THE CHALLENGE
"is there a place where gamers can go to talk about their passion indipendently from console or pc? Does it have all the feature that gamers actually want? How we would make it if we have resources and time?"
A POSSIBILE SOLUTION TO THIS CHALLENGE: ERIS
The solution that has been designed involves the creation of a prototype of a social platform, accessible via smartphone, which allows:
users to quickly find playmates with specific characteristics.
join groups and communities where they can develop friendships.
share information, discuss and discuss topics of common interest.
The choice to initially limit use to mobile devices is justified by the fact that the application is designed to be a social media, accessible at any time and independently of the game console.
Possibile needs of potential users
The main hypothesized issue seems to be the absence of a unified application that includes all the various functions that are of particular value to users.
USER RESEARCH
The data collection was done through:
Interviews
Online Survey
The aim of the interviews was to understand the habits, preferences, past behaviors in various situations of a user.
Based on a total of 20 interviews and 76 responses from an online questionnaire distributed through two well-known online communities (DrCommodore and Everyeye.it), here are our key findings:
Gamers mostly play with their friends, if these friends are not avaialble:
6.3% of players try to search for people on social media
71.4% will play alone
in any case, 53.9% of gamers consider it important to be in company when playing
Organized events and competitive tournaments are not particularly interesting for players.
the element that gamers have in common most (81.7% of users interested in a social media of this type) is the in-depth study of aspects related to video games
*The percentages reported refer to the questionnaire administered to 76 users.
PERSONAS
SOCIABLE Gamer - Luca
Luca is a very extroverted person who prefers the more social-relational aspects linked to video game activity, in fact he uses video games to meet new people, chat and improve his level of English.
CASUAL Gamer - Michele
Michele represents that type of player who has no specific preferences on video games, he plays calmly what he likes, ranging between completely different genres. He also likes to try the most popular games of the moment, to have fun without particular commitment in the competitive environment.
Gamer NARRATIVE/EXPLORER - Anna
Anna is a very curious person who when she plays is often passionate about the "lore" (mythology of a title) and the plot of the games, she loves to search for every content available in video games to complete them 100%, which is why she visits forums daily to look for guides and Additional Information. Very often she wants to share the gaming experience with other enthusiasts and be recognized as competent.
COMPETITIVE Gamer - Francesco
Francesco is a very ambitious person who, when he plays video games, focuses a lot on competitive modes to become stronger and compete in tournaments. He usually prefers to play with people of the same level as him to train or create a team.
Palette and styleguide
ERIS IN ACTION!
The main sections of the app
Home:
Your current status
Recap of recent activities
Friends online
Shortcut to favorites communities
Shortcut to recent games
Community section
Each community has its own channel where user can share media.
Check updates, guides, tips and tricks.
People you might know.
Profile section
Personalize your profile and personal settings.
Add new games to your library
Share media
Adding new games to your library
The user is able to add new games to his library or to look into the related media n order to:
Access guides.
Access communities.
Share his nick to play .
Create announcements to find new players.
Change status
The player can change its status in order to avoid being disturbed by notifications and other users requets.
Create an announce to find players
Inside a game the player can create an announcement to find new players with specific details such as:
if they use a mic or not
rank in a videogame
if they want to play competitive or not
cross platform or a specific console.
CONCLUSIONS
Usability tests on the prototype brought to the table new possible future implementations:
Further development of the spatial metaphor to further strengthen Eris's identity and consolidate its internal coherence
The addition of initial tutorial screens to introduce users not only to the functionalities but also to the icons and terminologies (always related to the metaphor)
The implementation of gamification elements, such as badges and achievements obtainable through the app's usage, given the strong connection of these procedures to the gaming world and the users' high familiarity with its elements. However, aware of the effort required to structure such models, it was decided to suspend this part and consider it for future developments.
TEAM
Alessio Lazzarotto | UI UX designer | ITC Student
Patrick Lasta | UI UX designer | Recent graduate of ITC
Riccardo Altomonte | UI UX designer | ITC Student
Davide Martino | UI UX designer | ITC Student
Alessandro Prezzi | UI UX designer | ITC Student