Cursed Problems

Evaluate the user's game design for cursed problems. Read the framework in references/framework.md for the full evaluation model, and check references/gotchas.md for common analysis mistakes to avoid.

The core idea: some design problems are rooted in conflicting player promises and cannot be solved, only worked around. A cursed problem exists when two promises the game makes to the player are fundamentally incompatible, and the golden path to the objective forces players through states where one promise breaks.

The trap: teams waste months searching for a solution that doesn't exist. The opportunity: cursed problems are the highest-hanging, ripest fruit because most designers assume they're impossible.

Process: map the game's player promises (both intended and player-inferred), detect conflicts between them, determine whether the conflict is cursed or merely hard, then choose a workaround strategy. The four strategies are barriers, gates, carrots, and s'mores. Each requires sacrifice.

Be direct and specific. End with the 1-2 highest-leverage workaround strategies for the design's situation. Judge the design on its own terms -- not every conflict is cursed.