Spatial Structures

Term

Belongs to the term

Ludic Spatial Structure: The Ludic Spatial Structure orders the places of a game in relation to one another - where: adjacent, distant, connected.

Stack

What it is about

The Spatial Structure stack describes how a game orders its places in relation to one another: what borders on what, which paths exist between the places, how far one thing is from another. Every game has such an order, if need be an empty one – a pure guessing game orders no space. The stack is form-independent: the same network of places and connections can be a printed board, a world on screen or a building that people walk through.

Instead of a list of space types, the stack works with twelve dimensions in four groups. Articulation – what does the space consist of? Continuity, adjacency. Coherence – how are the places connected? Number of places, degree of connection, returnability, playability of the in-between. Constitution – what is the space like? Persistence, verticality, extent, dimensionality. Relation to the agents – how does the space relate to the players? Multiplication, degree of place differentiation. Every game takes a position on every dimension, and the dimensions are independent of one another.

The 55 cards fall into four sections, each with its own separator card. For the beginning there are nine entry cards: each asks a question that can be answered about one’s own game without prior knowledge – Do you move from space to space? Do fixed routes lead from place to place? – and names the cards to continue with. The twelve dimension cards each show one axis. The 19 value labels are familiar spatial forms made up entirely of dimension values: grid, hex grid, track, linear chain, open world, 2D, 3D and others. A grid, for instance, is discrete, and every space has four or eight neighbours, as in Battleship or Minesweeper. The eight spatial patterns bring more than values: in hub-and-spoke the hub is safe, the spokes are dangerous, one sets out and returns. They also include arena, labyrinth, puzzle room, social space, platform course, multi-storey world and 2.5D - played in the plane, depicted with depth. Two guide cards explain the dimensions and spatial dramaturgy; a blank card is for spatial forms that are on no card.

How to use it

Getting started (10 minutes): Lay out the entry cards, choose those you recognise in your own game, and look on their back for the cards to continue with. Those who know the stack start straight away with the spatial form.

Find the spatial form (15 to 20 minutes): Lay out the value labels and choose the two or three that come closest to the game; read how they are made up of dimension values. Then lay the dimension cards beside them and fix the game’s position on each dimension. Finally, deliberately change one answer and check what kind of game results – for instance a branching network in which the path is skipped instead of played.

Plan the space sequence (25 to 40 minutes): Put the chosen spatial form in the middle, choose four to six spatial patterns and value labels and arrange them in the order in which the players experience them. Then check the rhythm: where does tension arise, where release, where a contrast, where a surprise? The guide card on spatial dramaturgy names basic patterns, such as arena and social space in alternation, or a crescendo from the narrow corridor to the large arena.

Sequence: in ideation, where needed, start via the entry cards, then find the spatial form, then choose spatial patterns where places need a function of their own, then plan the space sequence. After that, clarify what the players see of the space, what happens on it (Organisational Structures) and with which mechanisms one moves and places things in it.

Relations

The spatial structure determines how the space is laid out; what the players perceive of it is not part of it – that is ordered by the view structure. What happens on the space is ordered by the Organisational Structures: Territory governs who controls places, Exploration how they are opened up. With the mechanisms Transit, Placement and Proximity one moves through the space, puts something into it and measures closeness. Multiplication – one shared space, personal areas alongside it, or personal areas only – says who owns which place; who plays with and against whom is determined by the Social Structure. Spatial dramaturgy aims at the Ductus: the sequence of places gives the experience a rhythm.

cards

The cards

SF-01 Grid Regular, addressable positions in a square or rectangular grid.

SF-02 Hex Grid Hexagonal cells with six equal neighbours – more even distances than a square grid.

SF-03 Track / Path A linear or branching sequence of positions – movement follows a given path.

SF-04 Network / Node Map Discrete points (nodes) with connections (edges) – movement follows connections, not a surface.

SF-05 Open Area No discretized structure – positions are determined by physical placement, distance is measured.

SF-06 Modular Board The play surface emerges from assembled elements – variable, often random, sometimes growing during play.

SF-07 Player Boards Personal work surfaces that organize an agent's individual game state, resources and options.

SF-08 No Board No physical board – the game works purely through hand cards, a display or other components without spatial fixing.

SS-01 Open World The game world is a continuous, freely traversable space. The agent moves in any direction and decides where to go – no order enforced by the corpus. Points of interest are distributed across the space. The architecture of freedom.

SS-02 Hub-and-Spoke A central base (hub) is the point of departure and return. From there the agent starts missions into outgoing spaces (spokes) and returns. The hub is safe, social, persistent; the spokes dangerous, challenging, self-contained. A rhythm of departure and return.

SS-03 Linear Chain The game world is a sequence of rooms/levels in a fixed order. No way back, no freedom of ordering – the strictest form of spatial linearity. Maximal designer control over the experience sequence.

SS-04 Branching Network Connected spaces with multiple paths. The agent chooses routes, explores in varying order and returns. New abilities/keys open locked connections – the world "grows" with the agent's abilities. The architecture of return and discovery.

SS-05 Node Network An abstract map of nodes (places, events, encounters) joined by edges (paths not physically traversed). The agent chooses the next node at branches; no gameplay between nodes. The architecture of strategic path choice.

SS-06 Single Room All play takes place in a single bounded room – no "outside", no room changes. The play surface is the game world. What changes is the configuration within the room. The architecture of concentration.

SS-07 Multi-Storey World Two or more parallel planes that spatially overlap but have different rules, appearance or entities. The agent switches between planes; actions in one can affect the other. The architecture of parallels and mirrorings.

SS-08 Procedural World The game world is generated algorithmically – each run a new spatial configuration. The topology itself varies. Creates replay value through unpredictability, demands adaptation rather than memorization. Not its own topology type but a generation mode.

SS-09 Arena A closed room for intense action (combat, waves, boss). Clear boundaries, cover/obstacles, a central action surface. The arena "closes" on entry and "opens" after completion. The architecture of confrontational compression.

SS-10 Corridor A narrow, linear connecting space between two more meaningful places. Seemingly passive, but a powerful design tool: it controls pacing, steers expectations, directs the gaze, serves as a narrative transition.

SS-11 Labyrinth A branching network of passages and rooms with dead ends, detours and wrong turns. The labyrinth makes spatial navigation itself the challenge – understanding and traversing the space. The architecture of confusion and discovery.

SS-12 Puzzle Room A room whose architecture is itself the puzzle. Switches, platforms, portals, lasers, mirrors – the spatial configuration must be understood and manipulated. The agent changes the room itself. The architecture as a mental task.

SS-13 Social Space A safe place without combat or time pressure. The agent rests, trades, talks to NPCs, acquires upgrades, deepens the world. It contrasts the tension spaces and gives pacing control. Often the narratively richest places.

SS-14 Transit Space An in-between space that makes the transition between two meaningful places palpable – elevators, stairs, bridges. No gameplay of its own; its function is pacing: processing the past, building anticipation.

SS-15 Platform Parkour A vertically oriented space with platforms, jump passages, ramps, chasms, climbing points. The primary challenge: vertical navigation – timing, dexterity, spatial understanding at height. Gravity as risk, height as reward. The architecture of verticality.

SS-16 Open Field A wide, open space with little architectural confinement. Entities move freely in all directions. Terrain variations offer tactical options, but the space stays open and surveyable. Typical of battlefields, RTS, MOBA, battle royale. The architecture of unrestricted manoeuvring.

VC-22 2D The space exists in the plane: everything lies on one surface, without depth. Position, distance and neighbourhood can be read at a glance.

VC-23 2.5D Played in the plane, depicted with depth: parallax layers, isometric views, a painted world behind the play surface. The space is 2D, its appearance looks 3D.

VC-24 3D The space has depth: movement happens along three axes, things stand behind others, rooms have floors and ceilings.

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