Design Lens: Breaking Down Game Design through First Principles.

In the process of creating this game, I attempted to approach it from various angles to identify potential areas for optimization. One such approach is the application of "First Principles."

First Principles suggest that game design establishes boundaries through rules (defining what we cannot do) and provides players with a series of choices within those boundaries (defining what we can do). These choices and rules form the player's cognitive expectations (how we achieve our goals). The game then utilizes feedback and variables to show the player the discrepancy between their actions and expectations, triggering a continuous cycle of cognitive reconstruction (why we feel compelled to play again).

My terminal-based game is a blend of deck-building mechanics and lightweight 4X elements. In this game, the rules mandate that, within a time limit, players must spend influence each turn to deploy minions and resolve field events. Doing so strengthens your minions and cities, eventually building up enough strength to satisfy central objectives and gain prestige. Elements such as the cards drawn each turn, new minion classes and abilities acquired, the terrain, current events, and the class requirements for both events and central objectives all shape a dynamic environment that encourages the player to engage in continuous cognitive reconstruction.

By applying First Principles to strategy game design, we understand that the goal is to create a scenario where players must consider how to allocate limited resources to maximize output efficiency per unit of time, while balancing the risks and rewards of uncertainty. Ultimately, this allows players to feel the weight of their decisions in securing victory.

My terminal game strives to create a scenario where players are exiled to a frontier. The game begins with minimal influence, low-stat minions, and an uncharted geographical landscape. Players must analyze their current hand, event types, and class requirements to incrementally determine the optimal sequence and path for deploying minions, continuously refining their engine and efficiency to achieve the game's objectives.

在開發這款遊戲的過程中，我嘗試從多個維度切入，試圖挖掘優化的空間，其中一個方法論便是「第一性原理」。

第一性原理告訴我們，遊戲設計透過規則劃定邊界（玩家不能做什麼），並在邊界內提供一系列選擇（玩家能做什麼）。這些選擇與規則共同構建了玩家的「認知預期」（如何達成目標）。隨後，遊戲透過回饋與變數，將玩家的實際行動結果與預期進行對照，進而引發持續的「認知重構」循環——這正是玩家感到欲罷不能的深層原因。

我的這款終端機遊戲，採用了「牌組構築（Deck-building）」結合「輕量 4X」的設計架構。在遊戲中，核心規則要求玩家在有限時限內，透過每回合消耗影響力來派遣手下、完成場上事件，進而強化手下與城市。玩家必須達成足夠強大的綜合狀態，才能完成中央需求以獲得聲望。而每一回合抽到的牌、新取得的職業與能力、當下的地形與事件，以及中央需求的職業需求，共同構築了一個動態環境，不斷驅動玩家進行認知的重構與優化。

若將第一性原理應用於策略遊戲設計，我們可以理解其終極目標：創造一個情境，引導玩家思考如何在資源有限的情況下，實現單位時間內產出效率的最大化，並在不確定性帶來的風險與收益間取得平衡，讓玩家深刻感受到決策對最終勝負的「重量」。

基於此，我的終端機遊戲致力於營造一種「邊疆流放」的沉浸感。遊戲初始，玩家僅持有極少的影響力、低數值的手下以及未知的地理環境。玩家必須根據手牌、事件類型與職業需求，一步步規劃派遣手下的最佳順序與路徑，在持續精進出牌引擎與效率的過程中，一步步邁向勝利。