This release was an ambitious project that introduced several new features within the confines of the new Royal Court. Players can now create Hybrid Cultures, appoint Court Positions, acquire artifacts and equipment, and manage their Royal Court from a brand new 3D space.
My Responsibilities as UX Designer for Crusader Kings III
Design Research & Workshops
Research of the aesthetics we want the players to experience and how to embody them through features. I also explore how other media has approached similar features and use mood boards to map the design space.
Persona Analysis & User Flows
Analyzing different personas and their motivations to map how they will interact with the features. I worked on creating user flows to make sure we had every step of the player journey in mind when designing the features.
Framing & MVP Definition
I worked with Game Direction, and Leads to define which features are needed to deliver the desired experience to the players. I set the minimum requirements to guarantee a usable, inclusive and enjoyable end-product.
Implementation Plan
Design how players will perceive and interact with the features, creating an implementation plan for all disciplines. This is done with wireframes, design breakdowns, prototypes, among other resources.
Designing the Features
These are some of the features I worked on for this release. I was in charge of designing the user experience (UX) to deliver a clear implementation plan for the Code, Art, and Audio teams.
The Royal Court
A new space for Diplomacy, Grandeur, and Intrigue
Creating a 3D space where players can interact with other characters and with the objects inhabiting the space is something that had never been done before in Grand Strategy games. We managed to navigate through several design constrains to create a place that immerses players into their court and where they can display artifacts, customize their court amenities and have engaging court events.
Early Design Exploration Vs Final Results
Grandeur & Amenities
Make your court the best one in the world
We delivered a customizable royal court, where they decide how good certain amenities are, impacting the overall grandeur of your court. This required a clear interactive system that displayed all the information players would need to decide how to invest their resources. Some of these choices are locked after they are used, so we prioritized delivering clear previews of the effects of their actions.
Inventory
Commission, Collect, and equip Artifacts
One of the UX additions to the game was the equipment inventory. We created an RPG inspired equipment system where players can obtain Artifacts of different levels of rarity and then equip them to gain different bonuses. This was a fun challenge to present the players with a usable and fun interface where they can easily access all the information, but also displays the beautiful art created for each Artifact for thematic immersion.
Early Design Exploration Vs Final Results