Game Design Option Generation

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name: game-design-option-generation description: Generate multiple game design solution paths before committing to one direction. Use when a feature, live-ops idea, UX problem, economy issue, or design challenge feels too quickly narrowed, when a team is looping around one favorite answer, or when you need several credible options with tradeoffs instead of a single premature recommendation.

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Game Design Option Generation

Generate multiple credible ways forward before choosing one.

Use this skill to expand the solution space around a game design problem, feature pitch, or design goal. Keep the work practical. The aim is not random brainstorming. The aim is to produce several plausible options, clarify what makes them different, and expose tradeoffs early.

Read references/family-conventions.md when you need the shared conventions for this GROW-derived skill family.

What to produce

Generate: 1. Problem framing - what needs solving 2. Option set - at least 3 credible solution paths 3. Tradeoff summary - player value, business value, cost, risk, strategic fit 4. Recommendation - which path is strongest and why

Process

1. Frame the problem

Clarify:

what outcome is desired

what constraint or tension matters most

what existing system context cannot be ignored

2. Generate multiple options

Always produce several options before deciding.

Use one or more of these lenses:

Five-options - compare several existing ideas

Obstacle - imagine the main blocker removed, then derive paths around it

Ideal outcome - work backward from the best player-facing result

Transformative reuse - adapt or extend what already exists

Outside-the-box - deliberately include non-obvious options

3. Compare options

For each option, describe:

summary

strengths

weaknesses

likely player effect

implementation burden

strategic fit

4. Recommend a path

Choose the strongest option, or recommend a sequence such as test one now, hold one in reserve, discard the rest.

Response structure

Problem Framing

...

Options

1. ... 2. ... 3. ...

Tradeoffs

Option A: ...

Option B: ...

Option C: ...

Recommendation

...

Fast mode

What problem are we actually solving?

What are 3-5 plausible ways to solve it?

Which one is best now, and why?

Working principle

Do not confuse the first decent answer with the best available direction.

1. ... 2. ... 3. ...

Tradeoffs

Option A: ...

Option B: ...

Option C: ...

Recommendation

...