Prototype / Vertical Slice

Most teams build the vertical slice around what's exciting to show: the core loop, the art direction, a key moment. But "impressive demo" and "evidence that this game should exist at scale" are different goals. The harder questions rarely get structured: what needs to be true for this to work? What would change our minds? What's the cheapest way to find out?

Iridae helps you design the slice around what actually needs proving. It pulls market context, comp data, and audience signal to identify which assumptions carry the most risk, then structures the prototype around validating those, not just demonstrating craft.

Playtest data shows strong D1 retention but sessions are short. Players finish the loop and stop. Is that a hook problem or a content problem? The answer matters because it determines whether you tighten the loop or build more content, and those are very different production commitments.

Iridae classifies the playtest signal against the assumptions you set up front. It connects what you learned to the questions you were asking, surfaces where the evidence is strong and where it's still ambiguous, and routes the keep/cut/iterate decisions to the people who own them.

The output of this phase should be clarity: what's validated, what's killed, what needs another round, and what full production should be aimed at. Instead, most teams enter production carrying unresolved ambiguity because feedback lived in calls, Slack, and notes and never became explicit decisions with owners.

Iridae closes that gap:

1. Structure what you're testing and what "proven" looks like before the slice starts
2. Connect playtest signal, market evidence, and team feedback to those assumptions
3. Produce keep/cut/next-step decisions with owners and success criteria
4. Push approved outcomes into tickets, briefs, and docs in your existing tools

Full production starts with a tighter bet and less downstream rework. You own the creative call. Iridae makes sure the evidence behind it is real.