About the Game
Escape a chaotic alien planet by fighting through hordes of frenzied monsters – with your friends, or on your own. Combine loot in surprising ways and master each character until you become the havoc you feared upon your first crash landing.
Platform(s): PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X and Series S, Google Stadia
Type: Third-person shooter, multiplayer, single-player roguelike
Engine: Unity
Team Size: 5
Role(s): Feature Designer
Links: Steam
Feature Design: Umbrella Features
UX Research
We played through the game for several weeks and explored the player base’s feedback before drafting up a list of friction points and possible solutions. The stakeholders gave feedback and we began drafting design documentation and UI/UX mockups.
Difficulty Bar Effects
Previously, the game would give little indication that the game had gotten more difficult. To counteract this, we added more audio and mild visuals and tested it against boss fights to make sure it would still stand out against the backdrop of chaos in combat.
Several creatures in the game have reputations for blindsiding the player, either from not giving enough feedback that you are about to be hit to being able to hit from far distances. To aid in preventing this particular pain point, a damage indicator was added which flairs red on the players hud in the direction of the enemy.
Damage Indicator
Inventory Toggle
Previously, players would have to hold down Tab to view their inventory but due to the fast-paced nature of the game, this feature was rarely used. To improve readability and comprehension of items, a pause was added to single-player and the ability to toggle the feature on and off.
Inspect
RoR2 has a large inventory of items, shrines, chests, and other interactables requiring players to retain large amounts of information or leave the game to look up item specifics. To remedy this, an inspect feature was added, this would allow players to quickly and easily access information on the item and make character-building decisions quickly without breaking the immersion of gameplay.
Teleporter Indicator
One of the biggest frustrations expressed by players, especially new players, was losing the teleporter after finding it. This was remedied by, upon discovery and entering close proximity of the teleporter, an indicator will appear on the HUD and remain for the rest of the level.
Teleporter Particles
Particles which were previously incredibly small and difficult to see were increased in density.
