Practical Game Design

Extended loops

The extended loop is more complex (and a realistic representation of an entire game). Defining your core loop is part of deciding which new mechanics you might need in your game. Consider games such as The Witcher III: Wild Hunt and Middle Earth: Shadow of War. Both games' core loop consists of fighting enemies to get rewards and experience points. (You could argue that it’s the core loop of most RPG games, and it’s true, but not entirely. In fact, how you do that fighting is extremely important and quite different, for example, from a turn-based RPG.)

So what makes The Witcher and Shadow of War two different games (apart from their settings and lore, of course)?

It's the extended loop, and how all the different game mechanics ...