The Challenge
Working in a small team, I helped design a small mobile game. The idea was to create a game that was easy to learn and play but was also designed with accessibility in mind.
The Project
I helped design various UI and UX components for the application. Users can play the game by tapping the screen to shoot a line that the player object can swing off of. Players can drag across the screen to provide an extra boost. If the player releases their finger the player resets.
My Role
For this project, I brainstormed ideas as well as conducted user research. I was also responsible for both the low and high fidelity prototypes. Along with some of the coding using Unity.
Date
June 2019 to August 2019
User Research
The main goal behind the research for the application was to come up with a concept that was easy to learn and was user friendly. With accessibility in mind, I took a look at existing mobile games that users were primarily able to play with one hand. Finally, settling on the tap and drag mechanics.
Creation
The game was intentionally designed so that users of all player types and experiences could pick up the game and play. The controls are very easy to use and require little skill. Tap and hold on the screen to shoot a line from the centre of their character to the top of the screen to swing. Releasing your finger off the screen resets the line cast by the user, tapping again creates another line for the play. Dragging in any direction while still holding the screen creates a temporary boost for the player.
User Experience
After conducting initial play tests we found that users quite enjoyed the easy to use nature of the game. They enjoyed the simple tap and drag mechanics. As they didn’t require much effort to play the game or hinder their enjoyment in any way. As a result of my user research I made it so that the game could be played entirely using one hand.
Step-by-step demonstraion on how player movement occurs.
UX and UI Components
I helped design the UI for the player select screen. The user can tap on the change player button from the main screen. They are then able to select from an assortment of players just by tapping their desired selection.
The icon designs were decided collectively by the entire team.
Feature Creation and Playtesting
Aside from designing some of the UX and UI components I also helped the rest of the team during the various playtesting sessions. Specifically I helped find bugs and made sure that the game was accessible to every type of end user. As I myself have a physical disability my primary focus during play testing was to make sure the game was optimized for one handed use as well as two.
Final Implementation and Google Play Store Release
Before the final release, the team refined some of the UI components and fixed some impending bugs. We also added more instructions to provide more clarity for the users. Finally, after everything was polished we released the final version to the Google Play Store.
Self Reflection
While working on this team project, I learned how to sharpen my design skills. Primarily, with this project I focused on layout and UI. Furthermore, I learned how to refine my wireframing skills, I did this by creating both high and low fidelity prototypes. I was also able to use some of my coding skills to help debug and refine some of the features of the game.