{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/progression-rewards--t244","type":"mechanic","id":"progression-rewards--t244","lang":"en","title":"Idle, incremental and offline progress","summary":"Accumulation continues with limited player attention while upgrades periodically change the production structure.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/progression-rewards--t244/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/progression-rewards--t244.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/progression-rewards--t244.md","aliases":["Idle and incremental progression"],"tags":["Progression, rewards and retention","Mechanics and variants"],"sourceIds":["source-3817d420df0baa92","source-795790c1ce78a8a6"],"sources":[{"id":"source-3817d420df0baa92","title":"Robert Nystrom: State","url":"https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-795790c1ce78a8a6","title":"Cookie Clicker","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1454400/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Accumulation continues with limited player attention while upgrades periodically change the production structure."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Mechanic variants\n\n<a id=\"t244-variants\"></a>\n\n- Automatic production replaces repeated manual input. <a id=\"t244-v1\"></a>\n- Storage caps limit accumulated output. <a id=\"t244-v2\"></a>\n- Offline simulation accounts for an elapsed interval. <a id=\"t244-v3\"></a>\n- Bottlenecks change the best next purchase. <a id=\"t244-v4\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"A workshop runs unattended until storage fills and calls for a new allocation of goods.\n\nPrototype check: Test clock changes and repeated loads so one interval is not rewarded twice or converted into negative income."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"Progression changes player options and goals; rewards should explain new decisions and preserve useful stopping points. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map."}],"relations":[{"type":"uses","direction":"outgoing","label":"Sources in the selection","key":"resource/state-pattern","title":"State: Game Programming Patterns","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.md"}],"placements":[{"catalogId":"progression-rewards","id":"t244","title":"Progression, rewards and retention","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/progression-rewards/#t244","categoryIds":["mechanics"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Idle and incremental progression","description":"Accumulation continues with limited player attention while upgrades periodically change the production structure.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/priority-cookie-clicker-01.webp","width":1440,"height":810,"game":"Cookie Clicker","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1454400/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/1454400/ss_0ccbd62dbbf733bf630885d76f7bdf61af93d0be.1920x1080.jpg?t=1792369237","credit":"Orteil / DashNet / Playsaurus","rights":"Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed Steam screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"Cookie production and building purchases","alt":"Cookie production and building purchases","markers":[{"x":16,"y":21,"label":"Accumulated currency"},{"x":91,"y":41,"label":"Purchases change the production rate"}]},"tips":["Show each upgrade’s production gain and avoid unbounded waiting."],"examples":[{"title":"Cookie Clicker","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1454400/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/progression-rewards"}}