Everything Wrong With Web Design in GameDev

My name is Marina, and I've been designing for over a decade. Three years ago, I entered the gaming industry and have been working in it since. Before this, I knew virtually nothing about games and their specific design needs. How surprised I was when I got an inside look! And I haven't stopped being surprised to this day.

It turns out that, in most cases, communication design in the gaming industry lags far behind other fields. By communication design, I mean identity, websites, and any micro media like banners, newsletters, and covers. In this article, I explore why the leaders of the CG world remain on the margins of communication design.

What areas of design suck in GameDev (TLDR: all of them)?

As I mentioned, all communication design suffers. In this breakdown, I focused on what users and players encounter most often - websites.

First, I'll provide concrete evidence by showing examples of poor design. I'll critique a few well-known publishers, developers, and recent games. Then, I'll speculate from my experience as to why this deplorable design persists.

Even the world giants don't try!

Of course, you might think of incredibly stylish sites related to Game Development and say, "Marina, you are treacherously deceiving us!" Yes, there are stylish projects, and I like them a lot, but they are few! By the way, I included some chic projects as examples at the end of the article.

But let's look at the global industry as a whole. Even the giants don't really care about the visual quality of their media. I will analyse examples from Rockstar, EA, and CD Projekt Red, highlighting what is good and what is bad in their designs.

EA

One of the first companies in the industry, EA is among the top 5 game companies in America and Europe in terms of revenue and market capitalisation.

It's a very solid company. Now look at the website. It doesn't look solid at all. Such layouts were popular in 2010: a header on half of the first screen and then a tile of pictures. Earlier it was cool because it was clean and minimalistic, but now even website constructors offer more interesting options.

Rockstar

Rockstar is an American video game company, recognised as an industry leader thanks to hits like GTA, Red Dead Redemption, and Max Payne.

Rockstar is renowned for its meticulously crafted game worlds. But the website is the direct opposite of the games. I want to shout, "Guys, be rock stars! You have colossal resources and the greatest games!"

On the website, we see the same layout: a big header and tiles underneath it. But there's an interesting nuance. The header isn't just an image; it's a slider. And the slider has a crooked grid: the picture on the left side doesn't match the end of the picture in the grid. The column on the right side is virtually empty and meaningless: the space is practically unused, and because of the colour, it merges with the background of the rest of the page.

CD Projekt Red

A Polish studio known primarily for The Witcher and Cyberpunk. They managed to get Keanu Reeves into their game but couldn't make a really cool website for themselves.

Unlike the examples above, instead of an inarticulate header, they have a spectacular full-front screen video. Almost everyone in the industry is fine with CG: really talented people are doing art, motion, and concepts. But you have to scroll down, and what do we see? Tiles from 2010. Again!

Conclusion on the biggest companies

As we can see, even the giants aren't trying. This is bad for the industry as a whole because they set the style and direction for smaller studios. Imagine yourself as a studio looking at a huge, powerful company that sells this kind of visual media design. You think, "Well, since they're selling it, then we shouldn't bother either." Like the rock star, so is the music.

What about design for smaller companies?

Okay, we've realised that global companies are way behind. But big, complex projects are often slow and clunky. So let's look at those who are quicker - medium and small studios. What do they have in terms of design? In 80% of cases, it's the same as the leaders - dull layouts and tiles. Below, I'll just attach examples.

Why is it bad with GameDev?

I've been wondering why the sphere is so blatantly stagnant while others are actively developing. Projects in e-commerce or IT are wildly experimenting with meanings, techniques, forms, and layouts, while the game industry is stuck in 2014 when it comes to website development. Although it would seem that game sites are a better place to introduce new things: the audience is loyal and interactive by default. It's a whole field for experimentation! But no, blocks and standard narratives. It's a shame about the missed opportunities.

I've highlighted two bold reasons for the stagnation:

1. Publishers don't like to take risks and waste money. They don't want to touch something that works and consistently makes good money.
2. GameDev is rolling along on familiar rails. The industry is used to making high-quality, beautiful, very professional, and attractive key arts and using them to sell the product. Unfortunately, what's often overlooked is that design is also an excellent tool for selling and forming the brand's image. Especially if it's not only about the picture but also about the idea.

It makes me sad to watch the industry from both a player's and a specialist's point of view. But I believe that good will prevail and we will see a market filled with cool products!

In the meantime, I'm going to go through Disco Elysium for the third time. While I play and weep, as promised, here are examples of very cool projects worthy of all design respect.

Design in GameDev that doesn’t suck

Kepler

A little-known publisher but with well-known projects: the studio that nailed Sifu is developing under them. Take a look at their addictive and enjoyable site. It has a super stylish design, lots of micro-animations, and interactivity. The layout is in the best traditions of festival projects. All in all, it's something to strive for in terms of visuals!

AXOLOT

A small studio based in Stockholm. Everything about this site is beautiful! Look at the preloader - precision animation, strong graphics, calibrated to the pixel! My inner graphic designer is in awe! The detail, the micro typography, the crazy interactive flying 3D—there's style in this. There's power to the brand—it makes you want to linger on the site to scrutinize every pixel for an interesting passphrase or solution. I give it 10 awwwards out of 10! A studio from Sweden has not shamed the great and mighty Swiss design.

Belka Games

Belarusians who could do it! Although they make mobile games, they do it with style! The site immediately makes it clear that there will be no serious shooters or huge open worlds here. The site is honest, beautiful, and simple, and that's what pays off. Special kudos for the custom typography and cool illustrations!