---
key: mechanic/activity-simulators--t135
type: mechanic
id: activity-simulators--t135
lang: en
title: 'Document checks, inspections and control'
summary: >-
  Inspection compares submitted information with current in-game requirements to
  permit entry, seek clarification or refuse.
updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
status: active
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/activity-simulators--t135/'
jsonUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/activity-simulators--t135.json
markdownUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/activity-simulators--t135.md
aliases:
  - Document inspection and control
tags:
  - Activity and profession simulators
  - Mechanics and variants
sourceIds:
  - source-3817d420df0baa92
  - source-cd67e3aaef77868a
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-cd67e3aaef77868a
    title: 'Papers, Please'
    url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/239030/'
    verifiedAt: null
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: activity-simulators
    id: t135
    title: Activity and profession simulators
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/activity-simulators/#t135'
    categoryIds:
      - mechanics
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
    title: Document inspection and control
    description: >-
      Inspection compares submitted information with current in-game
      requirements to permit entry, seek clarification or refuse.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/strategy-papers-please-05.webp
      width: 1280
      height: 720
      game: 'Papers, Please'
      sourceUrl: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/239030/'
      originalUrl: >-
        https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/239030/ss_6c095a8ff86f9ebf8f796d23b1186c176fd21991.1920x1080.jpg?t=1678266428
      credit: Lucas Pope / 3909
      rights: © Lucas Pope / 3909. All rights reserved.
      caption: An ID photo is compared with a wanted list
      alt: An ID photo is compared with a wanted list
      markers:
        - x: 60
          'y': 63
          label: The interface marks a detected discrepancy
        - x: 26
          'y': 76
          label: Interrogation requests an explanation
    tips:
      - Show the compared fields and the exact rule they violate.
    examples:
      - title: 'Papers, Please'
        url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/239030/'
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/activity-simulators
---
# Document checks, inspections and control

id: activity-simulators--t135
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/activity-simulators--t135
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/activity-simulators--t135/

Inspection compares submitted information with current in-game requirements to permit entry, seek clarification or refuse.

## At a glance

![An ID photo is compared with a wanted list](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/strategy-papers-please-05.webp)

[Papers, Please](https://store.steampowered.com/app/239030/) · © Lucas Pope / 3909. All rights reserved.

1. The interface marks a detected discrepancy
2. Interrogation requests an explanation

- Show the compared fields and the exact rule they violate.

- [Papers, Please](https://store.steampowered.com/app/239030/)

## How it works

Inspection compares submitted information with current in-game requirements to permit entry, seek clarification or refuse.

## Variants

### Mechanic variants

<a id="t135-variants"></a>

- Fields are checked against explicit entry rules. <a id="t135-v1"></a>
- Mismatches connect two submitted documents. <a id="t135-v2"></a>
- Instruction changes affect later decisions. <a id="t135-v3"></a>
- Exceptions require separate confirmation. <a id="t135-v4"></a>

## Design example

A permit is current but the name on the order differs from the holder's name.

Prototype check: Test date-boundary decisions and the application order of several simultaneously active instructions.

## Context and limits

Activity simulators turn observation, operation sequences and limited tools into a testable work task. 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.

## Connected materials

- Sources in the selection: [State: Game Programming Patterns](https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern) (key: resource/state-pattern)

## Sources and 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.

- [Robert Nystrom: State](https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown) (id: source-3817d420df0baa92)
- [Papers, Please](https://store.steampowered.com/app/239030/) (id: source-cd67e3aaef77868a)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors