--- key: mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes type: mechanic id: game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes lang: en title: Readable notes summary: >- A note provides information about the world, events or a puzzle. The player opens a document in the environment and reads it in a suitable view. updatedAt: '2026-10-22' status: active url: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes/ jsonUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes.json markdownUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes.md aliases: - Readable note tags: - Game design techniques - Worldbuilding sourceIds: - source-6f84c6dd415df6b0 - source-80ef884eb8945476 - source-d99dd7ff257f2883 - source-5a7e663d386a6840 sources: - id: source-6f84c6dd415df6b0 title: 'Game Mechanics: Readable notes' url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes' verifiedAt: null - id: source-80ef884eb8945476 title: Return to Castle Wolfenstein (2001) url: >- https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes/game/return-to-castle-wolfenstein verifiedAt: null - id: source-d99dd7ff257f2883 title: Sons of the Forest (2023) url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes/game/sons-of-the-forest' verifiedAt: null - id: source-5a7e663d386a6840 title: 'Clive Barker''s Hellraiser: Revival (2026)' url: >- https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes/game/clive-barkers-hellraiser-revival verifiedAt: null relations: [] placements: - catalogId: game-mechanics id: gm-readable-notes title: Game design techniques url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/game-mechanics/#gm-readable-notes' categoryIds: - gm-category-worldbuilding supersededBy: [] attributes: preview: updatedAt: '2026-10-22' title: Readable note description: >- A note provides information about the world, events or a puzzle. The player opens a document in the environment and reads it in a suitable view. image: src: images/mechanics/world-readable-notes.webp width: 800 height: 442 game: Return to Castle Wolfenstein sourceUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes' originalUrl: 'https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/rtcw_note.webm' sourceFrameSeconds: 1.59 credit: >- Gray Matter Interactive / id Software; frame from clip via GameMechanics.org rights: >- Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Source host: GameMechanics.org. Visible source watermarks preserved. All rights reserved; excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0. caption: A discovered order is opened over the room view alt: >- Return to Castle Wolfenstein: A discovered order is opened over the room view. markers: - x: 62 'y': 47 label: Document with readable text tips: - Offer text scaling and keep discovered information in a journal. examples: - title: Return to Castle Wolfenstein url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes' endsAt: null provenance: >- Editorial reference index based on the 199 public Game Mechanics pattern pages checked on 2026-10-20. Original concise RU/EN definitions by gamemechanics.pro; pattern names, category associations and game-reference URLs retained from gamemechanics.org. The source gallery includes a film analogy. Linked materials retain their original rights; references are upstream attributions, not independent verification. license: CC-BY-4.0 codeLicense: MIT attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors catalogKey: catalog/game-mechanics --- # Readable notes id: game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes type: mechanic key: mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes lang: en status: active url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-readable-notes/ A note provides information about the world, events or a puzzle. The player opens a document in the environment and reads it in a suitable view. ## At a glance ![Return to Castle Wolfenstein: A discovered order is opened over the room view.](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/world-readable-notes.webp) [Return to Castle Wolfenstein](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes) · Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Source host: GameMechanics.org. Visible source watermarks preserved. All rights reserved; excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0. [Source recording](https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/rtcw_note.webm), 1.59 s 1. Document with readable text - Offer text scaling and keep discovered information in a journal. - [Return to Castle Wolfenstein](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes) ## How it works Documents in the environment provide information for the player to read. ## Variants ### How the technique works - Documents in the environment provide information for the player to read. ## Context and limits All 199 Game Mechanics entries at the check date: player actions, systems, presentation techniques and contested patterns. Entries are grouped by their first source-card category; all categories appear in their descriptions. Definitions use original wording. References link to game-specific galleries; images and videos remain at the source. ## Connected materials ## Sources and provenance Editorial reference index based on the 199 public Game Mechanics pattern pages checked on 2026-10-20. Original concise RU/EN definitions by gamemechanics.pro; pattern names, category associations and game-reference URLs retained from gamemechanics.org. The source gallery includes a film analogy. Linked materials retain their original rights; references are upstream attributions, not independent verification. - [Game Mechanics: Readable notes](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes) (id: source-6f84c6dd415df6b0) - [Return to Castle Wolfenstein (2001)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes/game/return-to-castle-wolfenstein) (id: source-80ef884eb8945476) - [Sons of the Forest (2023)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes/game/sons-of-the-forest) (id: source-d99dd7ff257f2883) - [Clive Barker's Hellraiser: Revival (2026)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/readable-notes/game/clive-barkers-hellraiser-revival) (id: source-5a7e663d386a6840) CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors