Hello adventurer! In today’s quest, we’re going to clear up what UX, UI, and UXR stand for, what they do differently, their different focuses and goals, and the importance of each one.
✏️ UX Design
Focus: A User Experience (UX) Designer is focused on the player’s overall experience of the game, from their understanding, interactions, communication, and gameplay, to how they feel while playing.
How: UX designers dig deep into human psychology, seeking to understand the user’s needs, motivations, pain points, and behaviors, all to set the structure for the design to communicate the right things to the players.
🎨 UI Art
Focus: A User Interface (UI) Artist makes menus and UI beautiful and intuitive, focusing on the visual and interactive aspects of the game, from the layout and colors to the typography and icons.
How: In other words, UI art is focused on designing a beautiful UI and visuals that are easy to use and understand, following the style and mood of the game. They often also implement the UI or make tweaks in the selected engine to ensure it follows their vision.
🔍 UXR
Focus: A User Experience Researcher (UXR) studies player behavior, interactions, and collects feedback to ensure players find it fun, intuitive, and engaging (or scary if you’re making that type of game).
How: Researchers employ methods such as playtesting, surveys, and usability studies to inform design decisions and enhance the overall player experience. They research and playtest a wide spectrum of games, not just the UI.
TLDR: Essentially, think of UXR as collecting feedback from players, UI Art as concerned with the aesthetic experience, while UX design is about how the game works and how it makes the user act & feel.
I hope this gave you a clear picture of these 3 roles in games!
Thank you for reading!
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