Overview
Moral dilemmas fail when they are not dilemmas. The player is asked to choose between "save the children" and "let the children die" — which is not a dilemma, it's a test of whether the player is paying attention. A genuine dilemma requires two options that both have moral weight: "save the 5 children in the burning building" vs. "save the 1 child drowning in the river outside." The player cannot save both. Both choices save lives. Both choices abandon someone. The player must decide whose life matters more — and whatever they decide, they are also deciding that someone else's life matters less.
The Moral Dilemma Design prompt builds ethical choice points with three properties: (1) symmetry of moral weight — neither option is clearly "the right choice," and a reasonable person could argue for either, (2) personal cost — the player does not just observe the dilemma from a safe distance; choosing either option costs the player something they value (resources, relationships, reputation, safety), and (3) irreversibility — the choice cannot be undone, and the consequence persists long enough for the player to experience the weight of what they chose and what they gave up.
What you get: - Dilemma catalog with moral weight analysis per option - Personal cost model (what the player sacrifices for each choice) - Irreversibility enforcement (preventing save-scum optimization) - Dilemma validation protocol (detecting false dilemmas) - Moral spectrum tracking (player's ethical position across multiple dilemmas) - Dilemma fatigue prevention (how many dilemmas per session before they stop producing tension)
Built for: narrative designers, game writers, and ethics-oriented designers who need choices that make the player uncomfortable — not choices that make the player feel righteous.