category-doors"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Try a locked door","description":"Turning a handle or pushing a door confirms that it is locked. The hero’s reaction makes the blocked passage understandable.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/interaction-trying-to-open-locked-doors.webp","width":798,"height":446,"game":"Outlast","sourceUrl":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/trying-to-open-locked-doors","originalUrl":"https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/outlast_closed-doors.webm","sourceFrameSeconds":1.1,"credit":"Red Barrels; 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 hand tries to open the door","alt":"The hero’s hand reaches toward a wooden door handle in Outlast, and the door remains shut.","markers":[{"x":50,"y":68,"label":"Hand against the closed door"},{"x":37,"y":62,"label":"Handle and interaction area"}]},"tips":["Confirm refusal with a brief gesture and sound.","Distinguish a locked door from a decorative fixed panel."],"examples":[{"title":"Outlast","url":"https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/trying-to-open-locked-doors"}]}},"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"}}