{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/phone-flashlight--family-economy","type":"mechanic","id":"phone-flashlight--family-economy","lang":"en","title":"Resource, risk and limitations","summary":"Design scenario: a charge budget or timer limits light and creates timing choices. phyphox shows LED control; the game resource requires a separate rule.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/phone-flashlight--family-economy/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/phone-flashlight--family-economy.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/phone-flashlight--family-economy.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Phone flashlight interactions","Mechanics catalog"],"sourceIds":["source-bdbe910fe2426deb"],"sources":[{"id":"source-bdbe910fe2426deb","title":"phyphox","url":"https://apps.apple.com/us/app/phyphox/id1127319693?uo=4","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Modifiers create a choice of price and when to use the light."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants and applications\n\n<a id=\"family-economy-variants\"></a>\n\n- Virtual battery. Action: Reduce reserve when the lights are on. Application: Survival, short reconnaissance missions, route planning. Requirements: Rear LED and app control; Software game rule. Conditions: Use a separate game resource; The actual phone discharge does not serve as a fair scale. <a id=\"variant-81\"></a>\n- Power price. Action: The bright mode consumes the game reserve faster than the weak one. Application: Selecting the virtual viewing range and saving. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Support brightness adjustment; Software game rule. Conditions: Game numbers are set by the designer; hardware levels do not correspond to the same luxes on different phones. <a id=\"variant-82\"></a>\n- Limited number of pulses. Action: Give the player several activations before replenishment. Application: Photo hunting, scan deficit, decision based on incomplete information. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Software game rule. Conditions: Count successful game commands, taking into account flashlight hardware failure. <a id=\"variant-83\"></a>\n- Recharge between uses. Action: After the action, maintain a program pause. Application: Tactical parry, rare inspection, command sequence. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Software game rule. Conditions: This is a gaming cooldown; does not require real heating. <a id=\"variant-84\"></a>\n- The price of continuity. Action: The action is only useful after a long hold. Application: Risky scanning under attack, setting up a beacon. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Software game rule. Conditions: The holding time should be manageable with one hand and should not require maximum light. <a id=\"variant-85\"></a>\n- Accumulated series price. Action: Consecutive switching on increases the virtual load. Application: Choice between frequent resource search and restoration. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Software game rule. Conditions: Reset and thresholds are set by software; iron temperature is not a game counter. <a id=\"variant-86\"></a>\n- Exchange visibility for another action. Action: Maintaining the light takes a button, hand or mode. Application: You cannot light and interact with the tool at the same time. Requirements: Rear LED and app control; Software game rule. Conditions: Do not block real system functions; The restriction applies within the game. <a id=\"variant-87\"></a>\n- Replenishment in a certain zone. Action: Restore game reserves only at stations. Application: Route between shelters, energy delivery, return to base. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Software game rule. Conditions: The station can be virtual or recognized by a tag; This is not a phone charger. <a id=\"variant-88\"></a>\n- Unstable instrument. Action: The game temporarily limits the light or warns of a failure. Application: Plot tension, repair, selection of a backup. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Software game rule. Conditions: The failure is specified explicitly and should not mask a real hardware failure. <a id=\"variant-89\"></a>\n- Total light budget. Action: The team has one supply or a limit on the number of active lights. Application: Distribute the roles of scout and guard, joint savings. Requirements: Rear LED and control from the application; Multiple devices/participants; sometimes an observer is enough; Software game rule. Conditions: State is synchronized by applications; actual battery consumption remains individual. <a id=\"variant-90\"></a>"},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"Author's working classification for designing games and interactions. Options can overlap and combine; the list is not a generally accepted standard or proven exhaustive list. Application examples are conditional unless a specific verifiable observation is indicated nearby. Sources support individual techniques and technical limitations."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"phone-flashlight","id":"family-economy","title":"Phone flashlight interactions","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/phone-flashlight/#family-economy","categoryIds":["section-1"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Resource, risk and limitations","description":"Design scenario: a charge budget or timer limits light and creates timing choices. phyphox shows LED control; the game resource requires a separate rule.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/sensor-phyphox-4.webp","width":663,"height":1440,"crop":{"x":0,"y":92,"width":663,"height":970},"game":"phyphox","sourceUrl":"https://apps.apple.com/us/app/phyphox/id1127319693?uo=4","originalUrl":"https://is1-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/PurpleSource221/v4/3e/83/1f/3e831fc9-b4dc-57f8-fad4-b2fd5cd5243c/iphone-05-strobe.png/720x1560bb.jpg","credit":"RWTH Aachen University","rights":"© RWTH Aachen University. Developer-distributed App Store screenshot. All rights reserved; excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"phyphox: LED brightness, frequency and pulse duration","alt":"phyphox: LED brightness, frequency and pulse duration","markers":[{"x":64,"y":16,"label":"Brightness and frequency control the phone’s physical flashlight"}]},"tips":["Keep the game charge separate from phone battery level and show a clear resource meter."],"examples":[{"title":"phyphox","url":"https://apps.apple.com/us/app/phyphox/id1127319693?uo=4"}]}},"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/phone-flashlight"}}