Quorum is a game

Quorum is a game for learning system design. It is not an exact model of any real system, product, or company. Read the wiki the same way you play the game: as a way to learn the ideas, not as a reference for production decisions.

Simplifications are on purpose#

Quorum tries to stay close to how real systems behave, but it trades accuracy for a game that stays fun to play. A rule stays in the game when it keeps the important part of the behavior, even when it leaves out detail. For example, daily traffic in Quorum is one smooth wave, but real traffic has two peaks, holidays, and launches. The Reality check lists each rule, the real-world claim behind it, and what the game leaves out.

The numbers are tuned for play, too. A latency, a price, or a capacity on a Component card can differ from what a real product gives you. Products also change after the wiki is written.

Check the real thing before you decide#

Do not use Quorum to choose an architecture, a vendor, a budget, or a capacity plan for a real system. Read the vendor's documentation, measure your own workload, and ask people who run that system in production. The game teaches you which questions to ask. Your own system gives the answers.

Real products and companies#

Components, Runtimes, and incidents often name the real product or technology they stand for, so you can look it up. These names belong to their owners. Their use here does not mean that the owner supports or is connected to Quorum.

A strength or a weakness that a product has in Quorum is a game choice, made to show a tradeoff. It is not a review or a judgment of that product, and it is not meant to show any product in a bad light.

If you own or work on a product that Quorum mentions and you want it shown differently, or removed, email hi@elianiva.com.