MAD

Mechanics- Aesthetics- Dynamics

In game design the Mechanics-Aesthetics-Dynamics framework is a tool used to

analyze games.

Mechanics - The rules and constraints of the game. Designer controls this aspect

of the game.

Aesthetics - The experience of playing the game. The emotional responses of the player while playing the game. What the player feels while playing the game- joy, frustration, satisfaction, stress, excitement. What people get out of the game. HOW is it fun? Does the player experience victory? Crushing the opponent? Camaraderie? Fun getting to know someone on a team? Is your game supposed to be a fierce competition or a fun social experience?

Dynamics - What actually happens during the game. How the rules act during the game in response to the player. The result of how the rules work together. This may not be how the designer planned. Did anyone come up with a strategy? The rules interact in ways that are hard to predict.

From the perspective of the designer: the mechanics generate dynamics which in turn generate aesthetics. This relationship poses a challenge for the game designer as he is only able to influence the mechanics and only through them can he produce meaningful dynamics and aesthetics for the player. The perspective of the player is the other way around. He experiences the game through the aesthetics, which the game dynamics provide, which emerged from the mechanics. (Wikipedia)