Cheese or Font? Game redesign
Introduction
Cheese or Font is a simple quiz-like game in which you identify 50 names as either a type of cheese or a font style in under 5 minutes. The graphical interface is hard to parse and clunky, with several areas of improvement using Christina Wodtke’s tips and tricks.
Identifying core elements
I first approached this exercise by identifying the core elements of the game. Below, you’ll see a sketch I made of these elements as well as supporting and extraneous design elements. The core elements were necessary to represent in the final design, though the rest weren’t relevant and could likely be simplified.
Using color, alignment, and type
I played around with type, color, alignment and proximity. My approach to type was to use decorative elements to make certain items stand out or match the identity of the term. For example, CHEESE was represented by a thick bold sans-serif to allude to the blocky and rich nature of most cheeses. In contrast, I chose a light decorative cursive for font in all lowercase alluding to our first time learning about type when learning cursive in grade school. I played around with the colors green and red to represent success and fail states, and also blue and yellow to create contrast and character. I explored alignment in one design, having all words aligned to the left and move one-by-one like a revolving door. I also played with the proximity in two designs, where buttons were placed closer to spaces it represented or when words were moved into either a cheese or font column.
Inspiration
My redesign was very much inspired by Typeform. The simplistic and airy design makes filling forms feel intuitive and fun. I wanted to take the same approach with my redesign of Cheese or Font, favoring simplicity and a single view for the entire app. They do a brilliant job at Typeform at using color to create contrast and alignment/proximity to create a dead-simple user experience.
