Ooh, I think this idea and your thoughts are really intriguing. On a larger scale, the cascading changes could be really interesting (but really complex!) And I feel like you could build a fun puzzle with this structure - seeing the consequences, can you reverse-engineer what to change to get the outcome you want? Thank you for sharing, I'm definitely going to keep thinking about this! (Also, I like that you have to hover to see what you can change! :) )

Not a bad experiment, really. I don't have a better idea either, but it seems that a non-trivial story is possible within the system. Panels with choices should be more obvious before you hover with the mouse over them, but that's a nitpick. Filed away.