Transit

Mechanism · III – Space & Position immediate · reversible / conditional · open / concealed / asymmetric · solo / competitive

Transit moves Entities through space: movement rules for direction, speed and range produce strategic decisions about routes and destinations.

Design question – How do Entities move through space in your game – and what decisions arise from it?

Reference example – Scotland Yard: taxi, bus or underground – the ticket decides how far you get. Ludo: the roll decides how far the piece moves. Mario Kart: racing line or a shortcut through the rough? Istanbul (Pick-up and Deliver) · Scotland Yard (Hidden Movement) · Roborally (Programmed Movement)

Structural pattern

Input -> transformation -> output: an Entity at position A (figure, marker) becomes an Entity at position B (new position, spatial effect) via a movement rule.

Regulated in permitting mode (how an entity may move: in steps, by points, along paths, freely; in which directions), constraining mode (range; obstacles; cost per step) and conditioning mode (what happens on arrival, on collision or along the way). In a game, range and costs become specifications.

Design parameters

• Topology – grid ↔ free area/abstract
• Control – deterministic ↔ random/programmed
• Range – limited ↔ unlimited
• Cost – free ↔ resource-/time-based
• Interaction – unhindered ↔ blockable/displaceable
• Visibility – open ↔ hidden (hidden movement)

Related Mechanisms

• Placement (MEC-10) – Frequently combined: choose the target position.
• Proximity (MEC-13) – Frequently combined: adjacency effects after movement.
• Conflict Resolution (MEC-22) – Frequently combined: encounter on the target space.
• Schedule (MEC-14) – Frequently combined: movement per round.

Ludic Organisational Structures

Network / Infrastructure · Exploration System (core) · Territory (dynamic)