Interface Concepts

Primary Goals• Feedback

– Providing game status info to player• Health, score, ammo, danger, audio cues

– Provides info on progress• Map, objectives, goals, quests, hints

• Control– Provide method for interacting with

game• How/when does player TAKE ACTION

– Controlling actions and next steps• Controller, keyboard, mouse, microphone,

etc.

Feedback• Conveying what is happening in the

game– Where is the character/NPC? – What are they doing?– What needs to be done next?– What obstacles are ahead? – What is your score?– What is your health? – How many lives left?

• Purpose of feedback in games– Indicate progress toward a goal– Teach players new concepts

Progress• Players need to measure current

“success”– Strategies: What strategies should

I use?– Duration: How much longer till I

achieve goal?– Success: Am I winning?

• Example: Call of Duty (FPS)– Health is indicated by red-tinted

screen, hunched character, and heavy, erratic breathing

Street Fighter• Genre: Fighter

– Goal to vanquish opponent before they do you!

– Progress is indicated through enemy health bar• Length indicates health• Color emphasizes:

– green indicates “healthy”,– (other color) indicates “almost

dead”

– Success of individual action through “big” animations/sounds

– Consistent damage for each move

Civilization IV• Genre: RTS

– Goal to conquer the game world in one of 7 ways• Broken down into many short- and long-

term goals• Hook: “take just one more turn…”

– Progress is indicated through individual “areas”• Culture, military, foreign relations, etc.• Progress bars are used in each area

– Identifies what is currently under development

– How long will it take to fully develop– Relationship between technologies

• Main screen provides abbreviated versions

Instructions• Rule 1: Players DON’T read the manual!

– Integrate it into the game!

• Teach the player the rules of the game– Stand-alone tutorial– Integrated into first few levels of gameplay– Individual “learning” missions throughout

• Early and successful performance could skip these!

– Hints/tips provided throughout

• Teach MORE than just basic actions– Teach strategy, tricks, hints – how to

MAXIMIZE experience

Super Mario Bros.

• Secondary goal: Collect coins– Interface “guides” user to accidentally collecting coins

• Coin disappears, “happy” sound plays• Increase coin count• Count is always visible on-screen as a 2-digit number

– Overtime, user learns that coins earn extra lives, but EVERY coin is not essential• After 100 coins collected:

– Extra lives increase– Longer “happy” sound plays

• Count is always visible on-screen

Civilization IV

• Primary goal: World domination– Through peaceful or violent means

• Integrated tutorial– Not really an “intuitive” interface, must

be taught– Introduces ALL facets of the game– Get “help” on any screen at any time

• Uses Drill-down interface with summary– Hover mouse will expose more info

Control• Allow player to communicate with game

– Take actions• Run, jump, move, activate, open, hide, shoot, etc.

• Feedback to user validates use of control– Button press results in on-screen action or

sound

• Think: What actions does user need to take?– Solve the question of “how” later…

Control• Provide relevant controls

– Context-sensitive control methods• Controls are only available when usable• Controls are only VISIBLE when usable

– Add more features as game goes along

• Learning the game…– Provide only a few choice options

• Example: Super Paper Mario– Every “world” gives you one or more new Pixls– Each Pixl has a new skill that you learn to use

Second Life

“Action Select”

wheel

Neverwinter

Nights

“Action Select”

wheel

Secondary Interface Goals• Immersion

– “Realism” of the experience– Players get “lost” in the game, forget it’s a

game– Interface components integrated into world

• Atmosphere– “Realism” of the environment– Players “feel” like they are in the game– Interface is consistent with game being

played (not just visuals!)– Ambient noises, etc. add to experience

Immersion• “Realism” of the experience

• Difficult for interface to enhance immersion– Easy for poor interface to detract

• Widgets remind user they are in a game– Numbers, text, icons, buttons, menus, etc.

• Example: Neverwinter Nights– Damage appears as a number over enemies head– More immersive solution?

• Damage displayed by animation, sound, and NPC visuals

• Trade-offs?– Speed, rendering power, gameplay speed

Star Wars: Battlefront – Immersive HUD

Atmosphere• “Realism” of the environment

• Interface should always add to atmosphere– Controls, colors, menus, visuals, sounds, etc. should mirror real-

world and fit with theme– Custom controllers may be used (gun, wheel, etc.)– Background music sets place & theme

• Sound Design– Effects, music, etc. are designed for the game– Must fit with the theme

• Attributes of “great atmosphere”:– Action sounds (footsteps, sword slashing, eating)– Ambient sounds (voices, crickets, the wind, distant cars)– Ambient visuals (distant movement, traffic, animals)– Variety of visuals (don’t repeat items, textures)– Visual details (appropriate items in background)

• Example: The Bard’s Tale (RPG)– Hewn-stone look of borders, dark-grey colors appropriate for

dungeon theme

Audio• Audio provides alternative avenue for info

– Eliminating ambiguity• Tone and duration communicate good/bad

events– Feedback without interrupting gameplay

• Visual feedback can be too subtle or dramatic• Confirm control: menu-selection, button-

clicking, etc.– Reinforcing visual effects

• Suggest significance of the event– Creating atmosphere

• Footsteps, doors creaking, background music, etc.