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What this game teaches, and why

This game teaches kids to recognize the persuasive design tactics built into the apps, games, and feeds they use every day. Instead of lecturing kids about screen time, it positions them as detectives who decode how these systems work, and who benefits when they do.

It's part of the "Delay, Decode, Defend" digital parenting framework. This game is the Decode pillar: naming the tricks so the whole family can spot them in the wild.

The five tricks, by their adult names

• The Maybe Machine: variable reward schedules
• The Bottomless Bowl: infinite scroll and autoplay
• The Almost There: the near-miss effect
• The Guilt Chain: streaks and loss aversion
• The Sneaky Store: currency abstraction (dark patterns)

How to use the debrief prompts

Each case ends with a discussion card for kids and grown-ups together. Be honest about your own habits; the prompts turn the question on you too, on purpose. The goal is a family skill, not a kid problem.

About

Created by Courtney Hart as part of the Delay, Decode, Defend framework. More at courtneyhart.io.

Welcome to the agency.

The tricks are everywhere, even here. But now you can see them.

Grown-ups: there's a page for you, too.