Reviewing UX Design Books: Part 8
My reviews and short takeaways of some of the best books about UX Design, UX in Video Games & tips on how to work as a UX designer.
This will give you short descriptions of the books: The Elements of User Experience, Getting Gamers & Navigating the Politics of UX.
With my thoughts on the books and who I think should read them. I hope this will inspire you to pick up some of these books too!
The Elements of User Experience
User-centered design for the web and beyond
By Jesse James Garret
I read the physical book
Layers of UX
This book is a great introduction to UX design by explaining what UX is in all its different layers. What are the layers? The book begins with the surface layer; going through all the things that go into UI & UX design, methods, tools, and challenges; down to the abstract strategy level with product objectives, business goals, and user needs.
Many people focus on only one part of UX but don’t know how much more of what fully goes into the role. If you are starting out you might focus on the more visual layers; the Skeleton & Surface planes. But knowing that UX is a lot more than that can guide you to what you can improve & learn about next. We need everything from a deep product strategy to an attractive brand visual with fonts and colors to make a great product that users/customers are attracted to from the start and want to continue using for the long run.
“The concept of user-centered design is very simple: Take the user into account every step of the way as you develop your product. The implications of this simple concept, however, are surprisingly complex. Everything the user experiences should be the result of a conscious decision on your part.”
My Thoughts
Finally, I managed to read this book and I’m not disappointed I did! This is a great beginner book for anyone interested in UX! I think this book is a great read to give you a holistic view of how UX affects everything about a product as well as giving you great tips on a more practical level.
I have found that many starting out in UX focus mostly on the visual layers; the Skeleton & Surface planes. But knowing that UX is a lot more than that will guide you to what you can improve & learn next in your UX journey. So if you want to learn all about how the different levels of UX work together to create great products, read this book!
Reccomendations
UX Beginners, Product Designers & UI Designers.
Getting Gamers
The Phschology of video games and their impact on the people who play them
By Jamie Madigan
I listened to the Audiobook
How games influence you
Have you ever wondered how games make players come back again and again to keep playing, and why we are tempted to buy more games on Steam or Epic sales while we still have a huge backlog of games you can play? This book goes through these topics and more to explain the psychology that guides our actions!
But it’s not all bad or manipulative the way they get your money (although some are). Video Games have a lot of positives to offer! Games can help us develop new skills, form friendships, feel accomplished by overcoming obstacles, inspire us to do more in our real lives, form new good habits, immerse us in stories, and make us happier through fun play.
Although this book is written for people that play games, rather than people that work in games, it’s still a great read for anyone interested in this topic.
It goes into some very interesting psychological areas of how games are designed and what behaviors they tap into to create the experiences we love.
My Thoughts
This is a fun, insightful, and easy-to-read book!
I highly recommend giving this book a go if you want to dive into the psychology as well as a bit of the philosophy that makes up the experience of games. A great read that is full of insights on what goes into the experience of videogames, on multiple levels!
I appreciate how it didn’t demonize games as a medium just because there are some negatives and extremes that can happen when gamers get too obsessed, but acknowledged the problems and explained them from different angles, and gave the reader tips to stop falling for the tricks.
I truly hope that game devs can learn from past mistakes that hurt people and instead use this incredibly powerful medium to help, inspire, teach, and grow people’s lives for the better. Learning about the power game psychology holds is a first step to making the future better. And this book is a great tool on that journey.
It’s not an obvious pick for game UX designers, but give it a read if you want to read a different type of book.
Recommendations
UX Designers, Game Designers, Gamers & anyone who wants to learn how games are designed to influence us.
Navigating the Politics of UX
Strategies and stories from 40 years in the trenches
By John Scott Bowie
I listened to the Audiobook
How do you make UX known?
Good UX design is not the only thing a high-level UX Designer needs to know to create great products. You also need to work well together with others, work towards the same goals, and be able to find the right solutions in a stressful production flow. You can’t do great work if UX (and you) is not seen as a key part of a successful product/service!
This book gives you the information and tools needed to take the step up in your work and career! With great practical tips on how to communicate with others so they listen, how you can show your worth, create supporters and alliances so everyone can get what they want!
My Thoughts
A great book for anyone in a team where UX isn’t established in the workflow yet. You will not only learn a lot about how to introduce your colleagues and boss to the smart way to build routines with UX, but the more interesting part for me was how to make allies for your cause by finding out what they want and helping them solve their problem using UX skills and methods.
It’s a great way to create work friends and showcase how UX is not only UI (a common misconception about UX) but can help solve problems for everyone.
I think this is a great read/listen for anyone who wants to learn the path of diplomacy and be smarter when it comes to work Politics in UX.
Recommendations
UX Designer, UI/UX Designers, Senior/Lead Designers.
Thank you for reading!
Here are more design books reviews in this series:
Part 7
