Knob

Unlock gates

You might say: what opens next

An unlock gate sets the cost, prerequisite or threshold for a new capability.

What it does
Controls when complexity arrives and how much the player must understand before using it.
Ask
What must the player do or learn before this capability opens?
Typical
level, resource, quest, time or demonstrated skill

What to look for

  1. A locked capability
  2. A cost or prerequisite beside it
  3. A threshold before a new capability

Sources

  1. Schreiber, Game Balance Conceptsyou also spend ADAM to buy new special abilities; higher-level abilities are just better (e.g. doing more damage) than their lower-level counterparts, but they cost more to buy.
  2. Ian Schreiber, Level 3: Transitive Mechanics and Cost Curves, prerequisites, limitations and costs as gatesyou also spend ADAM to buy new special abilities; higher-level abilities are just better (e.g. doing more damage) than their lower-level counterparts, but they cost more to buy.
  3. Ernest Adams and Joris Dormans, Game Mechanics: Advanced Game Design, ch. 4, pp. 72–73; contents p. ix, ch. 11 pp. 247–270Access can be used to gain more rewards or can be required to progress through the game.

Use it on your project

teardown-apply: hold "Unlock gates" (unlock-gates) from the teardown at https://teardownatlas.com/game-design/ against my project

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

An AI agent wrote this map with the teardown skill. It can contain errors: check the sources before you rely on a part. About and legal