former Sony VP of Worldwide Studios thinks games need to learn from web design.

a couple things that came to mind while reading:

i’m not sure why software tools have to slavishly follow the sterile dictates of modernism. it’s helpful in some ways, but others need to be questioned. beauty makes things more usable, and visual fashions change quickly. check out web trends. often, more architectural aspects are consistent and minimal, but watercolor and torn paper can be the style on top. if there’s one thing i’ve learned from working in games, it’s that a stunning visual can go a long way to drawing out an emotional reaction.

can’t tools be emotional too? sure, there was a time when carrot-peelers just needed to be functional and efficient, but now we see they can have bright colors, interesting textures, and even faces.

i’m a fan of games with adaptive difficulty–the experiential ones, not the puzzle or skill-based variety. surely this would be powerful in regular software too. in games the enemies are often chasing, avoiding, or shooting at the player, and they typically adapt their tactics, speed, and accuracy. define your enemies as lesser-used features or type size or whatever you come up with, and it’s easy to determine how users could more easily conquer them.

accomplishment is everything in a game. it makes them addictive, and that’s a prized adjective. most software exists to reach goals, but i’ve used plenty where the goal could be explicit, and each milestone more rewarding.

and, all software could use more particle explosions.

Seriously though, great article. It would be interesting to dissect a video game organization & see how they break down design roles to produce engaging products. I’m also curious about what education & background these designers have, and how they differ from our brand of interaction design.

Cheers!