DROP DEAD GORGEOUS is a detective game that is less about how you find information and more about what you do with information you do find. It steps away from a traditional dialogue system that consists of lists of options and allows players the freedom to ask the questions they want to ask.
Using Detective Madson's live camera feed of the city Zircon (displayed on his wrist watch), players are able to ask people (NPCs) about any location, billboard, or citizen found within the city.
GAMEPLAY FOOTAGE
TEAM SIZE: 3 persons
DURATION: 7 months (Oct 2016-Apr 2017)
WE'RE ON ITCH.IO!
UI DESIGN
CASE OVERVIEW
INVESTIGATE
OVERVIEW OF UI
This game was designed around what my team members and I wanted to improve on and showcase in our work. Because of this, Drop Dead Gorgeous relies heavily on its GUI.
As the games UI designer I was responsible for ensuring our non-traditional approach to dialogue in game visually made sense to players. Inspired by a detectives "crazy wall", we wanted to allow players to be able to reference their information at anytime. The map system allowed for connections to be drawn freely to anything within the game world. Players could make note of something an NPC had said and could store the information in the map.
This allowed players the freedom to come to their own conclusions as they progress at their own pace through the story.
THE MAP
Since the map is an integral part of the game we began prototyping the system very early in development. For our initial paper prototype we provided players with a note pad to write information down as well as pins and thread to make connections on a grid paper version of our map.
We found that players did best when they used the evidence threads as a visual aid in tandem to taking down notes. Having learned this, my role was to translate our paper prototype into a digital format. Below is a visual progression of the map system as it went through development.
paper concept
digital concept
final version
TESTING
As previously mentioned we had done a lot of testing before setting anything in stone. I myself had conducted some in-house on various aspects of the UI; dialogue system and the map introduction. I tried a few methods of prototyping such as inVision and Powerpoint. I ended up using Powerpoint to test and to communicate my ideas to my team members.
I have provided the 2 prototype files below if you wish to check it out. The first one shows some of the decision making process and explores various ideas for how the dialogue system would work. The other is a first look at a tutorial or introduction to the map system.
Dialogue System
Map Tutorial
The map system was successful in combining the note taking and evidence thread connections. We were able to take advantage of the game's sci-fi setting allowing for the map to be projected above the main character's head, this gave players a full view of the scene.
Since I am a huge fan of diegetic UI this was such a fun concept to work on in a 2D game. While all the UI elements are essentially a part of the games HUD, I wanted the UI to make as much contextual sense to the game world as possible, ensuring it was cohesive and seamless with the rest of the game.
I ACHIEVED THIS BY DESIGNING:
- This cursor to be used to navigate the map and when placing a pin to make a note. It is designed to allow players to better understand what is being selected since this game is played using controller input only. A regular mouse cursor would have been too small and difficult to navigate using only joysticks.
- An indicator like this would appear over anything you can interact with. The design reflects the shape of the detective's googles in game and it stood out in comparison to what was going on around it.
- A lock and door icon in the style as the map system indicated where a player was allowed to explore. This was essential as not every building was interactable or important.
Overall I am really proud of what I produced and I believe my passion for the UI line of work is evident in this project. I learned so much during the development of this game and have since applied my knowledge gained to my more recent projects.
