If the system returns back to the exact same configuration (highly improbable because there are other forces besides gravity), I think we could say that time ma

If the system returns back to the exact same configuration (highly improbable because there are other forces besides gravity), I think we could say that time makes a loop, because any observer can't distinguish whether it's currently in time t or time t+P where P is the period. Incidentally, I've been thinking about a time travel game along those lines: if you ever return to a save point but the game is at a previous configuration, this counts as a time travel (which can be, like.. a multiverse travel if time branched out.. which amounts to the same thing), just like if you selected a time travel in the UI.. two game states can't be in a different time if they are identical. Of course if the mechanic is just this, then this is just a regular save/load state with infinite save lots. Which is a funny observation. Then I need to add other mechanics on top, like carrying things from a timeline to another, which is where the physical analogy would break up.