The Next 20 Backlog Rule

Why each production repository keeps a replenished list of twenty future planning inputs.

The Next 20 rule is a simple repository habit: keep twenty concrete future planning inputs visible in the roadmap.

The list is not the same as an active sprint. It is a planning reservoir. When work is converted into issues, milestones, or implementation tasks, the list is replenished with new future inputs so the repository does not quietly run out of direction.

This is especially useful for AI-assisted production. Agents are good at continuing visible structure, but weak structure can cause them to over-focus on the current task and lose the broader product shape. A maintained Next 20 section gives each repository a stable queue of future improvements, fixes, and expansions.

In the game repositories, the rule appears in `ROADMAP.md`, `AGENTS.md`, and the project-management VeritySpec record. That makes it both human-visible and machine-checkable.

The value is continuity. A small game can pause and resume without relying on memory alone.