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开发者谈图标设计对于成功游戏的重要性

发布时间:2012-11-21 14:09:16 Tags:,,,

作者:Simon Parkin

在可下载的电子游戏发展过程中,低调的盒子设计师也一直在思考着游戏的外包装的发展。

他们总是承担着极具挑战的任务:设计出具有宣传作用的包装——让潜在的用户可以通过该包装去评判内部的游戏内容,让游戏角色或游戏世界更加鲜明化,这也是单凭游戏内部资产所难以做到的。

如今的iOS游戏设计师也担负着相同的任务,但是与之前的设计师(面对的是DVD规格的套筒,有光泽的纸板盒或者其它特别版本的内容)不同的是,他们必须在不足72×72的像素范围内呈现出相同的内容。

如今的App Store中共有70多万款应用的图标在吸引着用户的注意,而设计师必须在此突破众多竞争者,突显自己游戏的同时清楚地呈现出玩家所希望看到的游戏体验。

图标的重要性

醒目的图标至关一款游戏的成功。

如今已经出现了越来越多面向初创游戏开发商提供图标制作服务的专业设计师,他们承诺自己的设计能够有效地提高游戏销量,帮助游戏窜上排行榜的前列,并最终挤进App Store的首页。

这些独立门户的专家们是否就是万灵的销售员或设计人才?

不管怎样,开发者总是未能挪出更多的精力或注意力去把握这些低像素内容。或者是我们将图标的重要性给夸张化了——也许它只是开发者未能在App Store中取得好成绩的借口?

Chillingo(游戏邦注:发行了大热游戏《愤怒的小鸟》和《割绳子》)的联合经理Chris Byatte说道:“永远不要低估一个醒目的图标所需要的细节和优化。”

“App Store中的激烈竞争意味着图标在吸引消费者注意的重要性。通常情况下图标都是消费者对应用的第一印象,所以如果应用的图标不够突出,未能有效吸引玩家的注意力,那么这款游戏便很容易被忽视。”

icon(from pocketgamer)

icon(from pocketgamer)

《愤怒的小鸟》和《割绳子》的图标有何突出之处?

“开发者不应该只是将图标当成一种随意的艺术品,而应该是整个包装中非常重要的一部分。任何优秀的图标都不是匆忙设计下的产物。”

醒目的图标

Neon Play的首席执行官也是《Flick Football》的创造者Oli Christie说道:“醒目的图标非常重要。当你在逛超市时,某些包装突出的商品总是能够吸引你的眼球——这便是它们独特的品牌化。而图标也就是应用的外包装。”

Spilt Milk Studios的创始人兼《Hard Lines》的联合创造者Andrew Smith认为,与其它媒体的盒子艺术一样,应用图标设计也需要设计师投入更多精力与思考。

他说道:“这是用户接触某一游戏或应用最先看到的内容。所以与游戏盒子或专辑封面的设计师一样,图标设计师也需要对此投入更多关注度。”

Tag Games的艺术总监Stewart Graham(曾与许多产业巨头,如育碧,Square-Enix,艺电以及BBC等合作过)认为,任何优秀的图标设计的重要组成部分都可以被量化。

他说道:“用户希望看到干净,鲜明且大胆的设计;避免文本,而只是通过简单的图像或元素去概括主要的游戏内容。”

过多的文本内容并不是好事。有些设计师总是会将游戏的内容整合到图标上,但这么做却是多余的,因为通常情况下游戏名称总是会出现在图标下方。所以最有效的图标便是不包含任何文本内容的图标。

icon(from pocketgamer)

icon(from pocketgamer)

Oli Christie并不喜欢《F1 2011》或《极品飞车》的图标。

Christie同意这一观点,他说道:“设计师必须在创造图标时避免陷入一些根本的误区。设计师必须确保图标的清晰与直白,不会让玩家感到疑惑。图标必须能够一下子就吸引玩家的眼球,并激发他们深入了解游戏的兴趣。”

“你并不需要将应用的名称添加到图标上,特别是游戏图标。《F1 2011》或《极品飞车:最高通缉》的图标设计便非常糟糕:整体太过暗淡,不够清晰,且还将游戏名称挤在本来就过于狭小的空间里。”

添加光泽或删去光泽

Graham非常欣赏那些能够将苹果所强加的限制转变为优势的设计师们。

他说道:“有些设计师有效地利用了边界限制(如《Lego Life of George》),也有些设计师将整个图标完全覆盖于边界之上(如《龙之谷》和《神庙逃亡》)。”

“这么做能让用户带有一种错觉,即认为图标变大了。有些设计师使用光芒覆盖方式添加了光泽,也有些设计师删除了这种光泽去突显图标。”

“有些图标乍看之下显得不够专业(如《My Horse》),但是多加留意的话就会发现这些图标简单且切题,所以更能有效地突显于众多图表中。所以设计师的必杀技便是找到一种具有吸引人的外观且能够保留最初理念的图标设计。”

“比起华而不实的艺术品,图标的最初理念更有帮助。《神庙逃亡》在这一点上便非常突出,所以这也是我非常欣赏的图标设计。”

icon(from pocketgamer)

icon(from pocketgamer)

Stewart Graham所欣赏的图标设计《Lego Life of George》和《My Horse》

尽管Christie认为图标设计非常重要,但是他却不确定是否有必要雇佣“专业的”设计师。

“优秀的2D设计师,特别是曾参与过某些项目的设计师应该能够创造出有效代表应用的图标。如果你拿不定主意或不知道该选择哪个图标,社交媒体将能帮你做出决定。”

“对于《Traffic Panic London》和即将发行的《Jewel Jumper》,我们便呈献给用户三种图标,让他们选出自己最喜欢的图标。”

游戏本身才是制胜法宝

Christie相信图标设计是至关一款游戏是否能在App Store中获取成功的一大关键元素(“开发者需要花更多时间于图标设计中”),而Tag的Stewart则认为这并不是最重要的元素。

“一个优秀的图标固然重要,但是即使图标未能达到标准也不会彻底摧毁一款游戏。一款真正优秀的游戏以及有效的推广工作也能帮游戏获得较高的排名,并让它突显于众多竞争者间——而不管它是否拥有一个引人注意的图标。”

Smith也认可这一观点:“我认为图标只是帮助游戏获取成功或赢得竞争的一大要素。开发者不能忽视这一点,但同时这也不是他们唯一需要关注的内容。”

“我不清楚还有什么比制作出一款真正优秀的游戏更加重要。”

本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译,拒绝任何不保留版权的转载,如需转载请联系:游戏邦

Hip to be square: Is icon design crucial to a game’s success?

by Simon Parkin

In the midst of all the invention, progress and convenience heralded by the downloadable video game revolution, spare a thought for the unassuming box artist.

Their task has always been a challenging one: to design packaging that acts both as an advertisement – a cover by which a potential buyer can judge the game therein while browsing – and a means of bringing the game’s characters or world to vivid life where the more limited in-game assets struggle.

Today’s iOS game artists are charged with a similar task but where their forebears worked with DVD-sized sleeves, glossy cardboard boxes or the indulgent acreage of the special edition, they must perform the same feats in a paltry 72×72 pixel square.

Not only that but with over 700,000 other game icons vying for consumers’ attention on the App Store, the artist’s work must make the game stand out from the crowd while simultaneously articulating something about the experience that players might expect therein.

Pixel power

Much has been made of a striking icon’s importance to a game’s success.

So much so, in fact, that a cottage industry of icon-specific expert designers has sprung up, artists offering solutions to the upstart game developer, promising their designs will secure the sales needed to bump the game up the charts and onto a hallowed spot on the App Store home screen.

Are these self-classified experts snake oil salesmen or design savants?

Either way, rarely has so much energy and attention been afforded to such a small clutch of pixels. Has the importance of the icon been overstated – perhaps a welcome scapegoat for developers who fail in the App Store lottery, a chance to blame the icon for failure rather than the game within?

“Never underestimate the attention to detail and polish that is required for a striking icon,” says Chris Byatte, co-general manager of Chillingo, publisher of some of downloadable gaming’s biggest-hitting titles such as Angry Birds and Cut the Rope.

“The level of competition on the App Store means it’s imperative that icons visually appeal to consumers. Icons are often the first time consumers engage with an App, therefore, if the icon isn’t striking enough to capture the interest of players, then the game could easily be overlooked.

How important were Angry Birds and Cut the Rope’s icons?

“Developers should not consider it as arbitrary artwork but rather a key component of the whole package. A great icon can not be rushed.”

Strike it rich

Oli Christie, CEO of Neon Play, creator of Flick Football agrees: “A striking icon is hugely important. When you walk through the aisles at your local supermarket, certain items catch your eye, normally because of their packaging – their unique branding. An icon is just like packaging for your app.”

For Andrew Smith, founder of Spilt Milk Studios and co-creator of Hard Lines, app icon design requires as much thought and effort as box art in other media.

“It’s the user’s first exposure to a particular game or app,” he says. “I believe the same attention that was spent on game boxes and album covers should be spent on the icon.”

Stewart Graham, art director at Tag Games, development partner with industry heavyweights such as Ubisoft, Square-Enix, EA and the BBC, believes the key components to great icon design can be quantified.

“Clean, crisp, bold design; little to no text, simple graphic or element that sums up the game [are key],” he says. ”

Too much text is always a bad thing to do. Lots of people try to include the game name in the icon, but it’s not necessary as the name is always below the icon. The best icons have no text at all.”

Oli Christie is no fan of F1 2011 or Need for Speed’s icons

Neon Play’s Christie agrees: “There many fundamental mistakes that shouldn’t be made when creating a great icon. It shouldn’t be cluttered, unclear or make you try to work out what it is. It should smack you in the eye, intrigue you or excite you.

“You don’t really need, especially with game icons, to include the title of the app in the icon. F1 2011 or Need for Speed: Most Wanted is a prime example of poor icon design; it is too dark, unclear and filled with a title which does not need to be there.”

Shine on, shine off

Graham applauds those designers who work creatively with the limitations imposed by Apple.

“Some people use a border to great effect (Lego Life of George), sometimes making the main subject art overlapping onto the border (DragonVale, Temple Run).

“This sometimes gives the illusion of a larger icon. Some people choose to use the shine overlay to add some gloss, but others make their icons stand out by leaving the shine off.

“There are icons, that on the face of it look a bit slap dash and unprofessional (My Horse) but on closer inspection, they manage to stand out in the crowd by remaining simple and to the point. The Holy Grail is to find an icon design that looks cool but is also totally original in its idea.

“An original idea in your icon will help more than a slick piece of art. Temple Run did this and still stands out as probably my favourite icon design.”

Stewart Graham’s favourites, Lego Life of George and My Horse

Despite his belief in the significance of the icon, Christie is unsure of the need to hire a ‘specialist’ designer.

“A great 2D artist, especially if he/she has worked on the project should be able to create icons which represent the app. If you’re stuck for ideas or can’t decide which is best, social media is a great tool.

“For Traffic Panic London, and future title Jewel Jumper, we used a simple a) b) c) voting for our users to decide which icon they liked best.”

In the game

While Christie believes icon design is one of the key factors in a game’s success on the App Store (“developers need to spend a disproportionate amount of time on icon design as it’s one of the fundamental routes to success on the App Store”) Tag’s Stewart is less sure that it’s the most important factor.

“A good icon is important, certainly, but it’s not a make or break deal breaker if it’s not up to scratch. A good enough game, with good enough promotion will rack up enough rating scores to make it stand out on its own, regardless of the icon.”

Smith agrees: “I think [the icon] is just one of many factors that contribute to success, or rather to a game standing out. It’s not to be glossed over, but it isn’t the only thing, nor the most powerful.

“Although, I’m not sure there is a most powerful thing, other than making a great game.”(source:pocketgamer)


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