: Start with a one-page pitch ("The game is X, the player does Y, it feels like Z") before writing hundreds of pages of script. 4. Gameplay Mechanics (The "Game" Part)
: Add limits like "Sanity," "Gold," or "Time" to make choices harder. Select Game
: Track player decisions using "flags" or "variables." If a player was rude to a guard in Act 1, that guard should remember it in Act 3. : Start with a one-page pitch ("The game
: Introduce a meaningful choice in the first 5 minutes. This trains the player that their input matters. Branching vs. Bottlenecking : the player does Y