PokéChat

A conceptual chat feature designed for Pokémon GO, a mobile AR game, that aims to improve communication among players.

Role

UX/UI Designer

Duration

1 month

Tools

Adobe XD, Photoshop, Google Forms, Pen & Paper

Team

Just me!

Background + Goals

A passion project not affiliated with Niantic, the company responsible for Pokémon GO

As an active Pokemon GO player since launch, I was very curious as to what others felt about the overall experience of the game at its' current state.
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Ultimately, the mission was to not only gauge players' thoughts but also brainstorm some ideas or features that could potentially solve their pain points.

Initial Research

The general consensus of Pokémon GO at its current state

Since I didn't have a specific problem to start with for this study, I conducted a survey with questions pertaining to the game's augmented reality (AR) and social interaction features. After gathering over 100 responses from current players in the Pokémon GO community, here's what I discovered:

Many players rarely utilize the AR features in the game. In fact, when it comes to a feature called AR+ mode, about 47% of players hardly use it during their gameplay.
Social interaction + engagement plays a significant part in the overall gameplay. About 40% of players frequently interact with each other on their friends list mostly to send and receive in-game gifts which contain items needed to progress in the game.

Screenshot of AR chart data for case study.

Screenshot of social chart for case study.

Adding an online chat feature was the most popular response

When asked in the survey if there were any other improvements or features they would like to see implemented in the game, about 86% of players found this prospect very interesting.

Understanding players' motivations for adding a chat feature

I decided to expand on the idea of adding a chat feature by updating my survey accordingly with new questions and posting it on specific Facebook groups and Discord servers. Based on the new survey data, I learned the following:

Around 67% use various online social platforms (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Discord, etc.) to communicate with others, leaving 33% of players who need to rely on personal contact info (i.e. phone, email, etc.) to get in touch.
Meeting up for raids and other social events (i.e. Community Day, GO Fest) were the most important reasons for wanting to communicate directly with friends as players tend to struggle with finding others to do group-based activities.

So the real question is...

How might we further improve in-game communication among players so that they can efficiently take on raids and participate in more social activities?

Exploring other solutions before arriving at one

Before jumping immediately into design, I made sure to consider possible alternatives for implementing direct communication among players:

In-Game Voice Chat

Messaging App

Online Database

Ultimately, I decided to stick with the in-game messaging feature since it would be the most time and cost efficient solution to implement. It also alleviates the issue of having to manage multiple communication channels simultaneously.

User Persona

Identifying my target audience

I came up with a fictional persona in order to understand my users and design for their specific needs and frustrations. Rather than creating three different personas, I felt as though having only one would allow me to focus on a particular use case.

User persona of fictional user, Max Boyd.

User Flow

Creating a flowchart to get a sense of designing screens for the messaging feature

Sketches & Wireframes

Showcasing each step of the messaging process through mid-fidelity wireframes

Wireflow of fictional messaging feature.

Wireframes of fictional messaging feature.

Final Designs

Introducing PokéChat: the quickest and most efficient way to connect with other players

Since I already had an existing visual design to work from, it saved me a lot of time when deciding how to style certain UI components.

Screenshot of final messaging chat mockups.

Access PokéChat through your friends list

From the map (home page), users would tap on their profile icon located on the bottom-left of the screen. I intentionally placed it next to the friends list in order to make interacting with friends as quick and seamless as possible.

Accessing chat feature gif for PokeChat.

A gif showcasing the process of starting a new message in PokeChat.

Start conversations with your friends

With PokéChat, players can now interact with others by sending quick messages, photos, and videos. Select up to 20 friends you wish to chat with. The ability to create a group chat is crucial since raiding usually involves a large party of players.

Outcome + Major Takeaways

In the end, a conceptual, working prototype of PokéChat was made

Even though PokéChat is not an official feature implemented in Pokémon GO as of late, I believe that it'll greatly increase social interactions and engagement among players in the community (which in turn will help with raids and other social events).

A couple of key takeaways that I got from this experience are the following:

Researching before designing allowed me to understand players' needs and empathize with the larger Pokémon GO community.
Players seem very passionate and vocal about improving the game's experience, especially in the social interaction front.