286 Repetition, Reward and Mastery: The Value of Game Design Patterns for the Analysis of Narrative Game Mechanics Teun Dubbelman HKU University of the Arts Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands teun.dubbelman@hku.nl Abstract. This paper aims to expand existing knowledge on narrative game de- sign. Specifically, the paper discusses the importance of game design patterns for the analysis of narrative game mechanics. By bringing together insights from cognitive narratology and game design theory, the paper creates a prelimi- nary theoretical perspective for deconstructing the design of mechanic-driven narrative games. To support the theoretical argument, the paper discusses Pa- pers, Please as case study. Keywords: Narrative game design · Game analysis · Cognitive narratology · Ludology · Game studies · Interactive storytelling · Game development 1 Introduction In recent years, narrative game design has emerged as an important discipline with- in the field of game development [1]. However, narrative game design is also relative- ly new and underdeveloped. In comparison to established narrative disciplines, it still needs to discover its own expressive language and shared practices. This paper aims to contribute to the development of narrative game design as a creative discipline by furthering our understanding of narrative game mechanics. The paper tries to expand our knowledge by introducing the notion of game design patterns to existing work on the topic of narrative game mechanics. 2 Narrative game mechanics One of the most pressing challenges for the discipline of narrative game design is understanding how interaction can be used as an instrument for narrative expression. Within game studies, the complex relationship between the concepts of interaction and narrative has been fiercely debated [2] [3]. The acknowledgment of cognitive narratology as theoretical point of departure for the conceptualisation of game narra- tives, has helped the discourse to go beyond the well-known ludology versus narra- tology debate [4]. Games can be understood as narrative medium when narrativity is