facilitating family connection

RESEARCH FOR DESIGN

project team

individual project

duration

january - may 2024

tools

Whimsical

Figma

activities overview

project planning

secondary research

user interviews

ideation & sketching

low-fidelity wireframing

user testing

mid-fidelity prototyping

presentations & critiques

project planning

secondary research

user interviews

ideation & sketching

low-fidelity wireframing

user testing

mid-fidelity prototyping

presentations & critiques

image by Colin Davis from unsplash.com

OVERVIEW

background

Throughout my life, my family has always played a simple dice game we call “5,000” during our get togethers, which are few and far between. We are spread out across the country and only see each other once or twice a year (if we’re lucky). The game of 5,000 is how we reconnect, bond, and enjoy our time together. For my capstone project, I want to learn how I can recreate these aspects of the game in a digital version, that could be played while we are physically apart.

Pictured right: me winning 2,000 points!

My goal for this project is to design a mobile version of the dice game 5,000 that allows users to maintain familial relationships when not physically together

user group

Individuals who participate in board game play during family get togethers, but cannot often due to physical location limitations

final deliverables

mid-fidelity prototypes for a digitized version of the game 5,000
project documentation outlining the entire process

MILESTONE 1

leading question

How might I transfer what users enjoy about physical board games to a digital format?

secondary research

Before tackling family bonding and social connection, I first had to understand how I could successfully turn a physical game into a digital version.

Goal: Learn more about what users enjoy about board games, along with what aspects of board games should be continued in a digital format.

Areas of Research: board game play, materiality of board games, digitization of board games

Findings

Digitized version must retain core gameplay mechanics (Rogerson et al., 2016)
Digitized version must allow players to reorient and organize game pieces (dice) (Rogerson et al., 2018)
Computer should keep score in digitized version (Rogerson et al., 2016)

user interviews

After gaining an understanding of important aspects when turning a physical game to a digital form, I knew I needed to talk to users to hear their perspective and what they wanted out of a digital version.

Goal: Discover what users enjoy about the game 5,000 and how it allows them to maintain their relationship with family members. Investigate what users want out of a digital version of the game.

I interviewed four participants of varying ages, genders, and experience with the game 5,000

Findings

Users expect to:
- See who they are playing
- Be able to determine when they keep rolling & when to end their turn
- Be able to watch other players turns
Users emphasized the importance of the social experience when playing board games with others
- Majority of users stated that the social experience was more important than actually winning the game
Users want to trash talk other players during the game

MILESTONE 2

leading question

How do users bond through mobile, synchronous, online gameplay? What current mobile apps based on board games allow for this?

secondary research

After formulating how to transition the physical game of 5,000 into a digital medium, I needed to focus on how the digital version could facilitate family bonding.

Goal: Learn how online multiplayer games allow for relationship formation and how families bond.

Areas of Research: Online games, social psychology, familial bonding

Findings

Low entry barrier, low time commitment, appealing game theme, and online interactions that extend real-life relationships all contribute to intergenerational family enjoyment of video games
Ability to send pre-written messages & emojis, as well as a freeform chat are all effective means of establishing connections between players
The more frequently family members play video games together, the better family satisfaction and family closeness they have

competitive analysis

I wanted to see what other mobile apps based on board games were implementing in regards to family bonding and relationship formation.

Goal: Compare strengths and weaknesses regarding gameplay and relationship facilitation of other mobile apps based on board games to learn what aspects should be implemented into my digital version of 5,000

Method: I looked into five mobile games based on board games (listed below) and analyzed them based on 10 predetermined characteristics.

Competitors Investigated:

Monopoly
Rummikub
Yahtzee

UNO
Poker

Findings

Visual similarity to the original is a key component when translating a board game to a digital version
Ability to send pre-written messages & emojis, as well as a freeform chat are all effective means of establishing connections between players

SS of UNO mobile game

(visual similarity)

SS of Rummikub mobile game

(chat feature)

user interviews

The research I gathered thus far was very insightful, but I knew I needed to talk to users to learn more about their personal experiences and how they connected to loved ones online.

Goal: Discover what users need to feel connected through online games.

I interviewed four participants of varying ages, genders, and experience with the game 5,000

Findings

Users prefer a freeform chat over pre-written message options
Users want to trash talk other players during the game

contextual inquiry

After my previous research, I determined that a free-form chat would be the best communication feature to include in my digital version of 5,000. However, I wanted to validate that an in-game chat feature would lead to family bonding and connection during mobile gameplay.

Goal: Discover if an in-game chat feature is an effective way to facilitate familial bonding during play

Method: Monitor and participate in two game sessions of the mobile version of “Rummikub”. The game session consisted of 3 players who have all played online Rummikub together before. Player’s use of the communication feature was closely monitored. After gameplay ended, a survey was sent to players to gauge how gameplay and communication via in-game features affected their feelings of connection and bonding with other players

Findings

Users play online mobile games with friends or family because it makes them feel closer with who they’re playing
Users felt a strong connection to others during gameplay due to in-game communication feature
Users felt that bonds were strengthened during gameplay due to in-game communication features

MILESTONE 3

leading question

How might I generate a mid-fidelity user interface for a mobile app version of 5,000 that supports gameplay and fosters familial connection between users?

At this point, I had successfully gathered all of the research I needed to design a mobile app version of the game 5,000. I used what I learned to incorporate key takeaways into visual representations of the digitized game of 5,000.

crazy 8 sketching

After looking back through my research, I was able to identify everything I needed to combine into my design. I began ideating what the game screens could look like, as well as what features should be implemented.

Goal: Combine learnings from previous milestones into a visual representation of 5,000 as a mobile game.

Findings

A vertical orientation would best support a keyboard for a freeform chat
Integration of player avatars, names, and scores

Vertical orientation with keyboard

Avatars and scores

wire flow sketching

Goal: Visualize the flow of screens a user would see in order to discover what screens I need to design for a cohesive final prototype.

low-fidelity wireframing

Goal: Create low fidelity visuals of the digitized mobile version of 5,000. This will allow me to conduct user testing, as well as provide opportunity to make iterations before upping the fidelity.

user testing

Goal: Determine the usability and intuitiveness of low-fidelity wireframes of the game 5,000, as well as getting user feedback on the in-game chat feature.

Method: I gave participants specific tasks and asked them to narrate their thought process aloud. Throughout the text, I took note of participant thoughts and asked relevant questions regarding their ability to connect and bond using the chat feature.

I interviewed four participants of varying ages, genders, and experience with the game 5,000

Findings

Successes
- Overall, participants stated that the app was very usable and intuitive

Areas of Improvement
- When trying to leave the full-screen chat to go back to the game play screen, half the participants hit the “Exit Game” button instead of the “Close Chat” button
  - Pictured right

implementing feedback

I then updated my designs to fit user expectations in regards to exiting the chat feature, to ensure there was no user confusion. These changes can be seen in the final design section below.

FINAL DESIGN

user persona

Meet Ani Eskandarian!

Age: 17

Description:

Member of the Eskandarian family
Doesn’t live anywhere near her extended family
The Eskandarians enjoy playing board games during their get-togethers
- The game 5,000 is one of their favorites
Loves board games and her extended family
- Finds herself really missing them every couple months

deciding to play

It's been a few months since Ani has seen her extended family. She really misses them, especially her cousin Alec. She wants to reconnect in a fun way, so she decides to play the mobile version of 5,000!

She opens up the app, excited to play.

Rationale

Users play online mobile games with family because it makes them feel closer with them (contextual inquiry)
Low barrier, low time commitment, and appealing game theme all contribute to intergenerational enjoyment of video games (secondary research)