1. Premise
1.1. story
1.1.1. A basic way that games create engagement is with their overarching premise, which gives context to the formal elements
2. Objectives (game)
2.1. alignment
2.2. Chase
2.2.1. Capture/Eliminate
2.2.2. Exploration
2.3. forbidden act
2.4. outwit
2.5. race
2.5.1. Games where the first player to achieve a key objective wins the game. Typically this is expressed as the winner being the first player to reach the end of a track, but any type of fixed goal also qualifies as a Race mechanism
2.6. rescue or scape
2.7. Solution/deduction
2.7.1. Players are trying to determine the identity of hidden information based on clues.
2.8. Induction
2.8.1. Players are attempting to determine the rules governing a situation. In a typical induction games, a game master creates a hidden rule. Players then create patterns and are advised by the game master whether they match the rule or not.
3. Conflict
3.1. Communication Limits
3.1.1. Games may limit players from communicating with one another openly. These restrictions can be absolute as they relate to certain specific pieces of information, or they may restrict certain types of communication, such as speaking.
3.2. Dilemmas
3.3. Obstacles
3.4. Opponents
3.5. scenario /mission /campaign
3.5.1. A game system that can be applied to a variety of different maps, starting resources and positions, and even different win and loss conditions. These variable conditions can be assembled into a broader narrative or campaign, or they can be entirely disconnected from one another.
4. Rules
4.1. defining objects and concepts
4.2. Restricting actions
4.3. Determining effects
4.4. boundaries
5. Mechanics
5.1. Questions & Answers
5.2. Acting
5.2.1. Games with the Acting mechanic require players to use some form of mime or mimicry to communicate with the other players. Charades is probably the poster child for this mechanic, where one member of a team must use non-verbal clues to allow the other members to guess the solution.
5.3. Action
5.3.1. Points
5.3.1.1. A player receives a number of Action Points on their turn. They may spend them on a variety of Actions. The earliest example of a game listed on Boardgamegeek that uses AP's is Special Train (1948).
5.3.2. Retrieval
5.3.2.1. Each player has a set of Actions available to them, embodied in cards, tokens, or some other affordance. Once performed, they are spent and may not be performed again until retrieved. Action Retrieval typically is itself an Action, or may take an entire turn.
5.3.3. Event
5.3.3.1. On their turn, the player plays a card that shows Action Points and an Event. They must choose to either use the Action Points or perform the Event. If they choose to use Action Points, typically the Event may be performed by another player.
5.3.4. Drafting
5.3.4.1. Players select from an assortment of Actions in a shared pool. The available Actions are limited in quantity, and once a player has chosen an Action it may not be chosen again.
5.3.5. Queue
5.3.5.1. Players create Action Queues and perform them in sequence. Queues can either be "Batch" queues, where all actions are executed in sequence, or "Rolling" queues where actions are added to the end of the Queue, and the first action is then executed. Players may each have their own queue of actions, or there may be a shared action queue.
5.3.6. timer
5.3.6.1. Players place owned timers on action spaces and pieces and take an action. When the timer runs out, it may be moved to another location to take that action. There are no turns -; players may move their own timers any time after they have expired.
5.4. Area Majority/ Influence
5.4.1. Multiple players may occupy a space and gain benefits based on their proportional presence in the space. In El Grande, for instance, players earn their score in a region by having the most caballeros in that region.
5.5. Auction
5.6. Betting and Bluffing
5.6.1. Players commit a stake of currency or resources to purchase a chance of winning everyone’s stake, based on some random outcome like being dealt a superior set of cards or rolling a higher number. Players typically have partial information about the overall game state, and may “bluff,” by representing through their in-game actions that they hold a stronger position than they do. Conversely, players may “fold,” or quit the contest, and limit their losses to whatever they had already staked.
5.7. Bingo
5.7.1. Items are selected at random, and each player needs to use the items for their own player boards.
5.8. Chit-pull system
5.8.1. In such a system the current player randomly draws a chit or counter identifying a group of units which may now be moved. Schemes include moving any units commanded by a particular leader, moving units of a particular quality or activating units not for movement but for fighting.
5.9. Connections
5.9.1. Players are trying to form connections between different points on the board. Essentially, this is a specialized kind of set collection in which the sets collected represent ties between nodes, often represented as routes between destinations.
5.10. Contracts
5.10.1. Players fulfill Contracts to earn rewards. These take the form of special goals requiring coordination and planning beyond simply being "first past the post". These can be either public, where all players compete to be the first to complete them, or private, where only the owning player may fulfill them.
5.11. Critical hits and faillures
5.11.1. Dice are rolled, and those exceeding a target number generate a success. Certain rolls (typically the highest and/or lowest on the die) generate additional success or extreme failure.
5.12. Deck, bag and pool uilding
5.12.1. Players play cards out of individual decks, seeking to acquire new cards and to play through their decks iteratively, improving them over time through card acquisition.
5.13. dice icon resolution
5.13.1. The player rolls a number of custom dice to resolve an event or conflict. Results must match specific symbols for success.
5.14. drafting
5.14.1. Drafting is a means of distributing cards (or other game elements) to players through an ordered, closed selection process - typically "select and pass".
5.15. Flicking
5.15.1. A Physical Action needs to be performed by one or more players to determine the outcome of the action.
5.16. Kill Steal
5.16.1. Players contribute towards completing a task, but only the player who finally completes it gets a benefit.
5.17. layering
5.17.1. Components are placed above other components, and can overlap in various ways. Only the topmost visible icons/areas are active.
5.18. Loans
5.18.1. Players may take a Loan from the bank to get more money.
5.19. market
5.19.1. Players may buy from or sell resources to Markets, where prices and quantities can vary.
5.20. memory
5.21. random production
5.21.1. Resources are generated from a random process and distributed to qualifying players.
5.22. Role playing /variable player powers
5.23. set collection
5.23.1. The value of items is dependent on being part of a set; for example, scoring according to groups of a certain quantity or variety. Demonstrations: A set of 3 of a particular item is worth points (but each item alone has no value). A set of 3 different items is worth points (but each item alone has no value). A particular item is worth 3 points, a set of 2 such items is worth 7 points, and a set of 3 of it is worth 13 points.
5.24. simulation
5.25. speed matching
5.25.1. A pattern is revealed, typically through a card flip, and players try to be the first to find a match with other game elements on the table, or see if a match exists.
5.26. stockholding
5.26.1. Stock Holding is a subcategory of Investment, in which players may buy and sell (or retain) defined interests an entire asset, such as a company, commodity or nation. This may also grant some privileges of Ownership.
5.27. tech trees /tech tracks
5.28. trick-taking
5.29. turn order
5.29.1. auction
5.29.2. pass order
5.29.3. random
5.29.4. role order
5.29.5. claim action
5.29.6. progressive