The Gamer's Experience

Multiple times over the course of my career, I’ve been asked “what’s your research philosophy (when it comes to games)?”

Have a standardized format for reporting issues.

Days Gone is a AAA open-world post-apocalyptic game from Sony’s Bend Studio.

This post will look at some issues with inventory management in Horizon Zero Dawn.

For anyone interested in beginning or transitioning to a career in games user research, here are some tips and suggestions that might be useful.

Motivation is one of the main pillars of video game user experience.

Even the simplest games require attention, focus, and cognitive effort, which leaves users with fewer resources for regulating in-game decisions.

Special abilities are obtained throughout gameplay and typically give the player some sort of advantage or enhanced/diversified gameplay experience.

Telemetry data, which are units of data (hardwired/gameplay metrics) embedded into the game via code that are then transmitted to a collection server.

Company X is interested in how other games have incorporated timers into HUD and UI, perhaps to inform the design of an upcoming demo that will let players play for a specific amount of time.