Chapter 5: Testing what we have learned.

Does our new Alien User Interface design apply the design rules correctly?

Now that we have changed our Alien Interaction design with the previous feedback and research, we are now
going to test if it uses all the design rules correctly. For my User Interface design I used the survey method again.
For testing a User Interface design, I prefer this method to get direct human feedback. So I would still advice you
guys to use this method, or a similar one that you might prefer.

Image 7 - Second survey

To test these design rules I have send out the same two survey as before to eleven new participants. These
participants have filled in this survey unbiased by the previous user interface design. The overall results of these
surveys is a lot better than the previous one as you can see in image 7 and 8. The same as in the previous
surveys, I have asked the participants the reasons behind their answers.

Learnability: The participants, according to the survey, were pretty happy with the learnability. All the need
information is on the screen and there is no unnecessary information or details on the screen. The mini-map,
command box and unit information is recognizable and easy to use. Some participants still had the issue that
some features did not feel natural.

Efficiency: The efficiency also scored pretty good. Since the features are not in the way and have their own
space on the screen, it’s easy to oversee and use. Only the important gameplay information is on the screen.
That means that the player doesn't have to take unnecessary steps to smoothly play the game.

Errors: The Errors scored pretty good again. According to the feedback the participants couldn't really find that
much that would cause errors during the gameplay.

Satisfaction: The satisfaction was a lot better this time. In the feedback the participants said that the user
interface is not in the way of the play area. Aesthetically it look pleasing and they could see the similarities with
the aliens. One person did not like the alien aesthetics and prefers a simplistic design for a user interface.

Image 8

For the memorability I send the participants a second survey exactly a week later. That’s how we can test the

memorability question the best.

Memorability: The memorability also scored pretty good this time. Participants said that the alien design of the

user interface really makes it stand out and thus more memorable. Since the features are placed like most Real
Time Strategy game, it feels more natural to use and easier to remember where every feature is.

So all in all the second user interface design scored pretty good, and I can say that I am pleased with the test

results. One person did not like the alien design of the user interface, but since it’s only one person I take that
as personal preference. There will always be people that will not like my design, or the alien aesthetics. And
well, we all understand that you can never please everyone.