| name | directing-game-visuals |
| description | Directs readable, coherent game visuals. Use when defining visual hierarchy, palette roles, screen composition, event feedback, or reducing generic AI-looking game art without relying on HUD text. |
Use this skill to make game visuals communicate play state, not just decorate the screen.
Default artifacts:
- If a project directory is known, put the full visual plan in
<PROJECT_DIR>/VISUAL_DESIGN.md.
- If the project already has a README or design note with a visual/audio section, keep that section as a short summary and update it only when the visual direction changes.
- When pixel-art assets will be generated later, include an asset handoff section that states which elements stay procedural, which become assets, palette constraints, and readability acceptance criteria.
- If no visual tags are provided, derive 2-3
concept-derived tags from the concept's material, geometry, motion, or atmosphere, and label them as such in VISUAL_DESIGN.md.
Core rules:
- Establish one protagonist, one primary danger, and one primary reward signal before adding detail.
- Assign palette colors to gameplay roles.
- Feedback must be legible without UI text: motion, shape, impact, timing, contrast, and sound hooks should carry meaning.
- Keep the center readable; push noisy texture and secondary motion to the periphery unless the mechanic demands otherwise.
- Avoid familiar template symbols unless they are transformed by the game's visual logic.
Workflow:
- Extract the mood, material, geometry, and motion implied by the game concept or visual constraints.
- Synthesize one visual phrase for the whole game.
- Map mechanics to visual state changes and feedback effects.
- Choose a 3-5 color palette with explicit gameplay roles.
- Validate that the protagonist / primary danger / primary reward read in a single still frame without HUD text.
Read references/visual-design-guide.md for detailed pattern tables, design checklists, and the anti-generic visual addendum template.
