Heat Signature

Francis asked how to help players who hate permadeath, then made it optional. Tom Francis first resisted removing permadeath because it would make a different game with less interesting stories. He then changed the question from what is best for the game to how to help players who hate it, and added an optional toggle in Heat Signature's first major update.

His reframing, as Mark Brown quotes it: "can we help the players who hate it?"

Heat Signature labels its permadeath toggle so it doesn't read as a recommendation. The toggle is buried in the options. Its label advises against using it unless permadeath is spoiling the game, because it leads to less interesting stories and less variety. Francis said it was important to show this is not a normal option: "I don’t want players to feel like they’re being asked to design how the game should work."

Mark Brown groups it with Darkest Dungeon, SOMA, BUTCHER and Celeste, which each mix wording, placement and timing differently to signal what an optional mode is for. He concludes that when designers inform players well, as Celeste and Heat Signature did, players can be trusted to choose how they want to play.