A maze that changes the invitation, not the destination. What happens when the interface asks for your attention?
Find the exit at the far edge. Quiet shows just the path. Casino offers optional prompts designed to compete for attention. You control every mechanic.
Moving into an adjacent open cell costs one move. A detour is a move that increases shortest-path distance to the exit. Decision time is measured between deliberate directional attempts; it is not a measure of cognition. Pauses and hidden-tab time are excluded.
Each line names open or blocked cells. The maze itself includes individually labelled adjacent-cell buttons. Shortest-path distance is computed from the map, not estimated.
These numbers describe interactions in this particular maze run. They do not diagnose attention, self-control or susceptibility.
Finish a run in each mode to see the same map through two interface conditions. History stays in this browser until you erase it.
Events are stored only in browser localStorage. Direction attempts, accepted prompts, pauses, and completed runs; never identity, keystroke text, or external telemetry.
A distinctive marker can make a possible route salient without changing its underlying value. In Casino mode, ✦ appears on selected reachable detour cells only if you opt in. Seeing a sign is not proof it altered your behaviour.
Badges appear for visiting optional side rooms. They have no monetary value and are never exchanged for anything. The interesting question is whether a label transforms a detour into something that feels worth doing.
Opt-in friction doors request an extra confirmation before a move. They do not increase distance. They change the effort of one choice. Friction can support deliberate decisions or merely obstruct them, depending on context.
Optional cards propose a reachable detour and always offer a one-click dismissal. No countdown, flashing, penalty or repeat nagging. An ethical prompt leaves refusal easy and does not hide the original goal.
Finish Quiet first. Then replay Casino with only novelty signposts enabled. Compare moves, detours and decisions. How much might practice explain?
Replay with reward cues, then friction doors. Keep the map fixed. Notice the difference between changing what is possible and changing what seems attractive.
Enable distraction cards. Decline each prompt. Does knowing you can leave make the experience feel different? This is a reflection, not a psychological inference.