Goal
Connect audience constraints to rules and the first interaction.
Scenario and materials
Make a game for a museum visitor who has three minutes. They see the screen for the first time, need not read a long tutorial and may leave at any moment. The game idea is to reconnect an object with its use.
Paper screens
Constraints
- The initial screen makes the first action visible.
- A session fits within three minutes and can restart immediately.
- Key instructions work without sound and do not depend solely on colour.
Steps
- Describe the visitor’s situation without inventing verified audience research.
- Draw the initial screen, play screen and ending.
- Check the paper scenario with someone who has not seen the project. Note where help was needed.
Deliverable
Three screens, session rules and a record of a new player’s first attempt.
Check your work
- The player can identify the first action without a hint from the designer.
- The result of an action is visible on screen.
- Ending and restarting need no explanation.
Reflect
What did the short session force you to remove? What did the player gain?
Sources and further reading
Thematic inspiration: Challenges for Game Designers by Brenda Brathwaite and Ian Schreiber. These scenarios, constraints and checks are independently written around broad game-design learning topics. This is not a translation or a sequential retelling of the book exercises.
In collections
CC BY 4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors