These days I am playing Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 pretty intensively (when other 40y-old-man-duties permit) these days. And I am also completing my bootcamp on videogames design and conceptualization. A class I gave was based on the 3 main loops of a game, and today I want to apply this knowledge to the 2025 GOTY.
Moment-to-moment (second-to-second)
This first loop is the central one, and it describes what the player does the most. You can say it describes the core dynamic, somehow. In case of Expedition33:
- Action: Reactive turn-base combat
- Challenge: groups of nevrons (enemies)
- Reward: skill points, loot
WHY to repeat this loot: the game is divided in zones within an open world, the Player wants to complete the zone to unlock the next.
Core loop
The core loop is what the Player does the most during the game and gives meaning to the moment-to-moment loop. We can say that it considers the game session as a whole.
- Action: Improve team stats
- Challenge: complete zone sections
- Reward: Advance with the story
WHY to repeat this loot: as any good JRPG it’s about the map! You want to play to unlock new venues and discover new places into the map.
Metagame loop
This loop describes what keeps the Players engaged, what makes them think “I need to return back into the game because I want to…”. Describes the features and mechanics that make me think into the game when I am not playing it. In the case of Expedition33:
- Action: defeat bosses
- Challenge: what will happen in the story?
- Reward: plot twists and secrets discoveries
WHY to repeat this loot: the game is one great adventure story!