Game Development

Five modes: Design (diagnosis, auditing, improvement), Pipeline (full lifecycle orchestration), Sprite (AI sprite generation), Phaser (2D engine builds), GM (large multi-system implementations). Cross-cutting concerns (audio, QA, deploy) load as needed. Classify the request and follow the matching section.

Mode Selection

Mode	Signals
Design	game design, improve game, retention, churn, core loop, audit, game feel, balance, economy
Pipeline	make game, scaffold, game lifecycle, game audio, deploy game, game QA
Sprite	AI sprite, generate character, portrait, spritesheet, animated sheet, pixel art
Phaser	Phaser, 2D game, platformer, arcade physics, tilemap, side scroller
GM	large GM implementation, multi-system GM, CPU systems, multi-wave overhaul

If the request spans modes, load both primary references. Design + Pipeline is common (design an improvement then implement it). Sprite + Phaser is common (generate assets then wire into a Phaser game).

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Design Mode

Evidence-led game design diagnosis with 61 runnable capabilities. Start from repository evidence; never guess when the repo can answer.

Workflow

1. Intake. Read target repository's governing files. Search for game, product, UI, analytics, and research guidance. Use file search to find design docs, player copy, rules, UI, config, tests, analytics, issues. Separate facts into: observed, documented, measured, inferred.
2. Ask only what the repo cannot answer. Which player moment matters? What external evidence exists (playtests, telemetry, reviews)? Which constraints bind (platform, phase, team, time)?
3. Load references. Route greedily -- load every module that could change the recommendation:

Signal	Load
Promise, fantasy, loops, goals	references/core-loop-and-pillars.md
Ideation, novelty, removal, reuse	references/creative-and-options.md
Player motives, personas, values	references/player-and-social.md
Information, bias, randomness	references/cognition-and-choice.md
Failure, difficulty, fairness	references/fairness-and-failure.md
FTUE, flow, friction, session	references/pacing-and-return.md
Co-op, competition, social	references/social-and-competitive.md
Rewards, currencies, passes	references/progression-and-economy.md
Pitch, mood, prototype	references/emotion-and-presentation.md
Scope, sequence, estimates	references/planning-and-production.md
Full health report	All modules + references/full-diagnostic.md

4. Diagnose. Trace the player path: cue -> interpretation -> choice -> response -> cost/reward -> feedback -> next intention. State player consequence, evidence, competing explanations, confidence, severity.
5. Decide. Offer 2-5 distinct options. For each: player-visible change, pillar fit, scope, dependencies, effort, reversibility, success metric, stop rule. Prefer reversible experiments. Reject dark patterns.
6. Completion gate. Every finding has evidence or is marked as inference. Every recommendation has a validation plan.

Discovery Mode

When request is bare "game design" or "what reviews are available": load references/capability-catalog.md and present the full domain-organized catalog of 61 capabilities.

Autonomous Improvement

When asked to improve a game's retention, churn, or engagement: load references/autonomous-improvement.md. Inspect the real game, run relevant capabilities, make the smallest safe reversible improvement, verify, leave a measurement plan.

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Pipeline Mode

Full lifecycle orchestration: SCAFFOLD -> ASSETS -> DESIGN -> AUDIO -> QA -> DEPLOY. Each phase can be entered independently.

Entry Detection

Request	Entry Phase
make a game, new game	SCAFFOLD
generate assets, add sprites	ASSETS
add juice, particles, screen shake	DESIGN
add audio, background music	AUDIO
test game, visual regression	QA
deploy, ship, publish, iOS	DEPLOY

Phase 1: SCAFFOLD

Detect engine (Three.js, Phaser, or vanilla canvas). Delegate to the appropriate engine skill or scaffold from template.

Phase 2: ASSETS

Route by asset type:

Asset	Reference
3D model, GLB, mesh	references/game-asset-generator.md + references/meshyai.md
Sprite, pixel art, tile	Load Sprite mode below
Image, texture, concept art	references/fal-ai-image.md
Environment, gaussian splat	references/worldlabs.md
Free assets, Sketchfab	references/asset-sources.md
Motion data, BVH, mocap	references/motion-pipeline.md

Phase 3: DESIGN

Add game feel: screen shake, particles, hit-stop, juice. Load references/game-feel-patterns.md.

Phase 4: AUDIO

Web Audio API patterns, AudioManager, AudioBridge. Load references/game-audio.md.

Phase 5: QA

Automated testing, visual regression, Playwright, canvas seams. Load references/game-qa.md.

Phase 6: DEPLOY

Target	Reference
GitHub Pages, Vercel, general	references/deploy.md
iOS via Capacitor	references/capacitor-ios.md
Promo video	references/promo-video.md

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Sprite Mode

AI sprite generation: portrait, portrait-loop, spritesheet, per-row animated sheets. Load references/game-sprite-pipeline.md for the full pipeline.

Quick Steps

1. Detect format. Portrait (single image), portrait-loop (idle animation), spritesheet (action set), per-row (multiple animations in rows).
2. Select backend. Load references/backend-chain.md for dispatch: Codex CLI primary, Gemini fallback.
3. Select style. Load references/style-presets.md for 9 era/hardware presets.
4. Generate. Follow the pipeline for the detected format.
5. Post-process. Background removal, palette quantization, sheet assembly.
6. Validate. Check dimensions, frame counts, transparency, color consistency.

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Phaser Mode

Phaser 3 2D game engine builds. Load references/phaser-gamedev.md for the full methodology.

Core Patterns

Load references/core-patterns.md for scene lifecycle, transitions, and input handling.

Task	Reference
Scene lifecycle, transitions	references/core-patterns.md
TypeScript entry, Boot/Game skeletons	references/build-scaffolds.md
Arcade physics, collision	references/arcade-physics.md
Tilemaps, tile layers	references/tilemaps.md, references/tilemaps-and-physics.md
Screen shake, particles, hit-stop	references/game-feel-patterns.md
Polish scaffolds	references/polish-scaffolds.md
Animate scaffolds	references/animate-scaffolds.md

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GM Mode

Evidence-to-live implementation for large GM programs (multi-system, multi-wave, CPU-intensive). Load references/gm-brilliant-implementation.md for the full methodology.

Applicability Gate

GM mode applies only when: multiple interconnected game systems change, CPU performance is a concern, or the implementation spans multiple deployment waves. If the gate fails, route to quick, workflow, or the target project's skill.

Key References

Signal	Reference
Stage contracts, checkpoints	references/stage-contracts.md
CPU systems harmony	references/cpu-systems-harmony.md
Quality gates	references/quality-gates.md
Workflow DAG (34 stages)	references/workflow-dag.md

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Deep References

Load when the task needs detailed patterns, catalogs, or specifications.

Design

Signal	Reference
61 runnable capabilities	references/capability-catalog.md
Capability coverage matrix	references/capability-matrix.md
Full diagnostic report format	references/full-diagnostic.md
Individual capability specs	references/capabilities/*.md (61 files)
VFX containment rules	references/vfx-containment.md
Menus, HUD, shop, settings, or other screen UI (load first)	skills/shared-patterns/ui-design-judgment.md (game genre conventions win over web defaults), then skills/frontend/frontend/references/distinctive-frontend-design-refs/game-ui-polish.md

Pipeline

Signal	Reference
Game asset generator	references/game-asset-generator.md
Meshy AI 3D models	references/meshyai.md
Fal.ai image generation	references/fal-ai-image.md
WorldLabs environments	references/worldlabs.md
Asset sources catalog	references/asset-sources.md
Motion pipeline	references/motion-pipeline.md
Game audio	references/game-audio.md
Game QA	references/game-qa.md
Deploy targets	references/deploy.md
Capacitor iOS	references/capacitor-ios.md

Sprite

Signal	Reference
Full sprite pipeline	references/game-sprite-pipeline.md
Backend dispatch	references/backend-chain.md
Style presets	references/style-presets.md
Pixel art patterns	references/pixel-art-sprites.md
Output formats	references/output-formats.md
Prompt rules	references/prompt-rules.md
Background removal	references/bg-removal-local.md
Frame detection	references/frame-detection.md
Error catalog	references/error-catalog.md

Phaser

Signal	Reference
Full Phaser methodology	references/phaser-gamedev.md
Core patterns, scene lifecycle	references/core-patterns.md
Arcade physics	references/arcade-physics.md
Tilemaps and physics	references/tilemaps-and-physics.md
Game feel patterns	references/game-feel-patterns.md
Performance patterns	references/performance.md

GM

Signal	Reference
Full GM methodology	references/gm-brilliant-implementation.md
Stage contracts	references/stage-contracts.md
CPU systems harmony	references/cpu-systems-harmony.md
Quality gates	references/quality-gates.md
Workflow DAG	references/workflow-dag.md
Anchor alignment	references/anchor-alignment.md