Core Gameplay: The main gameplay is driving, as you're trying to drive to the right of the screen, which will eventually be out of the zone and into safety. Your first drive you probably wont get very far, as your vehicle is very damaged and low quality, but then you slowly are able to upgrade it more and more to be able to get past obstacles and hazards easier.
Core Gameplay Feedback: There will be a distance meter at the top of the screen, showing a little visual of you and showing the distance you've gone, and the distance you still have to go.
Win State: The way to win the game is by reaching the required distance to get out of the zone, before you run out of energy or either of the other limited resources. Once you get out of the zone you get a short cutscene of going home, then a finale cutscene plays and you unlock other game modes, such as increased distance, increased scrap earnings, or endless mode.
Win State Feedback: If you fail a run, it'll show a little popup that shows you what resource you ran out of, and depending what runs out a different animation will play (Health: car breaks apart, Fuel: car stutters and slows to a stop, Energy: You fall asleep), and once the animation is over it shows you the results, things like distance and time and earned currency. If you win a run, it does a short cutscene of you driving home, and a small story cutscene about researching the anomalies, and then the game unlocks the other game modes.
Limiting Resources: The run will end if any one of the three limiting resources runs out, which can be energy, showing how tired your character is before they fall asleep and trigger the zone, the durability of your vehicle before it breaks down on you, and fuel for your vehicle. You can find pickups for energy and fuel, that can provide a small to moderate amount of each, but the durability cant be restored mid run.
Resource Feedback: The three limiting resources will have their own meters to display how much of each are left, and the fuel and energy will both slowly go down over the run. If you get a pickup to restore them a bit the meter will refill a bit depending on how much value the pickup has. If you take damage, there will be a loud metal clanging sound and your health meter will go down and your car will show more wear and tear depending on how low the health is.
Currency: The currency for the upgrades is scraps, which you earn along your run as you drive further and further, you find it more often and more volume.
Currency Feedback: When you pick up a scrap heap, it makes a clunking sound and shows a number being added to your currency counter in the corner of the screen
Mechanic Interactions: The scraps are used to upgrade things like your speed and fuel efficiency, but it can also upgrade the amounts of your limited resources, like a bigger fuel tank, a better night's sleep to give you more energy for the next run, or armored panels for your vehicle. The more upgraded your vehicle is, the easier it is to get further and get to the end, as you don't have enough anything to make it out the first few runs.
Mechanic Alignment: These mechanics all come together to help players work towards the goal of improving the vehicle enough to get back home to safety, as the vehicle has to be strong enough to make it through the hazards and obstacles to get home, and have to have enough fuel and energy
Upgrades: There's a large variety of upgrades you can purchase, but there's main classes of upgrades to purchase, each upgrade from that class upgrading the same thing, such as reducing drag or weight, or increasing base speed. The main upgrade classes are the wheels, body panels, fuel tank, engine, and chassis, but you can also upgrade some other smaller side ones.
Upgrade Feedback: When you buy an upgrade it makes a sound, specific and unique to each class of upgrades