--- key: mechanic/metroidvania--family-group-10 type: mechanic id: metroidvania--family-group-10 lang: en title: Perception Tools and Puzzles summary: >- Observation tools reveal hidden properties and allow you to check puzzle solutions. updatedAt: '2026-10-22' status: active url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/metroidvania--family-group-10/' jsonUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/metroidvania--family-group-10.json markdownUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/metroidvania--family-group-10.md aliases: [] tags: - Metroidvanias - Systems sourceIds: - source-72f2f5aae82230dd sources: - id: source-72f2f5aae82230dd title: 'Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016)' url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/see-through-vision' verifiedAt: null relations: [] placements: - catalogId: metroidvania id: family-group-10 title: Metroidvanias url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/metroidvania/#family-group-10' categoryIds: - section-4 supersededBy: [] attributes: preview: updatedAt: '2026-10-22' title: Perception Tools and Puzzles description: >- Observation tools reveal hidden properties and allow you to check puzzle solutions. image: src: images/mechanics/combat-see-through-vision.webp width: 500 height: 278 game: 'Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016)' sourceUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/see-through-vision' originalUrl: >- https://cdn.gamemechanics.org/webm/deus_ex_mankind_divided_see_thru_walls.webm sourceFrameSeconds: 1.64 credit: Eidos-Montréal; 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: Smart Vision reveals people behind a wall alt: >- Two orange silhouettes appear behind a wall beside a door in Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. markers: - x: 64 'y': 44 label: Silhouette behind an opaque wall - x: 76 'y': 47 label: The door preserves room context tips: - Connect a revealed property to a testable hypothesis. examples: - title: 'Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016)' url: 'https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/see-through-vision' 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/metroidvania --- # Perception Tools and Puzzles id: metroidvania--family-group-10 type: mechanic key: mechanic/metroidvania--family-group-10 lang: en status: active url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/metroidvania--family-group-10/ Observation tools reveal hidden properties and allow you to check puzzle solutions. ## At a glance ![Two orange silhouettes appear behind a wall beside a door in Deus Ex: Mankind Divided.](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/combat-see-through-vision.webp) [Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/see-through-vision) · 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/deus_ex_mankind_divided_see_thru_walls.webm), 1.64 s 1. Silhouette behind an opaque wall 2. The door preserves room context - Connect a revealed property to a testable hypothesis. - [Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/see-through-vision) ## How it works Observation tools reveal hidden properties and allow you to check puzzle solutions. ## Variants ### Variants and applications - Scanning the hidden. Rule: A device or ability detects destructible surfaces, tracks, and objects. - Special vision. Rule: Perceptual mode reveals a layer of information that is inaccessible to ordinary eyes. - Sound signal and echolocation. Rule: Sound detects objects or causes a reaction from the environment. - Observing the behavior of creatures. Rule: The player derives rules and uses predictable reactions as a tool. - Luring and repelling. Rule: Food, sound or object changes the position and behavior of a creature. - Redirection of light and rays. Rule: Mirrors and other devices conduct the signal to the desired target. - Symbols, codes and melodies. Rule: Access requires recognizing and reproducing a conditional sequence. - Switching order. Rule: The desired result depends on the activation sequence of the devices. - Synchronous activation. Rule: Several conditions must remain true at the same time. - A portable item with multiple uses. Rule: One tool solves the problems of movement, combat and interaction in different ways... - Exchange of properties between objects. Rule: The reactions of objects form a chain of transformations to solve the problem. - Spatial connection puzzle. Rule: The solution requires understanding the relative positions of rooms, transitions or layers. ## Context and limits The author's working taxonomy of mechanics, access rules, structural patterns and support systems. This is not an industry standard or a statement that every item is required or present in every game. Hybrids and support are highlighted separately. Any finite list is limited by the level of detail; combinations and new options remain open. ## Connected materials ## Sources and 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. - [Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016)](https://gamemechanics.org/patterns/see-through-vision) (id: source-72f2f5aae82230dd) CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors