Maze mechanics

STANDARD MAZE DESIGN:
 * When given a choice between the closest route to the exit (Manhattan distance) and a more convoluted path, the more convoluted path is the way forward (ONE LEVEL OF DECONSTRUCTION/CHALLENGE)
 * If a maze has loops; I personally would do the left-hand trick and try to mentally catalogue each loop as I encounter it - if the loop has branching paths that dead end, this process can simply be repeated by nesting loops
 * the only significant factors here are the number of branching paths, and that the hubs that connect these paths appear distinct (either aesthetically or spatially)
 * Trémaux's algorithm, essentially, but with mental chalk
 * However, if a maze has loops that intersect with one another, relying on relative orientation won't suffice - I would need to build a mental (or even physical) map of the entire maze

The grammar of visual language: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gestalt_psychology#Pr%C3%A4gnanz

Pledge algorithm: works for trying to escape a maze, but not for finding something inside it

"The labyrinth, like a mandala, is based on ‘organic sacred geometry’ that departs from the principle ‘the shortest distance between two points is a straight line’, recognising the acceleration found in curvature of vortices."

Early History

 * Mouse in the Maze (1959) - https://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com/tag/mouse-in-a-maze/
 * Maze War (1973)
 * Gotcha (1973)
 * The Amazing Maze Game (1976)
 * Maze Game (1978)
 * Space Chaser (1979)
 * Head On (1979)
 * Heiyankyo Alien (1979)
 * Berzerk (1980)
 * Pac-Man (1980, Atari)
 * Pacman Ghost AI - https://www.webpacman.com/ghosts.html
 * Pac 'n Pal (1983)
 * Pac-Mania (1987)
 * Ms. Pac Man: Maze Madness (2000)
 * Pac Man: Adventures in Time (2000)
 * Pac Man Battle Royale (2011)
 * Pac-Man 256 (2015)
 * Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 (2016)
 * Wizard of Wor (1980)
 * Bomberman (1983)
 * Devil World (1984)
 * Labyrinth (1984)
 * MIDI Maze (1987)
 * Raimais (1988) - http://gaming.moe/?p=1794


 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sokoban
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocks%27n%27Diamonds
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockade_(video_game)
 * https:/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frogger / https:/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossy_Road
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clu_Clu_Land
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qix (also Disco No. 1 & Quantum) / https:/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_Eyes
 * Blockade/Quoridor (Board Games)
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micromouse

unsorted

 * Fractal maze
 * Infinite empty space outside the border of the maze
 * Unreachable areas


 * Passages/corridors
 * Corners
 * Dead-ends
 * Crossroads
 * Cul-de-sac checkpoints/rest areas
 * Islands
 * Loops
 * Spirals
 * Overpasses/underpasses
 * Transparent walls/windows
 * Low/high walls
 * Shortcuts/hidden passages
 * Elitism (how much ground do you have to cover to solve the maze?)
 * Unicursal labyrinth comprised of multiple circuits


 * One-way doors????
 * 4-D Backtracking????


 * http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/maze/simple/index.htm#spiral
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_Fontana_(engineer)
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiyang_Lou
 * http://www.geomancy.org/index.php/mag-e-zine/mag-e-zine-1997/no-6-summer-solstice/dowsing-labyrinths

--


 * creepy hidden locations like the Ratman Dens from Portal


 * “Look at you, hacker: a pathetic creature of meat and bone, panting and sweating as you run through my corridors."