By Taylor Bartman Dallas | Published December 17, 2022
The video game industry shows no sign of stopping, but that doesn’t mean tools people use for video games are solved. In this capstone case study for MICA’s M.P.S. in UXD program, I explore what an alternative to video game guides may look like in the 2020s.
Polygon.com’s front page on December 15, 2022
In 2021, the video game industry generated an estimated $60 billion (according to the NPD Group), and likewise, the amount of people playing games grows daily. These people—whether they’ve played for years or started yesterday—are spending more time than ever playing games on consoles, computers, and phones.
As someone who plays games, I’ve noticed a severe drop in quality guides and sites at the top of Google results. Searching for assistance in a game often leads to content aggregator sites with generic names and copy/pasted content—from where? By whom? It’s far different from the days of GameFAQs and print guides, where passionate people (and paid authors) provided tips and walkthroughs for the hottest new properties.
Vox Media, owner of publications such as The New Yorker, and SB Nation, noted in its recent celebration of Polygon’s tenth anniversary that:
‘Animal Crossing: New Horizons guide - Jolly Redd’s art, real or fake?’ and ‘Zelda: Breath of the Wild shrine maps and locations’ have become the #1 and #2-most-visited pages in Vox Media’s history. (link)
With more people playing games, traffic to game guide sites has increased steadily. People playing games, people contributing to content for games, and journalists are spread across multiple outlets. The quality standards, editing, and sources for every site is unique, and few people seem satisfied with the state of video game guides.
All told, I could see the problem:
Parts 2 and 3 of interview affinity map on Miro.com