DEV Community: GameDecisionDiagram

# [Devlog] We limited path visibility to "2 nodes ahead" to reduce fatigue—but players got lost. Here is how we're fixing it.

GameDecisionDiagram — Tue, 15 Sep 2026 06:43:31 +0000

We are currently developing CIDER, a deck-building roguelike. Recently, we implemented a new "Map Selection Mode" and ran a user playtest on our initial prototype.

In this post, we will share our design philosophy, the feedback we received, and how we plan to improve our map mechanics based on what we learned.

1. Our Hypothesis: Eliminating "Route Analysis Fatigue"

In genre-defining games like Slay the Spire, players can see the entire map from the starting node all the way to the final boss.

However, we had some reservations about this classic layout:

High cognitive load: Presenting the entire map right from the start introduces a lot of visual noise.
Low payoff for high effort: Players often spend significant time agonizing over their routes, but (outside of specific mid-to-late game scenarios) these choices don't always feel impactful enough to justify the mental drag.

To tackle this, we designed a minimalist map system that only reveals up to 2 nodes ahead (Next Next). Our hypothesis was that restricting path choices would keep the game moving at a brisk, high-energy pace.

Here is what the current prototype looks like in-game:

CURRENT ROOM (Already Cleared): Highlighted with a green border.
BATTLE (Next Choices): Highlighted with orange borders (Selectable routes).
FUTURE BATTLE (2 Nodes Ahead): Grayed out and marked as "Locked".

2. The Reality Check: User Playtest Feedback

We invited players from our target audience (gamers who play 10–20 hours a week and are familiar with deck-builders) to test the prototype. It quickly became clear that our minimalist design had created an unintended problem.

"I don't know where I am."

By stripping the map down to just two nodes ahead, we accidentally stripped away the players' sense of progression. Testers repeatedly noted that they felt "lost" or felt like they "weren't actually moving forward."

The "CURRENT ROOM" Confusion The node at the bottom of the screen is labeled "CURRENT ROOM / Cleared Area." Players found this highly confusing—their mental model was, "If I cleared this room, shouldn't my character be standing on the next node?"
Lack of Progress Transparency Because players couldn't see how many floors were left until the boss, they couldn't plan their deck-building trajectory. This lack of a clear goal quickly became demotivating.

3. Analysis & Our Next Steps

This test taught us an invaluable lesson: Players don't want to stress over long-term path planning, but they still need to know where they currently stand and how far they are from the goal.

We want to keep our core concept of restricting path branches to 2 nodes ahead, but we will make the following adjustments to restore a sense of progression:

Solution A: Visualizing Overall Progress (Roadmap UI)

While keeping the map's branching paths hidden beyond 2 nodes, we will introduce a progress bar (floor indicator) at the top of the screen. This will clearly communicate the player's exact position relative to the boss.

Add a visual indicator like: FLOOR 1 / 10 [■□□□□□□□□□] BOSS.
Remove the text "Locked" from the 2-nodes-ahead preview, replacing it with a simple, clean icon of the upcoming node type (e.g., enemy icon).

Solution B: Polishing the "Current Location" Representation

Instead of relying on text boxes like "CURRENT ROOM" to explain where the player is, we will place a distinct character avatar directly on the map node. When players choose a path, the avatar will physically move to the next node with a smooth transition animation, making progression feel tactile and intuitive.

4. Conclusion & Next Steps

Trying to reduce choice paralysis by hiding information backfired by creating progress anxiety. It was a humbling reminder of how delicate UI/UX design can be.

In our next update, we’ll show you our design mockups for the updated map system, complete with the new progress bar. We also plan to roll out visual updates, animations, and juice up our combat effects. Stay tuned!

Play & Join Our Community!

You can play the latest build directly in your browser for free:
👉 Play CIDER on Godot Games

We are also looking for feedback on our attribute mechanics and general combat feel! Drop by our Discord and let us know what you think:
💬 Join our Discord Server

[Behind the Scenes] Battling the Bugs Hidden Under the Map

While the map was our primary focus, our testers also uncovered several bugs and UX friction points in our core combat system. Here is a look at what we've been debugging behind the scenes:

① The "Empty Draw Pile" Game Freeze

The Bug: "Playing Exploit Search when your draw pile has 0 cards softlocks the game."
What Happened: We had a card search mechanic designed to pull cards from the draw pile. However, we forgot to write an edge-case handler for when the draw pile size was empty (deck.size() == 0). This caused the loop to search indefinitely or throw a null pointer, freezing the game. It’s a classic card game development oversight—we’ve patched this to fail gracefully.

② Corrupted Text & UI Alignment Glitches

The Bug: "The search protocol dialog has corrupted characters/garbage text, and the select panel title is broken."
What Happened: We ran into issues with font rendering and initialization timing on dynamic dialog UI panels. Specifically, the layout container was trying to render text before the component was fully active. We have restructured the UI lifecycle to ensure texts are parsed and rendered only after the parent containers are safely initialized.

③ Floating Hand Cards

The Bug: "Cards in the hand occasionally overlap, glitch, or get stuck in the wrong positions."
What Happened: Our cards are programmatically fanned out in an arc based on hand size. If a tester played cards too quickly, or if draw and discard animations fired simultaneously, our positioning logic got out of sync with the animation states. This left cards floating awkwardly in mid-air. We are refactoring the card-state manager to strictly sync state changes with visual positioning.

④ Non-Verbal UX Failures: "How Do I Play This?"

The Bug: "I played for 30 minutes before realizing the number in the top-right corner of the card was its energy cost." / "Status effects like Void, Exploit, Bind, and Nullify are too hard to understand."
What Happened: As developers, we look at our own UI every day, so we assumed "top-right = cost" was common knowledge. To a new player, however, it just looked like a decorative element. Similarly, our deep status effect system lacked on-screen explanations. To fix this, we are adding dynamic hover tooltips to explain advanced mechanics in plain text, and we are adding prominent visual effects whenever energy is consumed to clearly link cards to the resource bar.

Why I Chose Web over Desktop for My Game Playtest

GameDecisionDiagram — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 17:33:00 +0000

I have released a free prototype (playtest) version of the game I am currently developing, and it is playable directly in your browser!

You can play it instantly on both PC and mobile browsers without the hassle of installation. Please give it a try and share your feedback regarding the controls and gameplay!

Play Here (Free)

Anyone can play for free directly in the browser. The game is fully playable with just basic English!

👉 Play the Game for Free Here!

Click the "遊ぶ" button, and the game screen will appear below. I highly recommend trying out the **MapMode!

We also have a Discord community. Feel free to join us!
👉 Join our Discord Server & Participate in Development

Behind the Scenes: Why a Browser Release?

The biggest reason I chose a browser-based release over distributing a desktop executable was to lower the barrier to entry as much as possible for playtesters.

When asking people to test a game, requiring them to download, unzip, and install files creates both a psychological and physical hurdle. To gather a large amount of feedback quickly, I concluded that providing an environment where anyone can play instantly without installation was the best approach. Thus, I opted for web deployment.

Development Challenges and Next Steps

That being said, I encountered a few hurdles during the web export process using the Godot Engine.

One major blind spot was that the exported HTML file name must be set exactly to index. If you leave it at the default setting or use a custom file name, the server may fail to recognize it as the index file, leading to loading errors.

Since there were several other pitfalls before successfully publishing the game, I plan to write a detailed, step-by-step guide titled "How to Publish Your Godot Game Online for Free" in a future article based on this experience. I hope it will be helpful to other developers facing similar issues with web deployment.

For now, please click the link above and enjoy the newly released prototype!

[Dev Log] Designing Strategic Chains: Implementing the "Harmonic Sequence" System

GameDecisionDiagram — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 17:00:00 +0000

In my current deck-building game project, I've implemented a new system called "Harmonic Sequence" (HS) that fundamentally changes the tactical flow of battle.

In this post, I'll focus on the design philosophy behind this system and how it reshapes the gameplay experience.

1. Design Philosophy of "Harmonic Sequence"

The Harmonic Sequence is a special combo action triggered by a specific card (Starter), allowing the player to unleash a series of cards from their hand in a single burst.

The Goal: Shifting from "Static" to "Dynamic"

In card games, the process of gathering the right cards can often feel static. HS is designed to release that built-up potential in a single, explosive moment, achieving three main goals:

Creating Burst Damage: Breaking the standard card-play limits to push the maximum damage output per turn.
Giving Meaning to Search Cards: As seen in the demo with "Search Protocol," the act of pinpointing a specific number becomes a direct path to victory.
A Gateway to "Break": Continuous hits provide an effective way to shred enemy shields, making high-hit counts a pillar of the strategy.

2. Actual Gameplay Flow

The sequence shown in the demo (around 0:14) provides the following player experience:

Preparation: Use search cards to assemble a "sequence" in your hand.
Ignition: Activate "HS: Starter." At this moment, the game shifts into a high-tempo combo mode.
Selection: Select cards in ascending order. The preview area builds anticipation as the chain grows.
Release: All cards trigger in rapid succession, shattering shields and dealing devastating damage.

This isn't just about lining up numbers; it’s about creating a system where the player’s long-term planning pays off in a satisfying execution.

【Column】 Behind the Scenes: Refining UI/UX to Prevent Misclicks and Improve Feel

Note: This section is a technical column focusing on the implementation hurdles and UX improvements.

To support a powerful action like Harmonic Sequence without overwhelming the player, I performed a major overhaul of the UI to balance error prevention with visual clarity.

1. Balancing Error Prevention with Scalability

I changed card activation to a double-click specification. This prevents players from accidentally playing a card when they only intended to click it to check details.
Internally, the logic has been expanded to allow for target selection even as the number of enemies increases. Along with this, I've fine-tuned the behavior of "unplayable cards" (e.g., due to cost) to make it immediately clear what actions are available.

2. Enhancing In-game Guidance

To ensure players never feel lost, I implemented a hint system that triggers on a single click: "Left-click to Use, Right-click to Cancel." This provides an intuitive learning curve for the new control scheme.

3. Visual Feedback and Logical Consistency

I added a glow effect to the attribute panels to strengthen visual feedback. Simultaneously, I updated the internal validation:

Strict Attribute Validation: Added a flag to each card to determine if it can receive attribute modifiers.
Eliminating Invalid Combinations: Cards like "Block," where attributes wouldn't strategically make sense, are now flagged to prevent attribute panels from being attached, maintaining logical consistency.

4. Polish and Nomenclature

Based on external feedback, I refined some terminology to better fit the game's context:

Rename: Changed "Tutorial" to "demo". It’s a small change, but crucial for controlling the player's psychological framing and the overall "vibe" of the experience.

Improving the "feel" of the UI provides the foundation for players to focus entirely on strategy. I’ll continue tuning the interface to ensure every action feels rewarding.

Dev Log: From Combat MVP to Map Mode - Building the Strategic Core of "CIDER"

GameDecisionDiagram — Wed, 13 May 2026 17:05:00 +0000

Up until now, CIDER has been a combat-only MVP (Minimum Viable Product) focused on refining our card battle mechanics through user interviews.

After gathering invaluable feedback on the strategic depth of our battles, we’ve finally taken the next big step: Implementing the Map Mode.

Latest Development Preview: From Route Selection to Combat

1. From "Encounters" to "Adventure": The New Map System

While previous versions dropped players directly into battle, this update introduces player agency through navigation.

Strategic Route Selection: Players must now decide which path to take and which rewards to prioritize.
Run Continuity: Managing resources across multiple encounters makes every decision more impactful.

This is currently a foundational version. Moving forward, I plan to implement branching paths that lead to different dungeons, powerful Boss Encounters, and narrative Event Nodes. I'm also working on custom map icons and background art to improve immersion.

2. Breathing Life into the Game: The Challenge of Sound Effects (SE)

This update wasn't just about logic; I also focused on integrating Sound Effects.

One thing I realized during development was that without sound, it’s surprisingly difficult for players to intuitively grasp what is happening on screen. Especially in a strategy game, feeling the weight of a hit or the activation of a skill through audio drastically changes the UX.

I rushed the SE implementation because I wanted to get this version into user interviews as soon as possible. I truly believe "audio feedback" is a core part of the game's feel.

Dev Dilemma: What should a "Shield" sound like?

Because I was rushing to get this build ready for feedback, I couldn't finalize the Shield Activation SE.

I'm currently stuck between a few directions:

A sharp, metallic "Clang!" (Physical/Sturdy)
A magical, shimmering "Hummm" (Arcane/Barrier)
A heavy "Thump" or "Whoosh" (Impact/Energy)

What kind of sound do you think fits a strategic card battler best? If you have any suggestions or references, I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Play the Latest Build on itch.io

With the Map Mode in place, the "skeleton" of the game is finally visible. It’s still a work in progress, but I’d love for the community to try it out and help shape the future of CIDER.

Play CIDER on itch.io

Feedback & User Interviews Wanted

How does the map flow feel? Does the new audio improve the combat experience? Any feedback—no matter how small—is incredibly helpful. I am also looking for volunteers for online user interviews!

Join our Discord to follow the development

[Guide] How to Bypass the Windows Security Warning to Play CIDER

GameDecisionDiagram — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 17:17:00 +0000

In our previous update, we introduced the "Void Card" system, which lies at the core of this game’s mechanics.

We are incredibly grateful to see the number of downloads steadily increasing. However, there is a "high hurdle" that is almost inevitable for solo indie game developers: the security warning (such as Windows SmartScreen) that appears when opening an executable file on Windows, stating "Windows protected your PC."

We understand that seeing an unfamiliar warning can make players hesitate to run the game. To ensure you can experience CIDER with peace of mind, we have released a video guide explaining the steps from download to launching the game.

YouTube Guide: How to Download & Run CIDER

Why does this warning appear?

This is a standard Windows behavior that occurs when an executable file does not have a "Digital Signature." Obtaining these signatures requires developers to pay significant annual fees (ranging from hundreds to over a thousand dollars).

As CIDER is currently in its early stages and available for free on itch.io, we have not yet acquired this signature. Please be assured that the program does not contain any malicious code; however, the OS simply flags it as an "Unknown Publisher."

3 Steps to Run the Game

As explained in the video, here is the process after downloading from itch.io:

Extract the ZIP file: Right-click the downloaded file and select "Extract All."
Open the executable: Double-click CIDER.exe inside the extracted folder.
Click "More info" on the warning screen: When the blue "Windows protected your PC" screen appears, click the "More info" link on the left. This will reveal the "Run anyway" button.

Building Trust

As mentioned previously, our ideal goal is to provide the game through platforms like Steam, where such warnings do not appear.

However, we are still in the middle of development. For now, we hope this guide removes any psychological barriers, allowing as many people as possible to experience the strategic depth of CIDER.

Play the CIDER Development Build on itch.io
Play CIDER on itch.io

We Value Your Feedback

If you successfully launch the game, or if you encounter any issues even after following these steps, please let us know via Discord or in the comments. Hearing "It worked!" from you is a huge motivation for our development.

Join our Discord Server for reports and community:
https://discord.gg/4HRQ6ppyaq

Game Dev Log: Designing the "Void Card" System – Turning Defense into Explosive Offense

GameDecisionDiagram — Tue, 03 Mar 2026 03:03:55 +0000

In my previous post, I discussed the "Attribute Collection and Granting" system, where players exploit enemy elemental weaknesses. Today, I want to introduce a core mechanic that holds the most "explosive potential" in the game.

Latest Gameplay Video: Watch the intense battle against the Necromancer to see the "Void Card" in action—a high-stakes move that requires perfect timing and preparation.

1. "Void" Cards: Power Born from Constraint

In the video, you’ll notice cards shrouded in a dark aura. These are Void Cards. Unlike standard cards, they cannot be played freely under normal circumstances.

Activation Condition

A Void Card can only be activated when your specific Weakness is currently "Nullified" by a skill or item.

In the footage, you can see the player using defensive cards like "Water Guard" to mitigate the Necromancer’s lethal assaults. That precise moment—when your defenses are perfected—is the trigger that unleashes the power of the Void.

2. The UX of "Calculated Retaliation"

The design goal for this system was to provide players with the catharsis of "Enduring, gathering strength, and turning the tides in a single stroke."

Tactical Dilemma

While Void Cards are devastatingly powerful, they pose a risk by clogging your hand. Players must decide: When should I draw into nullification skills? At what point should I drop the Void hammer? It’s a true test of deck-building and resource management.

The Dual Utility of "Nullification"

I wanted to transform a purely defensive action (protecting a weakness) into an offensive signal. It functions as a "switch" that shifts the player's stance from survival to total domination.

3. Play for Free: Conquer the Undead with Your Strategy

In this video, the dev team unfortunately fell just short of defeating the Necromancer. However, the game is balanced such that meticulous strategy will always guarantee victory.

Will you be the one to perfect the Void Card combo?

The development build is currently available for FREE on itch.io. I invite you to take revenge on the Necromancer yourself and experience the thrill when a complex strategy finally clicks!

Play "CIDER" for free on itch.io

Closing Thoughts

We are constantly looking for feedback on Void Card balance and overall gameplay on our Discord server. Your tactical insights are the fuel that helps this project evolve.

Join our Discord Community

Behind the Scenes: The "Distribution" Hurdle for Indie Devs

As I started recruiting playtesters to get more eyes on the game, I hit a major roadblock: How do I actually deliver the game files?

The Dilemma of Trust and Safety

The easiest way to share a PC game build is uploading the .exe to cloud storage like Google Drive. However, as a player, clicking a random link from an unknown developer and bypassing Windows "SmartScreen" warnings is a huge psychological barrier. I know I’d be hesitant if the roles were reversed.

Choosing itch.io as a Compromise

To address this trust issue, I decided to use itch.io, a global standard for indie game hosting.

To be honest, even on a dedicated platform, unsigned executables still trigger OS

[Inside CIDER] Steal Their Power, Pierce Their Weakness: The "Elemental Cycle" System

GameDecisionDiagram — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 17:52:00 +0000

Greetings from the development team of "CIDER: ChallengIng DEck-building Roguelike." Today, we want to dive deep into the core mechanic of our combat system.

Our current focus is crafting a strategic experience where card selection directly shifts the tide of battle through "Tactical Weakness Exploitation."

Gameplay Preview (WIP)

Check out this prototype footage demonstrating the Elemental Absorption and Break mechanics in action:

1. Seizing Control: The "Break" System & Resource Recycling

Enemies in CIDER have specific weaknesses categorized by Weapon Types or Elemental Attributes. Reducing an enemy's Shield to zero by exploiting these weaknesses triggers a Break state.

In our current prototype, a Break provides the following benefits:

Instant Energy Recovery: Gain the resources needed to bridge into your next move.
Extra Card Draw: Expand your tactical options and maintain combo momentum.
Action Interruption/Alteration: Force the enemy to switch their intent from "Attack" to "Defend," effectively nullifying incoming damage.

Our goal is an aggressive game cycle where offense serves as the ultimate defense. (Note: Specific Break mechanics are subject to change as we continue balance tuning.)

2. Turning Threats into Resources: "Elemental Absorption"

What sets CIDER apart is the ability to "absorb" attributes from enemy attacks.

In most games, an elemental attack is purely a threat. In CIDER, it is a strategic resource. By enduring an elemental strike, you can stock that specific attribute for your own use.

3. From Absorption to Infusion: The Counter-Strategy

Once absorbed, these attributes can be infused into your hand or specific attacks:

An enemy prepares a powerful Fire attack.
You absorb that Fire essence.
You infuse the Fire into a neutral card.
You strike back at an enemy weak to Fire, securing a swift Break.

This cycle of "utilizing the enemy's strength to strike their weakness" blends the RNG of deck-building with high-stakes, real-time tactics.
(Note: Weapon and element types are currently placeholders and will be optimized during development.)

Refining the System Through Feedback

The "Challenging" in CIDER doesn't mean unfair difficulty; it means the satisfaction of seeing system mastery lead directly to victory. We are currently fine-tuning:

Is the resource gain from a Break balanced?
Does the enemy's shift from Attack to Defense provide enough of a tactical window?

We want to polish these "game feel" aspects with our community. We are especially looking for feedback from veteran deck-builder players on our Discord:

👉 Join the CIDER Discord Server

What's Next?

Now that the basic combat loop is established, we are moving into the next phase: designing cards (skills) that deepen this elemental cycle. In our next update, we’ll discuss our card design philosophy.

Behind the Scenes (Dev Log)

This is our second devlog for CIDER. We’ve noticed a steady growth in our community reach, especially on technical platforms like Qiita (114 views) compared to more general ones. It's encouraging to see the brand slowly taking shape.

Design Thoughts on "Break"

The "Break" mechanic is a staple in modern RPGs because the burst of damage is inherently satisfying. Integrating this into a roguelike deck-builder feels great—recovering energy and drawing cards while cancelling an enemy's move allows the player to stay in the "flow." The challenge now is balancing the "cost to break" vs. "player power during break" to ensure the game remains challenging.

Tech Stack & AI-Assisted Development

We are developing with Godot using Antigravity. The development speed has been incredible. This is our team's first time using Godot, but leveraging AI agents has removed the friction of learning a new engine's syntax.

Interestingly, we've optimized our workflow by using a single paid AI account shared across the team. This has effectively multiplied our available token pool, allowing for a much higher volume of code generation and troubleshooting without hitting limits.

Stay tuned for more updates!

[CIDER Devlog] The Core of Offense and Defense: The Thrill of "Break" and "Interrupt" via Weapon Attributes

GameDecisionDiagram — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 17:20:00 +0000

Today, we introduce developing ChallengIng DEck-building Roguelike CIDER (This is project phase name. Release name may changes.)

1. The Joy of "Hunting" Weaknesses

As you can see in the video, icons appear next to the Goblin. These represent the enemy's "Weaknesses." In CIDER, you can efficiently shred enemy shields by matching the weapon attributes of your cards (Slash, Blunt, Pierce, etc.) to these weaknesses.

When an encounter begins, weaknesses are hidden. They are revealed only after you land an attack, turning the opening turns into a tactical reconnaissance phase.

Development Insight: We focused on the "intellectual satisfaction" of analyzing which cards are effective—much like finding the perfect fit for a puzzle piece—to build your strategy.

2. The Overwhelming Advantage of a "Break"

Watch the mid-section of the video: the moment the enemy's shield hits zero, a "Break!" effect triggers. Breaking an enemy doesn't just increase damage; it triggers an Interrupt:

Action Cancel: It thwarts the enemy’s intent, forcing them to cancel powerful incoming attacks.

Resource Refund: As shown in the footage, breaking an enemy can trigger energy restoration or card draws, allowing you to maintain your momentum.

We’ve condensed the ultimate "catharsis" of battle—denying the enemy’s turn and launching a relentless one-sided assault—into this Break system.

Why start with "Weapon Attributes"?

While our cycle includes "Magical Elemental Attributes," we established physical "Weapon Attributes" as the fundamental framework. The direct feedback of a card choice physically stopping an enemy’s movement is the first step toward the challenging, logic-driven experience CIDER aims to deliver.

Coming Soon

In the next update, we’ll dig deeper into "Attribute Collection and Infusion," where you turn enemy attacks into your own resources. Stay tuned to see how "Counter-based Breaks" can completely flip the tides of battle.

Play the Alpha

You can download the current build on itch.io. It’s currently combat-only, but I believe it captures the core loop we're building.

https://game-decision-diagram.itch.io/cider-v0-2-10

We are also looking for feedback from deck-builder veterans on our Discord server regarding the "feel" of this combat system.

https://discord.gg/4HRQ6ppyaq

[Devlog] A Wake-Up Call: The Blind Spot in My Perspective

Recently, I hit a major milestone: completing the basic structure of the core combat system. Feeling confident, I asked a group of friends to playtest it and sent out a feedback survey. Days passed. Not a single response.

Panicked that there was a technical bug, I followed up individually. The truth was something I hadn't expected.

The "Wall" of the First Question

The culprit was the very first question: "Have you ever played a Roguelike Deck-builder?"

To me, this genre is second nature. I assumed everyone knew it. But my friends—all of whom are regular gamers—all answered "No."

The moment they saw that question, they felt: "I am not the target audience for this game," or "I don't have the expertise to provide valid feedback." They felt excluded before they even started.

What Comes Before "High Difficulty"

CIDER was originally conceived as a "high-difficulty challenge" for fans of the genre. However, this incident made me realize I was narrowing the entrance to the market far more than intended.

I want to maintain the depth for hardcore fans, but I don't want new players to walk away thinking the game "isn't for them."

Shifting Development Focus

Based on this feedback, I've added two key priorities to our roadmap:

Redesigning Intuitive Onboarding (Tutorial): Removing jargon and creating a flow where players learn the rules naturally through play.

Redefining "Difficulty": Moving away from "difficulty as a barrier" toward a learning curve where trial and error feels rewarding, even for beginners.

I’m moving past the self-centered idea that "only those in the know should play" and working to ensure more people can discover the incredible depth of this genre.