Prerequisites
An open passage is not enough. Players need information to locate themselves, choose a direction and recognize progress toward their destination.
The principle
A readable route supports decisions. It does not need to make everyone follow the same road. The Wayfinding chapter treats navigation as an active player process. Exploring a side room is not by itself evidence of being lost.
Separate three questions: “Where am I?”, “Where do I want to go?” and “How can I get there?” A landmark may answer only the first. A visible tower does not explain where its staircase is. A maze can deliberately create uncertainty; distinguish that from an accidentally unreadable door.
Practical example
An observation station
In this teaching level, the player carries a battery to an antenna. The antenna is visible from the starting platform, but its entrance is one floor above. Place the staircase so its upper landing is also visible from the start. Mark a side workshop with a tool symbol; mark the antenna door with the same antenna outline visible in the world.
After climbing, the player sees the destination again from a new position. On the return trip, a recognizable window helps locate the starting platform. Color can reinforce these cues, but shape and placement should preserve meaning without it.
This is a proposed design to test. It does not establish that the signs are sufficient. Ask someone to deliver the battery independently and record pauses, backtracking and mistaken assumptions.
Common mistakes
- Every lamp resembles a landmark: the important entrance disappears among equally strong cues.
- Critical information is visible only from the author’s camera: the player looks elsewhere.
- Every detour is treated as a mistake: intended exploration disappears.
Verify it
- Capture the actual gameplay camera at route decision points.
- Check whether the destination and the immediate next step can be named separately.
- Remove color differences and inspect remaining signs. This is a partial check, not proof of accessibility.
- Check return navigation after visiting the side room.
Prompt for an AI agent
Propose three station navigation cues: destination, route to the staircase and return. Name the observation point and a possible misinterpretation for each. Change one cue after a playtest while retaining the side workshop.
Use the Goals lens and Three-Minute Museum to review the first independent action.