Design Testing
For this round of testing, we wanted to test the appealability and gather feedback of our current map environment tiles. The main methods to test the appearance of our tiles is to conduct interviews and follow up with a think-aloud activity where users verbalise their take on the art. We will conduct the interview to gain background knowledge on their experience with game design and pixel art, then continue into the think aloud where they can speak openly about the art shown to them.
We conducted three interviews, each followed by a think aloud activity. All responses were recruited through word of mouth, by asking friends with game design experience. Respondents come from a variety of backgrounds, jobs, and levels of understanding and experience with pixel art. All user tests were carried out online via Zoom or WeChat. Each test session is recorded, and transcripts are generated using Google Forms. Negative user input and portions that generated confusion during testing were collected and documented.
Below are screenshots of all the interview questions through google forms.
First thing we asked was their name and background to we could see how much experience they have with game design and pixel art. We asked users to elaborate so we could weigh the feedback we got back according to user knowledge.
Next, we asked the user to evaluate the different types of pixel art provided. We did this so we can get some initial feedback on the appealability of detail vs simplistic pixel art.
The following questions were all related to the images created by Team 3 and were the answers given by users within the think aloud activity.
We successfully completed three interviews with a variety of experience amongst them. We have transcripts from the interviews on file however will take the key findings from each user to evaluate further.
User One
- Does a degree in IT at UQ and in their final semester
- Has done this course before and therefore has substantial experience with game design so opinion is weighted quite highly
- When comparing the different styles of pixel art, they believed the more detailed the art became, the less obvious it was to tell it was pixel art. This is an interesting observation because obviously the design guideline for this video game is isometric pixel art and being able to tell the game is pixelated is quite important
- Initial Thoughts on the art created by Team 3
I like the textures between the two water tiles. The night time tile especially has great depth while still be able to see the different pixels. The shell is a little wonky however I like how it has a pearl within the shell. Maybe if you had a shell with no pearl too and the shells with pearls are less likely, the pearl can become something that can be mined for currency within the game. (The user has knowledge on the game and has used this within her think aloud)