User testing Pause Screen and Power up

Introduction

In this test, we will ask 5 questions to different participants. The age of the participants is generally around 20 years old. The main focus of these issues can be divided into four parts.

• the design style of the pause interface
• the game integrity of the UI interface
• the ease of use of the pause interface
• the design style and functionality of power-up

Process

1. What is your feeling of the design style for the pause screen?

Participate1: I think the color of this design is relatively single, and there is no obvious color contrast, so this pause menu did not impress me very much. Because it is a 2D game, I think the overall style can be more prominent. Although I can feel the sense of technology through this pause interface because the main color is more consistent, this feeling is not very strong.

Participate2: Overall I like this design style very much. Because the background of the pop-up pause interface and the menu background is too similar, I find it difficult to distinguish. It would be better to highlight some menus, maybe you can blur the background or dim the brightness of the background.

Participate3: The overall background color is too uniform. Perhaps you can choose complementary colors corresponding to the background on the frame of the pause screen to enhance the player's visual experience. If the designer changes the color of the pause screen to a brighter color, it will leave a deeper impression on me.

2. What do you think of the integrity of the pause screen and the game?

participate1: I think the stop interface and the game are a bit too integrated because their colors are very similar. Perhaps the designer can appropriately increase the distance between the pause interface and the background, such as adding shadows or dimming the background brightness, or blurring the background.

participate2: I think the style is uniform. I can feel that it is related to the subject of technology by playing this game and browsing the pause interface. When I looked at the pause interface, I thought the content and functions were very clear, allowing me to easily understand the content of the game.

participate3: I know that most of the color selections for science and technology themes are blue, but the outer color of the Pause screen can also be yellow, which will be clearly distinguished from the overall background. Or adding a brightened background board behind the pause screen will also improve the player's visual experience.

3. Do you think the pause screen can be recognized immediately without explanation?

participate1: I think it is more in line with my overall perception. After I click retry and exit, I know what kind of interface will appear afterwards. I will be confused about play, and it will give me a feeling of starting anew. It would be better if you change to continue.

participate2: I am a little confused about the exit. I don't know whether its function is to exit the game or exit the pause interface. Therefore, I think it might be better to use the main menu. Secondly, compared to other buttons, the exit button is too big. In the games I have played, generally, the biggest button is to continue the game.

participate3: I will feel confused about the play button. Although the Play button is also available, I think its meaning is not very clear. Perhaps it will be more concise and clear to replace it with continue.

4. What is your feeling about using the power-up functions when you are playing the game?

participate1: I think it’s good to have a status on top of the character's head, which can help me know the duration of this buff. However, I think it may have an adverse impact on the interface aesthetics when displaying it on the top of the head. Perhaps the effect of the buff can be displayed on the character’s body, such as a change in appearance or a change in color.

participate2: When I play games, I am more confused about the functions of these buffs. Because I am a person who wants to know the buff function, I will choose whether to need the help of these power-ups.

participate3: When I was looking at the power-up animation, I found that the red time is much longer than the blue one. Perhaps the designer can change the display method to indicate the time of the buff, such as adding a transition color or increasing the blue time.

5. Is there any other power-up function that you are interested in?

participate1: I want to have an invincible state so that I can try anything in the game such as touching void. The duration of this state can be very short. If there is this state, I will find it very interesting.

participate2: I think the power-up function in the game is very comprehensive. It would be interesting if you can increase the effect of a shield to reduce the damage so that when the character touches an obstacle, it can avoid direct failure.

participate3: The power-up function in the game is already very comprehensive. In the game, I have experienced the buff function of double jumping and increasing speed. I think it is enough in this game.

Evaluation

Most of the test players think that the pause interface and the background color are too similar to distinguish them. This shows that the pause interface we designed consists closely of the overall game effect, but we should also consider highlighting the difference between the pause interface and the background. For example, we can blur the background or dim the brightness of the background to enhance the users' visual difference. Because most games with a technological themed use dark blue as the main color, we can use warm colors such as yellow light to modify the pause interface.

The question of whether the pause interface can be immediately identified is also the focus of our interview. Through this interview, it is found that most players have some doubts about the play button, because they don't know whether this button will help them start the game or continue the game. So compared with the "play" button, the "continue" button can better convey the meaning of function. Some players have some doubts about the exit button because they don't know whether this exit means exiting the game, so the content of this button also needs to be improved.

The function of power-up is comprehensive, but some players put forward the buff state they are interested in, such as the protection state. And basically, players generally believe that these power-ups can help them increase their interest in the game. During the interview, someone proposed a new way of showing the status of the character, which is to make some changes in the appearance of the character. Such a change will make the power-up function more obvious, and we can consider it in the subsequent design.