Schell Games

[{"content":{"text":" In the world of game design, we often talk about player engagement as if it\u2019s a single metric. But what actually keeps a player\u2019s hands on their keyboard until 2:00 AM? Often, it's the need to know more; that need to push the story just a bit further...just to the next town...just to the next save point, to discover the next key plot point. This month, we\u2019re looking through Lens 26: The Lens of Curiosity. To use this lens, you need to stop thinking about what the player is doing and start thinking about what the player is asking . Curiosity isn't just a passive interest; it\u2019s a powerful drive to fill a gap in knowledge. When a designer successfully opens that gap, the player will crawl through glass just to find the answer. "},"id":"891f39c5-0ba3-4ed5-bd28-2426e7eb78a0","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"web","url":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/hPJdtXw5zWU","video":[],"poster":[],"caption":"","autoplay":"false","muted":"true","loop":"false","controls":"true","preload":"auto"},"id":"f4c76014-9d31-4dcb-9b2b-d3a74642868e","isHidden":false,"type":"videoBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h2","text":"How it Works","customid":""},"id":"b5153f6f-8ce3-465b-a6da-e850e5add529","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":" To use the Lens of Curiosity, ask yourself these three questions: "},"id":"a8fec1c0-ab27-4cac-8ebe-0d476b8058d7","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"text":" What questions does my game put into the player\u2019s mind? What am I doing to make them care about these questions? What can I do to make them invent even more questions? "},"id":"521be2fa-6fb9-4441-8b5f-03e92c571cad","isHidden":false,"type":"listBlock"},{"content":{"text":" Let\u2019s apply this to a game that\u2014despite its lo-fi aesthetic\u2014became a cultural phenomenon by turning curiosity into its primary mechanic: Undertale. "},"id":"bd20802c-552b-4b96-aa31-82d8ab0e1ee3","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/jsjsuojvpfmi2ers"],"src":"","alt":"The Lens of Curiosity | The Art of Game Design","caption":"","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"976ac699-3666-4aa4-bb44-5ed732437e30","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h2","text":"The Case Study: Undertale ","customid":""},"id":"16c952b9-2547-4431-836c-0d355f68c48f","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":" When Toby Fox released Undertale in 2015, it looked like a charming, if simple, homage to Earthbound . At least, that's what my friends told me when I picked it up. But under the hood, it was a masterclass in curiosity-driven design. It didn\u2019t just tell a story; it dared the player to figure out how the world worked. Oh, and it didn't hurt that the innovative combat, refreshing sense of humor, and one of the best OSTs of all time accompanied it. Smash cut to 2026, and it's tough to find a game whose themes have resonated with me more over time, with so much of my intrigue lending from how Fox masters a player's (and ensuing rabid fanbase's) curiosity. It made it a perfect game to consider for this topic. "},"id":"33eb7e16-93eb-40dd-bfdf-0ca55dd39365","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/pahd1ofcocdlqp7p"],"src":"","alt":"Sans getting all existential in the game Undertale asking if anyone can be a good person","caption":"Sans, what if I told you I never stopped thinking about this question?","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"7d698ed0-66c9-462d-a68e-16e8373be692","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h3","text":"What questions does the game put into the player\u2019s mind?","customid":""},"id":"07647743-fd0a-4a1b-b9ca-9c7002b30352","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":" From the very first screen, Undertale subverts expectations to create immediate questions. The marketing tagline\u2014 \"The RPG where nobody has to die\" \u2014is a design hook that sparks curiosity. By making the \"peaceful\" option a viable (albeit difficult) path, the game forces the player to ask questions about the very nature of RPG mechanics. Once in the game, the questions continue to mount and escalate: "},"id":"32e9a686-4652-42c0-892b-b5e169b4847a","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"text":" Is this an RPG, how do I get stronger if I don't fight anyone? Why is Toriel being so nice... is she hiding something? When did this turn into a dating sim? Why is this flower trying to kill me? "},"id":"a768ff39-b1ef-49d0-8fbc-ccc888d0aa64","isHidden":false,"type":"listBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/a8oyojmmuxvtjl69"],"src":"","alt":"Flowey turning evil and absorbinb souls in the game Undertale","caption":"Top 10 anime betrayals","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"7991a883-950b-4f42-87fe-feffe682153e","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h3","text":"What am I doing to make them care about these questions?","customid":""},"id":"30213017-5ab6-448e-b4ec-83cb24981e4b","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":" A question only matters if the player is emotionally invested in the answer. Undertale achieves this through radical accountability. Think about the Neutral ending. After you finish the game, the character Sans calls you and recaps your specific choices. If you killed a minor NPC three hours ago, he remembers. If you were a pacifist but accidentally killed one dog (or doggo), he mentions it. This makes the player care because the game is acknowledging their agency. The curiosity shifts from \"what is the ending?\" to \"how did the game know I did that?\" This personal connection transforms a generic mystery into a personal challenge. I normally don't replay games, but Sans' phone call made me instantly start a new game and seek out the Pacifist ending to help erase my mistakes from the first playthrough I still felt guilty for. Sorry, Whimsun, I don't remember why I killed you in my first playthrough, but here we are. "},"id":"f23cf3ea-cb53-4103-aff0-c534244a29f5","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/p0p8hczbpokarbtg"],"src":"","alt":"Toriel presenting a slice of a piece to a sleeping Player Character at the end of the true pacifist route","caption":"I looked at this screenshot too long and started crying, in case you doubted how invested I was","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"24205d18-75b7-4382-9cde-746da58b1633","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h3","text":"What can I do to make them invent even more questions?","customid":""},"id":"7c5b53e9-745d-4436-9eae-24224f6c70f8","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":" This is where Undertale moves into legendary territory. The best games don't answer every question; they provide enough clues for the player to start building their own mysteries. Toby Fox famously utilized \"Fun Values\"\u2014randomized variables in the game\u2019s code\u2014that trigger rare, eerie events. One player might see a mysterious \"Mystery Man\" in a hallway, while another sees nothing. This led to the massive community-driven hunt for \"W.D. Gaster,\" a character who is never fully explained in the game. By seeding the game with surprise events and hidden lore, the designer encouraged the community to invent their own questions. The game stopped being a 6-hour experience and became a multi-year investigation. Think I'm exaggerating? r\/Undertale averages more than 10,000 contributions each week, even in 2026! "},"id":"5b476f6e-9805-48d3-965a-fd0c0d679dbf","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/wfv4hhgoayptxwrs"],"src":"","alt":"Shot from the True Lab in Undertale where a mysterious figure believed to be W.D. Gaster appears","caption":"Who is this mystery \"man?\" Will we ever know?","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"782266bc-4a74-4dba-a9f9-b954678f8111","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h2","text":"Final Thoughts","customid":""},"id":"615333ca-6b06-4052-b166-a2804a10aa40","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":" The Lens of Curiosity reminds us that a player\u2019s mind is just as active as their thumbs. If you give them a world that feels like it has secrets\u2014and make them care about the characters kept within those secrets\u2014they will stay determined until the very end. Next time you look at your own project, ask: "},"id":"ced78ba3-f5cb-484b-a132-a9f4f4862a79","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"text":" What is my unique hook: Give players a question that subverts their expectations. Does my game have empathetic elements: Make them care about the characters who hold the answers. Am I overexplaining: Don't lore dump everything. A world that feels bigger than its code is a world people will return to for years. "},"id":"386bd3dd-65a4-448a-a9a3-45dd63a548c2","isHidden":false,"type":"listBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/mxlym6yqn3yrnfds"],"src":"","alt":"True Pacifist Route ending photo screenshot from Undertale","caption":"Thanks for reading!","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"2ada377a-f62a-4ed8-938c-dc4454f078e9","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"}]

The Curious Case of Undertale | Lens of the Month

January 23, 2026 · insights

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