Kathleen Mmmmmmmmmmmmmercury!7th Grade Apogee

Mechanics determine the function of the game, i.e. what players actually do to play the physical game.

We are going to choose a practice theme. As we discuss each mechanic, brainstorm how

to apply that mechanic to our practice theme. Write that in the space provided.

Then, draw a symbol or write a keyword in the space provided to help you remember the mechanic.

The number of actions a player may take during a turn (or possibly a game) is limited by a pool of points.

How many points do players get? Can they gain or lose points? What do actions costs in relation to each other?

Babel Cogno Hey That’s My

Fish! Survive!

Players score points or gain abilities by having more of their units in an area than another player.

How do you define the area? How many areas? What captures/blocks an area? Can an area be shared?

Enemy Chocolatier Finca Fjords Kahuna Rattus Risk Tower of Babel

Players attempt to enclose the largest playing region.

How do they mark the boundaries of their region? How do they expand/how are they limited?

Blokus Carcassonne Go Oasis Othello

Players move pieces (whether they be cavalry, infantry or dinosaurs) across discrete, divided regions across the board.

How do you determine how players will move? Can they move on only their territory, open common space, or enemy territory?

Panic Station Red November Risk Stratego Legends

Players use resources of one kind to obtain different resources in direct rivalry with other players.

What is the base price? How much can items increase, by what increments ? How do players bid—in order, openly, secretly? Is it mandatory or optional to bid?

Billionaire Detroit Cleveland

Grand Prix Hollywood

Blockbuster Modern Art Monopoly Oasis Shazamm! Tower of Babel

Players speculate or gamble on the outcome of something over which they may or may not have direct control.

Are bids public or secret? Do players keep or lose money/tokens in lost bids?

Cloud 9 Crunch Igloo Pop Liar’s Dice Power Puff Girls:

Saving the World Before Bedtime

Renfield Shogun

The outcome or occurrence of some events is driven by a card deck.

Castle Panic Great Brain

Robbery Powerpuff Girls:

Mojo Jojo Attacks Townsville

A selection of options (cards, tiles, etc.) are chosen by the player.

How many cards may be taken? Is there a maximum or a minimum? How do you get new cards? How many at a time? Can the hand size ever increase or decrease?

Alhambra King of Tokyo Ticket to Ride Ticket to Ride:

Europe

Random elements are introduced into a game by drawing from a bag or other device.

How many chits are pulled? Can you pull chits and put them back? What are on the chits?

Castle Panic Neuroshima Hex!

Players are usually fighting against the game system itself as a team, rather than each other.

How do players win? Lose? How do you balance the strength of the players on the board?

Castle Panic Forbidden Island Lomby Zombie Pandemic Scotland Yard

The value of resources changes during the game and players typically buy and sell in order to take advantage of these changes.

Acquire Huzzah! Modern Art

Players form conclusions based on available premises and if these conclusions are valid, that will lead players faster towards their aims.

Chrononauts Clue Coda Da Vinci Code Loch Ness Mr. Jack Pow Wow Scotland Yard The Resistance Werewolf

Players' physical reflexes and coordination determine overall success.

Hula Hippos Igloo Pop Inner Circle Leverage Nacht Der Magier Rattlesnake Stack Market Vampires of the

Night

Outcomes are determined solely or mainly by rolling dice.

Battleship Express Carcassonne (Dice

game) Catch the Mice HP: Sorcerer’s

Stone Jamaica King of Tokyo Lucky Loop Masons Ninja vs. Ninja

Risk Risk Express Roll Through the

Ages Stack Market Survive

Resources (usually cards) are held in a player's hand, and generally determine the particular tactics or strategies a player takes.

Alhambra Apples to Apples Cartagena Castle Panic Clue Cosmic Encounter Detroit Cleveland

Grand Prix Dracula Hare and Tortoise

Kahuna Kill Dr. Lucky LOTR: The Duel Modern Art Neuroshima Hex! Oasis Pandemic Surf’s Up Dude Ticket to Ride Tsuro Wasabi

Players are required to recall information without being able to refer to external sources.

Codebreaker Cogno Dracula Enemy Chocolatier Magic Labyrinth Mastermind Snorta Stratego Legends

The game board is not fixed but comprises discrete units that are either laid out in a pattern from the start or develops over time.

aMAZEing Labyrinth Cartagena Dragonriders Forbidden Island Hey That’s My Fish LOTR: The Search Ricochet Robots Stratego Legends Survive Tongiaki Zombie in My Pocket

Players record information about the game state on paper rather than on a board.

Roll Through the Ages

Lomby Zombie

Two or more players work as a team.

Knights of Charlemagne

The Resistance

Players use game components to form required shapes.

Ingenious Fits Othello Pentago Pente Shear Panic

Players are competing to identify matching types.

Monkey Madness Othello Pente Pentago Set Tip the Scale

Something needs to be transported in some fashion to a different location on the board, often to earn other resources.

Empire Builder Niagara

Pieces are moved from a specific location to another specific location in a defined fashion.

Hey That’s My Fish Ice Flow Kill Dr. Lucky Pandemic PPG: Mojo Jojo

Attacks Townsville Royal Masquerade Tongiaki

Players may repeat an action (or part of an action) until he/she decides to stop due to increased (or not) risk of losing points or a turn.

Aquadukt Can’t Stop Cloud 9 Roll Through the

Ages

Every player must secretly choose a series of actions, and then each player plays their turns out according to the choices made.

This can be similar to Simultaneous Action Selection except usually multiple choices must be programmed at once.

Duck Duck Go, RoboRally, Jamaica (possibly)

There is a circular hierarchy for which pieces win/capture others. That is, while A might beat B, and B beat C, C beats A.

Rock-Paper-Scissors is a subcategory of Simultaneous Action Selection or Trick Taking.

Hoity Toity Stratego Legends Rock Paper

Scissors

Players move tokens of some kind according to the roll of a die or dice.

Clue Da Vinci Code Easy Money Great Brain

Robbery Kitty Chaos Marrakech Ninja vs. Ninja

Players connect points or areas on the board by playing their pieces on intervening areas or spaces.

Empire Builder Expedition Kahuna Ticket to Ride Trans Europa Tsuro

Players place their pieces secretly and they are only revealed when encountered by other pieces.

Scotland Yard Stratego Survive

Players attempt to assemble collections of resources.

Alhambra Babel California Finca Forbidden Island Fossil Hare and Tortoise Hoity Toity Hollywood

Blockbuster Niagara

Pandemic Save Dr. Lucky Spy Alley Ticket to Ride Tip the Scale Tower of Babel Zooloretto

The thematic element overrides all other concerns in an attempt to simulate a particular environment as accurately as possible with the constraints of a board game.

Jamaica, Techno Witches

Players select or play their action or choice at the same time.

Apples to Apples Hoity Toity Labyrinth Treasure

Hunt Niagara PPG: Saving the

Day Before Bedtime

The Target Shazamm!

A unique, innovative mechanic not widely seen in other games

Niagara Ice Flow

Companies operate and are controlled or influenced by the actions of the players, with the majority stock holder determining the action.

Acquire Bull Market Imperial* Stock Exchange

A large amount of text via printed resource or with the players themselves is used during the game to shape the action.

Mostly used in Role Playing Games (RPGs)

Dixit

The game board is created, rather than existing in a fixed form.

Acquire Alhambra aMAZEing Labyrinth Aquadukt Blokus California Carcassonne Dante’s Inferno Fjords Ice Flow Ingenious

Maori Marrakech Neuroshima Hex! Oasis Tsuro Wasabi! Zooloretto

A game mechanic in which players exchange resources between one another or with the game system to advance their position.

Bull Market Castle Panic Monopoly Pandemic

All players play a card (or cards) and one of the cards then wins according to the game rules.

24 Countdown Game

PPG: Saving the World Before Bedtime

Renfield Tip the Scale

A turn comprises a number of phases but these phases do not necessarily occur in the same order each turn (or sometimes not every turn.)

Ice Flow

Players have access to different abilities to each other.

Bacchus’ Banquest Cosmic Encounter Forbidden Island Mr. Jack Neuroshima Hex! Pandemic Rattus Stratego Legends

The outcome of certain game events is determined by the joint decision of all players.

Lifeboats The Resistance Werewolf

Players draft individual actions from a set that is available to all players. Drafting is done one-at-a-time and in turn order. Once drafted, an action can no longer be taken

until a subsequent turn or until the action space is no longer occupied by a worker.

Usually, each player has a limited number of pieces with which to participate in the process.

In other words, they "place workers" to show which actions have been drafted by which players.

Stone Age

Questions: How many workers do you get? Can you gain or lose workers? How many choices are available? How often do you place workers?

After you have chosen your game’s theme, think about... How each mechanic can help players achieve

the goals of your theme The benefits and limitations of a particular

mechanic

You will choose 2 or so mechanics, so think about the important elements of your theme and how the mechanics can fit them.