Exploring Menu Generation for Small Screens and Mobile Devices

Abstract

In the video game industry, there are many platforms on which to release a video game. Each platform has different features and technology for playing a game. If a game is released on multiple platforms, the game may be designed slightly differently for each platform release. The menu design is a major design component for any game. There is no standard menu structure that works across all games. Each game requires different things from a menu including the how the menu is presented on the screen and how quickly a menu can be navigated. A software tool prototype was developed to simplify the process for designing usable menus for games released on multiple platforms. A designer inputs a base menu structure into the tool. The tool then uses the base menu structure and estimated player usage data to generate a menu structure. This menu structure changes appropriately to fit on any device. The menus that the prototype generates are effectively usable by a player. The tool is able to create a menu that fits the usage patterns of a specific user. The developed tool is not currently sufficient to replace the current menu design process. A designer is still necessary in the menu development process. The tool is a good starting point for developing generic menu designs that are effective on many different platforms.