--- key: mechanic/puzzle--family-optics type: mechanic id: puzzle--family-optics lang: en title: 'Light, color and optics' summary: >- The player controls beams, lighting or color to change the available visual information. updatedAt: '2026-10-22' status: active url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/puzzle--family-optics/' jsonUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/puzzle--family-optics.json markdownUrl: >- https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/puzzle--family-optics.md aliases: [] tags: - Puzzles - Mechanics catalog sourceIds: - source-f805f2d780e965f8 - source-e6546791156b5e83 sources: - id: source-f805f2d780e965f8 title: 'Nikoli: Akari' url: 'https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/akari/' verifiedAt: null - id: source-e6546791156b5e83 title: The Talos Principle url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/257510/' verifiedAt: null relations: [] placements: - catalogId: puzzle id: family-optics title: Puzzles url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/puzzle/#family-optics' categoryIds: - section-1 supersededBy: [] attributes: preview: updatedAt: '2026-10-22' title: 'Light, color and optics' description: >- The player controls beams, lighting or color to change the available visual information. image: src: images/mechanics/adventure-talos-principle-05.webp width: 1440 height: 810 game: The Talos Principle sourceUrl: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/257510/' originalUrl: >- https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/257510/ss_b42acabe63d45a11580a2949e34f305e1bd10fc7.1920x1080.jpg?t=1744327639 credit: Croteam / Devolver Digital rights: >- Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed Steam screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0. caption: Colored beams are routed through connectors alt: Colored beams are routed through connectors markers: - x: 76 'y': 30 label: A red beam reaches its receiver - x: 31 'y': 35 label: A blue beam follows a different connection tips: - Show the beam path and why it is blocked. examples: - title: The Talos Principle url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/257510/' 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/puzzle --- # Light, color and optics id: puzzle--family-optics type: mechanic key: mechanic/puzzle--family-optics lang: en status: active url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/puzzle--family-optics/ The player controls beams, lighting or color to change the available visual information. ## At a glance ![Colored beams are routed through connectors](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/adventure-talos-principle-05.webp) [The Talos Principle](https://store.steampowered.com/app/257510/) · Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed Steam screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0. 1. A red beam reaches its receiver 2. A blue beam follows a different connection - Show the beam path and why it is blocked. - [The Talos Principle](https://store.steampowered.com/app/257510/) ## How it works Control rays, lighting and the composition of visible information. ## Variants ### Variants and applications - Beam reflection. Definition: Direct the beam with mirrors to the receivers. Conditional example: Bring the laser through several turns. - Refraction. Definition: Change the path of the beam at the boundaries of media or through lenses. Conditional example: Pass the beam through an optical wedge to the sensor. - Splitting and combining rays. Definition: Spread rays in several directions and coordinate their properties. Conditional example: Activate two receivers with one source. - Mixing colors. Definition: Obtain the desired color using an explicitly specified mixing model. Conditional example: Add red and green light on the sensor. - Color filters. Definition: Choose which components of light pass to the target. Conditional example: Cut off the extra channel in front of the three-color lock. - Constructing a shadow. Definition: Arrange objects and the source so that the shadow takes the desired shape. Conditional example: Collect the silhouette of a key with shadows of different parts. - Light coverage. Definition: Arrange sources to illuminate all targets while limiting mutual visibility. Conventional example: Illuminate a reticle without pointing the lamps at each other. Terms: Akari. - Obtaining information by reflection. Definition: Construct a line of sight through reflective surfaces. Conditional example: Read a hidden sign in a mirror. - Orientation filters. Definition: Match the orientation of the filters and the properties of the transmitted signal. Conventional example: Pass light through several rotating plates. - Revealing a hidden image. Definition: Change lighting or viewing mode to see inaccessible features. Conventional example: Read tags in a different spectral channel. ## Context and limits A wide catalog of mechanics for digital puzzles, paper logic problems and physical puzzles. Each position contains an action or rule and a conditional example of application. ## 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. - [Nikoli: Akari](https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/akari/) (id: source-f805f2d780e965f8) - [The Talos Principle](https://store.steampowered.com/app/257510/) (id: source-e6546791156b5e83) CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors