EASPORTS FIFA
FIFA Skill Games UX Redesign
FIFA Skill Games UX Redesign
ROLE
UX Design
UX Design
CHALLENGE
RESULTS
The results were remarkable, with telemetry data indicating a substantial increase in user engagement within Career Mode compared to previous versions of the game. More importantly, the overhauled UX design laid the foundation for all skill games and player training experience for all the future FIFA's to come. (Still in use to this day)
Career Mode in FIFA 16, the second most popular mode, fulfilled the long-standing requests of the gaming community by introducing two highly sought-after features: the Pre-Season Tour and Player Training. This presented an ideal opportunity to revamp FIFA's skill games and training experiences, focusing on enhancing accessibility, challenge, and overall enjoyment. In my role as the UX designer for this feature, I delved deep into player psychology to boost player engagement, borrowing existing knowledge on Cognitive Learning Theories, while also ensuring clarity and ease of understanding in every facet of the skill game UX design.
RESULTS
The results were remarkable, with telemetry data indicating a substantial increase in user engagement within Career Mode compared to previous versions of the game. More importantly, the overhauled UX design laid the foundation for all skill games and player training experience for all the future FIFA's to come. (Still in use to this day)
Legacy Training UX
The training experience in previous versions of FIFA was often not enjoyable or engaging. Players frequently found themselves unsure of their progress or how close they were to achieving specific goals. The feedback provided was typically vague and lacked engagement. There was a noticeable absence of a robust visual feedback system that could genuinely assist players in learning and improving their FIFA skills. This presented a significant opportunity for enhancing the entire training system, with the potential to greatly enhance player engagement and retention.
Universal Mental Model & Player Motivation
Explorations & Wireframes
Numerous ideas were brainstormed to develop a system that could offer players immediate and succinct feedback, directly mirroring their real-time performance. Our research indicated that positive human behaviors are typically reinforced through immediate rewards or feedback when specific actions are taken. In this context, when a player executes a successful action like a precise pass to the right player, a UI widget would promptly recognize this positive behavior and reward the player with an enthusiastic "great job" message.
Additionally, we reimagined the post-training UI screen to be more informative and concise, providing players with a comprehensive summary of their performance, including a letter grade rating they earned during the session. We discovered that this meaningful affirmation had a motivating effect on players, akin to a "dopamine hit," which encouraged them to persist in their training and strive for skill improvement.
Improved Training UX
Player playing through the improved Training design
