Concept

Counter cycle

You might say: A beats B, B beats C, C beats A, rock-paper-scissors relationship, RPS

A counter cycle is a directed matchup graph: each unit has a favorable target, an unfavorable target and conditions such as damage type, range, terrain or support that determine whether the advantage appears.

What it does

Makes counter strength, unit roles, matrix results and mirror matches explicit before stats are retuned; exposes dominant strategies and gives the designer a testable target.

Ask

Does each unit have a job beyond its preferred target, is every edge readable and reachable, and does the mirror reveal skill rather than a hidden stat or first-move advantage?

Parts

• Counter strength: Counter strength is the advantage a designated counter has over its target under stated conditions, from a contestable efficiency edge to a near-invalidating interaction.
• Unit role: A unit role is the job a unit performs—holding space, dealing damage, scouting, supporting, raiding or taking objectives—separate from the target type it counters.
• Matchup matrix: A matchup matrix puts every unit on both axes and records the result of each pairing under fixed conditions, making a proposed cycle visible instead of anecdotal.
• Mirror match: A mirror match pits the same unit, role or roster against itself, removing the intended composition edge so the designer can see what execution, timing, positioning and information contribute.

Connections

• Measured by: Interaction observation
• See also: Hits-to-kill
• See also: Time-to-kill

Sources

1. Ian Schreiber, Game Design Concepts, Level 16: Game Balance, Three Ways to Balance Game Objects: intransitive relationships and rock-paper-scissorsThe second method is an intransitive relationship between game objects, better known as a rock-paper-scissors relationship.
2. Ian Schreiber, Level 9: Intransitive Mechanics, This Week; Solutions to intransitive mechanics; Who Cares?normal attacks are defeated by blocks, blocks are defeated by throws, and throws are defeated by attacks.
3. Brandon Casteel, In Defense of Hard Counters in Real Time Strategy Games, What is a Hard Counter?; Soft Counters and the HP Problem; Attribute Design vs Bonuses and PenaltiesIn practical terms, in RTS games
4. Alex Jaffe, Metagame Balance, pp. 29–31, Matchup Chartsa matchup chart for Street Fighter 4, depicting the chance that any character should beat any other, in a fair game between skilled players.

Use it on your project

teardown-apply: hold "Counter cycle" (counter-cycle) from the teardown at https://teardownatlas.com/game-design/ against my project

Paste it into a coding agent that has the teardown skills.

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