{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/shared-family-28","type":"mechanic","id":"shared-family-28","lang":"en","title":"Physical and mechanical puzzles","summary":"Players alter object positions and connections using forces, supports, motion and mechanical properties.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/shared-family-28/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/shared-family-28.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/shared-family-28.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Children’s games","Action, construction and control","Educational games"],"sourceIds":["source-8a3a7e105b6c798e"],"sources":[{"id":"source-8a3a7e105b6c798e","title":"Portal","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/400/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Direct water flows"},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants\n\n<a id=\"family-28-branch-1\"></a>\n\n- Direct water flows <a id=\"family-28-variant-1\"></a>\n- Route light through mirrors <a id=\"family-28-variant-2\"></a>\n- Connect electrical circuits <a id=\"family-28-variant-3\"></a>\n- Use levers and pulleys <a id=\"family-28-variant-4\"></a>\n- Balance structures <a id=\"family-28-variant-5\"></a>\n- Control gears <a id=\"family-28-variant-6\"></a>\n- Change friction or slope <a id=\"family-28-variant-7\"></a>\n- Trigger chain reactions <a id=\"family-28-variant-8\"></a>\n- Adjust trajectories <a id=\"family-28-variant-9\"></a>\n- Use magnetic interactions <a id=\"family-28-variant-10\"></a>\n- Open mechanisms through action combinations <a id=\"family-28-variant-11\"></a>\n- Switch device modes <a id=\"family-28-variant-12\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"Adjust mirrors to direct a beam onto a receiver."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"An action map for children’s digital, board, active and mixed games. An instructional goal is optional: children can invent stories, explore toys, compete or enjoy play itself. Select age suitability, reading demands, controls and pace separately; different implementations can suit different ages. Learning tasks and instructional support have their own reference."},{"id":"context-education","title":"Context: Educational games","body":"A mechanic map for games with explicit learning goals, from first encounters with a topic to professional practice. It covers children, teenagers and adults; choose subject, difficulty, context and controls for the learner. Player actions, subject content, instructional support and assessment are distinct layers. Scores and game completion alone do not establish mastery or skill transfer."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"children","id":"family-28","title":"Children’s games","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/children/#family-28","categoryIds":["action"]},{"catalogId":"education","id":"family-28","title":"Educational games","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/education/#family-28","categoryIds":["action"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Physical and mechanical puzzles","description":"Players alter object positions and connections using forces, supports, motion and mechanical properties.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/adventure-portal-04.webp","width":640,"height":360,"game":"Portal","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/400/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/400/0000002586.1920x1080.jpg?t=1745368554","credit":"Valve","rights":"Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed Steam screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"A cube holds a button down with its weight","alt":"A cube holds a button down with its weight","markers":[{"x":80,"y":53,"label":"The support transfers the cube’s weight to the button"}]},"tips":["Preserve physical rules as the task layout changes."],"examples":[{"title":"Portal","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/400/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Play-focused selection adapted from the original children-education taxonomy, with original editorial additions dated 2026-10-20. Developer sources support specific examples, not the entire classification.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/children"}}