--- key: mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles type: mechanic id: game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles lang: en title: Self-guided missiles summary: >- A missile or other projectile adjusts its path toward a selected target after launch. The player selects the target and the system guides the projectile. updatedAt: '2026-10-22' status: active url: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles/ jsonUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles.json markdownUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles.md aliases: - Homing projectiles tags: - Game design techniques - Combat sourceIds: - source-369bcf4c3ea18654 - source-ef90ba337c5e58c6 - source-7ff3e85238673ecb sources: - id: source-369bcf4c3ea18654 title: 'Game Mechanics: Self-guided missiles' url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles' verifiedAt: null - id: source-ef90ba337c5e58c6 title: Resistance 3 (2011) url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles/game/resistance-3' verifiedAt: null - id: source-7ff3e85238673ecb title: Bulletstorm (2011) url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles/game/bulletstorm' verifiedAt: null relations: [] placements: - catalogId: game-mechanics id: gm-self-guided-missiles title: Game design techniques url: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/game-mechanics/#gm-self-guided-missiles categoryIds: - gm-category-combat supersededBy: [] attributes: preview: updatedAt: '2026-10-22' title: Homing projectiles description: >- A missile or other projectile adjusts its path toward a selected target after launch. The player selects the target and the system guides the projectile. image: src: images/mechanics/combat-self-guided-missiles.webp width: 460 height: 254 game: Resistance 3 (2011) sourceUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles' originalUrl: 'https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/webm/resistance3_bullseye.webm' sourceFrameSeconds: 3.84 credit: >- Insomniac Games / Sony Computer Entertainment; frame from clip via GameMechanics.org rights: >- Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Source host: GameMechanics.org. All rights reserved; excluded from the portal’s MIT and CC BY 4.0 licenses. caption: 'Bullseye: rounds follow a tagged target' alt: >- Glowing Bullseye shot trails curve toward a target by the far wall in Resistance 3. markers: - x: 31 'y': 61 label: Curving projectile trails - x: 27 'y': 72 label: The tagged target’s area tips: - Distinguish target acquisition from manual projectile steering. - Communicate target loss and turning limits. examples: - title: Resistance 3 (2011) url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles' 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 --- # Self-guided missiles id: game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles type: mechanic key: mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles lang: en status: active url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/game-mechanics--gm-self-guided-missiles/ A missile or other projectile adjusts its path toward a selected target after launch. The player selects the target and the system guides the projectile. ## At a glance ![Glowing Bullseye shot trails curve toward a target by the far wall in Resistance 3.](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/combat-self-guided-missiles.webp) [Resistance 3 (2011)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles) · Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Source host: GameMechanics.org. All rights reserved; excluded from the portal’s MIT and CC BY 4.0 licenses. [Source recording](https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/webm/resistance3_bullseye.webm), 3.84 s 1. Curving projectile trails 2. The tagged target’s area - Distinguish target acquisition from manual projectile steering. - Communicate target loss and turning limits. - [Resistance 3 (2011)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles) ## How it works After launch, a missile adjusts its path toward a selected target. ## Variants ### How the technique works - After launch, a missile adjusts its path toward a selected target. ## 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: Self-guided missiles](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles) (id: source-369bcf4c3ea18654) - [Resistance 3 (2011)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles/game/resistance-3) (id: source-ef90ba337c5e58c6) - [Bulletstorm (2011)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/self-guided-missiles/game/bulletstorm) (id: source-7ff3e85238673ecb) CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors