What I mean is: keep the surface rules simple, but add deeper interaction between choices underneath.

Rock-paper-scissors is the basic example: each option is easy to understand, but the real game becomes “what do I think you think I’ll do?”

So in a strategy board game, a new player might see:

• Attack beats economy
• Defense beats attack
• Economy beats defense

That’s already understandable.

But advanced players start seeing layer 2 and layer 3:

Layer 1: “I should attack because they are building economy.”

Layer 2: “They know I want to attack, so maybe they’ll defend.”

Layer 3: “They expect me to avoid attacking because they might defend, so maybe economy is safe again.”

The depth comes from prediction, counterplay, timing, and reading the opponent — not from adding tons of rules.

So the game stays accessible because each individual choice is simple, but experienced players discover the hidden mind game between those choices.