{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/visual-novel--family-04","type":"mechanic","id":"visual-novel--family-04","lang":"en","title":"Relationships and social connections","summary":"Repeated encounters build character relationships, trust, commitment, and shared opportunities.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/visual-novel--family-04/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/visual-novel--family-04.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/visual-novel--family-04.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Visual novels","Mechanics"],"sourceIds":["source-478907b8b62d0628"],"sources":[{"id":"source-478907b8b62d0628","title":"Potionomics","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1874490/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Repeated encounters build character relationships, trust, commitment, and shared opportunities."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants and applications\n\n<a id=\"family-04-variants\"></a>\n\n- Attitude accumulation. Type: Mechanics. Rule: Actions increase or decrease the character's attitude towards the hero... <a id=\"variant-vn-036\"></a>\n- Multiple relationship axes. Type: Mechanics. Rule: Trust, affection, respect and other parameters are taken into account independently. <a id=\"variant-vn-037\"></a>\n- Threshold events in relationships. Type: Mechanics. Rule: Achieving conditions opens meetings, recognitions or conflicts. <a id=\"variant-vn-038\"></a>\n- Gifts with preferences. Type: Mechanics. Rule: The result of the gift depends on the tastes, circumstances and history of the character. <a id=\"variant-vn-039\"></a>\n- Planning a date. Type: Mechanics. Rule: The player chooses the place, activity and sequence of events of the meeting. <a id=\"variant-vn-040\"></a>\n- Remembering personal information. Type: Mechanics. Rule: Knowing the tastes and facts about your interlocutor helps in future scenes. <a id=\"variant-vn-041\"></a>\n- Jealousy and rivalry. Type: Mechanics. Rule: The development of one relationship changes other relationships. <a id=\"variant-vn-042\"></a>\n- Mutually exclusive obligations. Type: Mechanics. Rule: Union or romance closes incompatible options. <a id=\"variant-vn-043\"></a>\n- Restoring relationships. Type: Mechanics. Rule: After a conflict, the conditions for reconciliation must be fulfilled. <a id=\"variant-vn-044\"></a>\n- Reputation and group affiliation. Type: Mechanics. Rule: Actions change the attitude of the community and access to its opportunities... <a id=\"variant-vn-045\"></a>\n- Mediation between NPCs. Type: Mechanics. Rule: The player changes the relationships of other characters with each other. <a id=\"variant-vn-046\"></a>\n- Spreading rumors. Type: Mechanics. Rule: The information transmitted changes the views and behavior of several characters. <a id=\"variant-vn-047\"></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":"visual-novel","id":"family-04","title":"Visual novels","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/visual-novel/#family-04","categoryIds":["section-1"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Relationships and social connections","description":"Repeated encounters build character relationships, trust, commitment, and shared opportunities.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/dialogue-potionomics-05.webp","width":1440,"height":810,"game":"Potionomics","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1874490/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/1874490/ss_1a48567b697d25dee05de6d998e8946ec5ff0ca1.1920x1080.jpg?t=1750960791","credit":"Voracious Games / XSEED Games / Marvelous USA, Inc.","rights":"Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed Steam screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"Affinity during a conversation with Saffron","alt":"Affinity during a conversation with Saffron","markers":[{"x":18,"y":63,"label":"A heart marks Saffron’s positive response"}]},"tips":["Show how repeated encounters affect shared opportunities."],"examples":[{"title":"Potionomics","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1874490/"}]}},"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/visual-novel"}}