My Role
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UX Research
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Testing
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Wireframes & prototyping
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Style Guide
Tools Used
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Figma
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​InVision
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Miro
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Webflow
The Problem
The “Word Challenge” game is not getting enough use and it’s boring.
Students struggle to retain information, stay engaged and find overall value. The stakeholder believes the game’s low engagement is due to it being “boring” and wants to increase their active user base through gamification.
ORIGINAL SCREENS
EMPATHIZE & DISCOVER
The Beginning
This was a 3-week design sprint project done by myself and two fellow designers to redesign a "Word Challenge" game by Capti Voice.
Stakeholder Interview
The stakeholder expressed that the “Word Challenge” is “boring,” which they believe causes low engagement.
They want to gamify the challenge in hopes to increase their active user base. Their biggest need was to find out more about their middle school users & wanted us to cater to that specific demographic.
Heuristic Analysis
We analyzed the current "Word Challenge" game.
Heuristic Analysis Key Findings
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"Word Challenge" is not a game - The website refers to the “Word Challenge” as a game, yet it does not have gamified elements. It appears more like a quiz.
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Boring color scheme - Color scheme is calm and professional, but the “Word Challenge” is too simple
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The primary goal and purpose are unclear - If unfamiliar with the platform it is hard for users to understand flow and purpose
RESEARCH & SYNTHESIZE
Market Research
What do E-learning games look like?
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Our research focused on direct competitors, E-learning games catering to young adolescents. Our goal was to find out what already exists, what works, and how the Word Challenge compares.
We found that E-learning games rely on intrinsic motivation.
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What games do kids play for fun?
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We looked at indirect competitors to see what popular games young adolescents currently enjoy playing. We wanted to find inspiration that we could apply to the redesign of the "Word Challenge."
User Interviews & Testing
Research Questions for Teachers
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We conducted interviews with teachers grades 5th to 9th from both public & private schools. We wanted to understand what they needed when it came to teaching using technology in the classroom.
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What are your goals and wants with games for learning?
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How do you keep your students engaged?
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Which technology is usually used in the classroom?
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What are your current concerns, future needs, and wants for your students when using games for learning?
Research Questions for Students
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I ran usability tests using the initial product platform with students ages 11 - 14. I also conducted an interview beforehand to better understand what our users needed and the best options for delivering a gameplay design solution.
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What are the current apps you use today?
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What are current games you use to learn and play online?
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What do you want in the current game?
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How do you feel when you play “Word Challenge?”
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What are your thoughts when you win and lose the game?
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What are your likes and dislikes about the current game?
Affinity Maps
Insights ​
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E-learning games help students learn and pay attention
Teachers understand what keeps their students engaged and agree that relating and using the games students currently play will always hold their attention. -
Interaction and responsive learning increases student motivation - Students need an interactive student-responsive learning environment because they want to participate and improve skills yet they feel indifferent when they use outdated methods of studying.
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Feel indifferent when using outdated methods for studying
Students feel more engaged and can relate to the games they are currently playing for fun. -
Want customization - Students need to feel they are represented with their needs and wants within a game.
DEFINE
The problem
The “Word Challenge” is boring & fails to motivate students to continue learning.
Personas
Using the qualitative data from interviews & usability testing results we defined the two focal audiences.
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With its boring layout, lack of goals or other motivating factors, & minimal game play, it is easy to understand how both audiences might choose to leave the website instead of trying to use it.
IDEATE
User Flows
We created a game play task model that would help us visualize & design individual steps that users have to take during the game.
Sketches
Solutions
We incorporated game mechanics to include the following features:
DESIGN
Wireframes & UI Iterations
In response to industry trends and usability testing, lo-fi iterations were completed with a focus on improving contrast and increasing readability and accessibility.
All students 6th grade and up should easily be able to use this product.
V1
V2
FINAL SCREENS
Desktop
Below is a user flow for how a student would open the game, choose an avatar, view the game rules, play the first level, review and reflect on answers, earn upgrades, and view their class leaderboard.
Final Design Guide
Future
Responsiveness
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Students do their work on all sorts of devices so it is important that "Word Quest" is responsive. Unfortunately due to time constraints, we were unable to focus on other devices. In the future, it would be necessary to cater to desktops as well as tablets and mobile devices.
Game Design​
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We would want to include more game components like “Easter Eggs” and build out the player dashboard. We also want to add more constraints, such as limiting time or deducting points if students were not practicing enough.