Topic summary
Game mechanic
Extracted from the Wikipedia article Game mechanics.
Game mechanics vs. theme
A game's mechanics are not its theme. Some games have a theme—some element of representation. For example, in Monopoly, the events of the game represent another activity, the buying and selling of properties. Two games that are mechanically similar can be thematically different, and vice versa. The tension between a game's mechanics and theme is ludonarrative dissonance.