game-design-peak-end-audit

Name: game-design-peak-end-audit
Author: Stanestane

34stars3forks

How to install game-design-peak-end-audit?

stanestane/game-design-skills-bundle/game-design-peak-end-audit

$npx -y skills add Stanestane/game-design-skills-bundle --skill game-design-peak-end-audit

Installs into the current project.

Summary

Audit a game, feature, session, level, event, onboarding flow, reward sequence, or return-player experience through the lens of the peak-end rule. Use when evaluating which moments players are most likely to remember, whether the emotional high points are strong enough, whether e

Files · 1

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SKILL.md

1	# Game Design Peak-End Audit
2
3	Audit a design by asking which moments dominate memory and whether the experience earns the memory it leaves behind.
4
5	Use this skill when the important question is not just how the experience feels moment to moment, but how players will remember it afterward. The goal is to identify the emotional peaks, the ending shape, and the aftertaste that determine whether a session, level, feature, event, or sequence is remembered as exciting, exhausting, disappointing, triumphant, or forgettable.
6
7	Read `references/family-conventions.md` when you want the shared style, prioritization, and diagnosis rules for this game-design skill family.
8	Read `references/output-patterns.md` when you want the preferred recommendation and minimal-fix structure.
9
10	## Core principle
11
12	Players do not remember an experience as an average of every second they lived through.
13
14	They disproportionately remember:
15	- the strongest emotional peaks
16	- the ending
17	- the story those moments imply afterward
18
19	That means a design with decent average quality can still be remembered badly if:
20	- its emotional peaks are weak
21	- its worst spike dominates memory
22	- its ending sours the whole experience
23
24	And a rougher experience can still land well if:
25	- its peak is strong and meaningful
26	- its ending resolves cleanly
27	- the memory closes with satisfaction, momentum, relief, or anticipation
28
29	## What to produce
30
31	Generate:
32	1. Peak-end profile - the strongest peaks, the ending shape, and the likely remembered summary
33	2. Memory dominance diagnosis - which moments will overshadow the rest of the experience
34	3. Ending-quality diagnosis - whether the closing moments strengthen or poison the memory
35	4. Experience-shape risks - where the design is setting itself up to be remembered for the wrong thing
36	5. Design actions - what to amplify, soften, reorder, frame, or close differently
37
38	## Process
39
40	### 1. Define the audit target
41	Clarify:
42	- what exact experience slice is being audited
43	- where it begins and ends from the player's point of view
44	- what player segment matters most
45
46	Write:
47	- Audit target
48	- Experience window
49	- Primary player segment
50
51	### 2. Map the emotional shape over time
52	Break the experience into phases and ask:
53	- where does emotional intensity rise?
54	- where does it sag?
55	- where does frustration spike?
56	- where does satisfaction spike?
57	- what is the final emotional note?
58
59	Do not settle for generic labels like "good pacing." Name the moments.
60
61	### 3. Identify positive and negative peaks
62	Look for the moments most likely to become the remembered highlight or remembered wound.
63
64	Examples:
65	- first big win
66	- dramatic comeback
67	- painful difficulty spike
68	- surprising reveal
69	- humiliating loss
70	- beautiful payoff moment
71	- reward opening high
72	- last-minute collapse
73
74	For each peak, ask:
75	- how intense is it?
76	- how clear is it?
77	- does it support the intended fantasy?
78	- is it the thing you actually want remembered?
79
80	### 4. Audit the ending
81	The ending may be:
82	- session close
83	- boss resolution
84	- reward-claim sequence
85	- level completion
86	- event wrap-up
87	- return-to-hub state
88	- defeat screen and immediate aftermath
89
90	Ask:
91	- what emotion does the player leave with?
92	- does the ending frame the previous experience positively or negatively?
93	- does it create closure, momentum, relief, excitement, emptiness, or irritation?
94	- does it respect the effort that preceded it?
95
96	### 5. Determine the likely remembered story
97	Translate the shape into the sentence the player is likely to remember later.
98
99	Examples:
100	- "That run had one incredible clutch ending"
101	- "The fight was fine, but the ending reward felt pathetic"
102	- "That event was mostly chores and then it just sort of stopped"
103	- "The level was hard, but the payoff made it worth it"
104
105	If the remembered sentence is bad, average quality elsewhere may not save the experience.
106
107	### 6. Diagnose peak-end failure patterns
108	Look for:
109	- strong negative spike dominating weak positives
110	- flat experience with no memorable high
111	- rewarding middle but deflating ending
112	- emotionally strong ending attached to a fantasy mismatch
113	- punishing final note after meaningful progress
114	- reward ceremony too weak for the effort invested
115	- admin or UI sludge contaminating the exit
116
117	### 7. Check segment differences
118	Ask whether:
119	- new players experience the worst peak where veterans experience the best one
120	- one audience sees relief while another sees boredom
121	- the ending hits differently depending on skill, investment, or outco

StanestanePublisher · 59 listings

Preview

Stanestane/game-design-skills-bundle

# Game Design Peak-End Audit

Audit a design by asking which moments dominate memory and whether the experience earns the memory it leaves behind.

Use this skill when the important question is not just how the experience feels moment to moment, but how players will remember it afterward. The goal is to ide

Read `references/family-conventions.md` when you want the shared style, prioritization, and diagnosis rules for this game-design skill family.

RepoStanestane/game-design-skills-bundle

License—

TypeSkills

CategoryDesign

UpdatedJun 2026

Repo stars34

First seenJul 22, 2026

People who liked this also viewed

6 picks

Type

game-design-peak-end-audit

34stars3forks

View on GitHub

How to install game-design-peak-end-audit?

stanestane/game-design-skills-bundle/game-design-peak-end-audit

$npx -y skills add Stanestane/game-design-skills-bundle --skill game-design-peak-end-audit

Installs into the current project.

Summary

Files · 1

View on GitHub

SKILL.md

1	# Game Design Peak-End Audit
2
3	Audit a design by asking which moments dominate memory and whether the experience earns the memory it leaves behind.
4
5	Use this skill when the important question is not just how the experience feels moment to moment, but how players will remember it afterward. The goal is to identify the emotional peaks, the ending shape, and the aftertaste that determine whether a session, level, feature, event, or sequence is remembered as exciting, exhausting, disappointing, triumphant, or forgettable.
6
7	Read `references/family-conventions.md` when you want the shared style, prioritization, and diagnosis rules for this game-design skill family.
8	Read `references/output-patterns.md` when you want the preferred recommendation and minimal-fix structure.
9
10	## Core principle
11
12	Players do not remember an experience as an average of every second they lived through.
13
14	They disproportionately remember:
15	- the strongest emotional peaks
16	- the ending
17	- the story those moments imply afterward
18
19	That means a design with decent average quality can still be remembered badly if:
20	- its emotional peaks are weak
21	- its worst spike dominates memory
22	- its ending sours the whole experience
23
24	And a rougher experience can still land well if:
25	- its peak is strong and meaningful
26	- its ending resolves cleanly
27	- the memory closes with satisfaction, momentum, relief, or anticipation
28
29	## What to produce
30
31	Generate:
32	1. Peak-end profile - the strongest peaks, the ending shape, and the likely remembered summary
33	2. Memory dominance diagnosis - which moments will overshadow the rest of the experience
34	3. Ending-quality diagnosis - whether the closing moments strengthen or poison the memory
35	4. Experience-shape risks - where the design is setting itself up to be remembered for the wrong thing
36	5. Design actions - what to amplify, soften, reorder, frame, or close differently
37
38	## Process
39
40	### 1. Define the audit target
41	Clarify:
42	- what exact experience slice is being audited
43	- where it begins and ends from the player's point of view
44	- what player segment matters most
45
46	Write:
47	- Audit target
48	- Experience window
49	- Primary player segment
50
51	### 2. Map the emotional shape over time
52	Break the experience into phases and ask:
53	- where does emotional intensity rise?
54	- where does it sag?
55	- where does frustration spike?
56	- where does satisfaction spike?
57	- what is the final emotional note?
58
59	Do not settle for generic labels like "good pacing." Name the moments.
60
61	### 3. Identify positive and negative peaks
62	Look for the moments most likely to become the remembered highlight or remembered wound.
63
64	Examples:
65	- first big win
66	- dramatic comeback
67	- painful difficulty spike
68	- surprising reveal
69	- humiliating loss
70	- beautiful payoff moment
71	- reward opening high
72	- last-minute collapse
73
74	For each peak, ask:
75	- how intense is it?
76	- how clear is it?
77	- does it support the intended fantasy?
78	- is it the thing you actually want remembered?
79
80	### 4. Audit the ending
81	The ending may be:
82	- session close
83	- boss resolution
84	- reward-claim sequence
85	- level completion
86	- event wrap-up
87	- return-to-hub state
88	- defeat screen and immediate aftermath
89
90	Ask:
91	- what emotion does the player leave with?
92	- does the ending frame the previous experience positively or negatively?
93	- does it create closure, momentum, relief, excitement, emptiness, or irritation?
94	- does it respect the effort that preceded it?
95
96	### 5. Determine the likely remembered story
97	Translate the shape into the sentence the player is likely to remember later.
98
99	Examples:
100	- "That run had one incredible clutch ending"
101	- "The fight was fine, but the ending reward felt pathetic"
102	- "That event was mostly chores and then it just sort of stopped"
103	- "The level was hard, but the payoff made it worth it"
104
105	If the remembered sentence is bad, average quality elsewhere may not save the experience.
106
107	### 6. Diagnose peak-end failure patterns
108	Look for:
109	- strong negative spike dominating weak positives
110	- flat experience with no memorable high
111	- rewarding middle but deflating ending
112	- emotionally strong ending attached to a fantasy mismatch
113	- punishing final note after meaningful progress
114	- reward ceremony too weak for the effort invested
115	- admin or UI sludge contaminating the exit
116
117	### 7. Check segment differences
118	Ask whether:
119	- new players experience the worst peak where veterans experience the best one
120	- one audience sees relief while another sees boredom
121	- the ending hits differently depending on skill, investment, or outco

StanestanePublisher · 59 listings

Preview

Stanestane/game-design-skills-bundle

# Game Design Peak-End Audit

Audit a design by asking which moments dominate memory and whether the experience earns the memory it leaves behind.

Use this skill when the important question is not just how the experience feels moment to moment, but how players will remember it afterward. The goal is to ide

Read `references/family-conventions.md` when you want the shared style, prioritization, and diagnosis rules for this game-design skill family.

RepoStanestane/game-design-skills-bundle

License—

TypeSkills

CategoryDesign

UpdatedJun 2026

Repo stars34

First seenJul 22, 2026

People who liked this also viewed

6 picks

Type