1. 2011
Game Design 2
Lecture 15: Revision
http://www.comu346.com dfarrell@davidlearnsgames.com

2. Coursework
...

3. Exam
• Everyone know when it is?
* if this is wrong, it is your responsibility to find the correct details

4. Questions
• There are SIX questions in the exam, each
worth 10 marks.
• You have to answer FOUR of the six.
• This means that even if you spend 20
minutes reading the paper, you still have 25
minutes per question.

6. Learning from last year
• Most of my students said the exam was
easy.
• Most of them left early.
• Most of them got around 50%
• People were answering correctly - but not
thoroughly.

7. So what’s in the exam?

8. So what’s in the exam?
• Stuff from the lectures!
• Each lecture has some obviously
examinable content.

9. Reminder
• Menus
• Text
• UI components
• Interface (paper) Prototyping
• Expert Evaluation

10. Reminder
• User Evaluation
• Semiotics and Icons
• Immersion though UI (Diegesis)
• Layout & Usability
• Colour

11. Reminder
• Colour
• Designing for Platforms
• Laying and Separation
• Micro and Macro design

12. Caveat
• Although the exam will be focussing on
material from the lectures, this includes all
handouts.
• So not as simple as memorising the slides
• to get *good* marks, you will have had to
have read the handouts & links

13. Where to focus?
• Look at each lecture’s slides.
• The techniques are important.
• The reasons to use them are important
• Knowing when and where to use a technique
• Knowing the difference between two similar
techniques is important
• e.g layering & separation
• Heuristic Evaluation vs Cognitive Walkthrough

14. Lecture 2: Menu Flow
• You should be able to write about:
• Why you would plan menu flow?
• What the benefits are of planning in
general?
• What the benefits are of use case
modelling / user stories (37 Signals menu
sketching) and (Fox style) flowcharts?
• The processes you would use to create
satisfying menus

15. Menu Question
•
Solium Infernum 2 is under development. The
Developer is aware of negative feedback he
received about his menu design in the original
game and has hired you to design the menus.
•
For 5 marks:
Describe the processes and techniques you
would use to create menus that are you would use
to make sure that menus in the game are easy to
use and satisfying for the player.

16. Lecture 3: Text
• There are technical issues in using text.
• There are design issues in using text
• What are these?
• What can you do with a font?
• What is the difference between good use
of fonts and bad use?
• How can text be problematic? (technical
issues as well as design issues)

17. Example Question
• Most games feature text, and yet many
designers fail to take advantage of the
opportunities offered by fonts to
contribute to the design of the game.
• For 8 marks:
In what ways can font choice
contribute to a game's design

18. Example Question
• For 2 marks:
Describe some of the issues that lie in
using text in international games.

19. Lecture 4: UI
Components
• You should understand when and where
you would use each type of UI component.

20. Example Question
• For a game being developed, you have to
design a screen that allows the user to
configure the appearance and attributes of
their avatar.
• For each of the below scenarios, describe
which UI Component you would choose
and justify your decision. (2 marks each)

21. Example Question
• a: User can choose between 10 distinct
nose shapes
• b: User can increase or decrease their
avatar's height and weight
• c: User can choose 3 out of 10 possible
avatar strengths
• d: User can choose one of 10 possible
avatar weaknesses
• e: User can choose the age of their
avatar.

22. Lecture 5: Prototypes
• Why bother?
• What are your prototyping tools?
• Wireframes / Paper / Digital prototypes
• what are the differences?
• why cascade?

23. Example Question
• Some game designers don't properly
prototype their UI and as a result, the game
is harder to use than is necessary.
• For 2 marks:
Explain the benefits of prototyping a
game UI

24. Example Question
• For 6 marks:
Describe each of the following, their
benefits, and explain where in the design
process they should be used:
•
a: wireframes
•
b: paper prototypes
•
c: digital prototypes

25. Lecture 6: Expert
Evaluation
• What are benefits & weaknesses of expert
evaluations compared to user evaluations?
• Can you explain why, when, and where you
would want to carry out a Cognitive
Walkthrough or a Heuristic Evaluation of
an interface?

26. Example Question
• It is often said that a game’s UI should be
tested with members of the target
audience. Sometimes this is not an option
for developers.
• For 3 marks:
Explain how a developer may use Expert
Evaluation techniques in their UI design
process. Include discussion of benefits and
weaknesses.

27. Example Question
• For 6 marks
Compare and contrast the Expert
Evaluation techniques of Cognitive
Walkthrough and Heuristic Evaluation

28. Lecture 7: User Input
• What are benefits and drawbacks to user
evaluations?
• How can you carry out a user evaluation (ask
vs observe)?
• Open Vs Closed Questions - when to use
each / differences / how to write each
• What is card sorting? Why would you use it?
• Open Vs Closed sorting
• How can you analyse card sorts?

29. Example Questions
• For 3 marks:
Describe how you would use Think Aloud
Protocol to evaluate a user interface.
Comment on the benefits and weaknesses
of the technique.
• Same question for observations / focus
groups

30. Example Question
• For 4 marks:
Describe the difference between open
and closed questions in a questionnaire and
explain when it would be appropriate to
ask each.

31. Example Question
• A game under development contains lots of
different types of data.
• For 5 marks:
Explain how a developer could use open
and closed card sorting to help design their
information architecture for this game?

32. Example Question
• For 2 marks:
How can the results of a card sort inform
the design of menus in a game?
• For 2 marks:
Describe one method of analysing a card
sort.

33. Lecture 8:
Semiotics & Icons
• What is semiotics?
• How can an understanding of semiotics
make you a better designer?
• What are the rules for good icon design?
• Can you identify good vs bad and argue
your case?

34. Example Question
• For 1 mark:
Define semiotics
• For 4 marks:
Describe how an understanding of
semiotics can help a designer communicate
effectively

35. Lecture 9: Immersion
• Each of the
quadrants of the
Diegetic diagram
• examples
• pros / cons

36. Example Question
• For 8 marks:
With use of a diagram, define Fagerhold’s
diegetic model of FPS UI and explain each
of his definitions.
• For 2 marks:
Discuss the benefits and weaknesses of
the use of diegesis in game UI

37. Example Question
• For 6 marks:
What are the rules of good Icon design?
Give examples.

38. Lecture 10: Usability
• What are the attributes of a useable
interface?
• What are the human factors that
contribute to usability?
• What techniques can you use to help make
a layout ‘feel’ good.

39. Example Question
• For 2 mark:
Give Nielsen's definition of Usability.
• For 5 marks:
Give Nielsen's attributes of usability.
• For 2 marks:
Describe Fitt's law and describe how it
can influence a game's UI design.

40. Example Question
• For 2 marks:
Describe how a designer can use the rule
of thirds or an awareness of the Golden
Ratio in their designs.

41. Lecture 11: Colour
• What is colour for? (Tufte’s breakdown)
• do you really understand the different uses for
colour?
• How do we pick a colour scheme?
• What tools can we use?
• What is the reasoning behind these choices?
• How do colours ‘pop’?

42. Example Question
• For 5 marks:
With examples, describe Tufte's uses of
colour.
• For 5 marks:
Describe the process that a designer
may go through to choose the colour
scheme for a UI.

43. Lecture 12: Platforms
• How do you design for a platform?
• Consider also the iPhone video.
• How can you take something very rich (like
desktop app) and redesign for a small device?
• What techniques can you use to deliver the
core experience without doing a direct 1 for 1
translation?

44. Example Question
• For 4 marks:
Describe how a user's context informs
the design of a UI.

45. Example Question
• For 4 marks:
You have been asked to port an
information rich PC Strategy game to a
mobile phone platform. The rights holder is
open to ideas on how to change the design
to suit the new platform.
•
Describe the techniques you would
use to redesign this game for the phone.

46. Lecture 13: Layering &
Separation
• There are a number of Data Visualisation
techniques discussed in the lectures.
• What is Layering?
• What is Separation?
• How can you use these techniques?
• Can you think of games where these
techniques are used?

47. Lecture 14: Micro /
Macro
• Another data visualisation technique
• How does it differ from use of colour?
• How does it differ from use of layering &
separation?
• What are the benefits? What are the
downsides?

48. Example Question
• For 5 marks:
Look at the image and describe which
data visualisation techniques have been
used to communicate with the user.

50. Example Question
• For 5 marks:
Describe the difference between “Layering
and Separation” and “Micro / Macro” design
techniques.

51. In general...
• 6 questions from the lectures
• Move from instinctual understanding to
specific and detailed understanding
• Look at the number of marks awarded and
the wording of the question.

52. Guaranteed Pass
• Take this lecture.
• Take each of the ‘questions’
• answer them thoroughly
• check against the original lectures’ slides
& handouts ‘till you know the material
inside out

53. Guaranteed Pass cont.
• If you decide to do the above, and write
out an answer to the ‘questions’ above and
if you email me by Thursday noon this week
I’ll email you with good feedback.
• I may be able to do so after Thursday - but
I cannot guarantee this!

54. Good Luck!
• It’s been a pleasure.