Neerja Shah is a User Experience (UX) Designer at Red Storm Entertainment. She is currently contributing to the development of the game XDefiant. Neerja’s role involves designing user-friendly, accessible, and enjoyable interaction points for players, which are crucial for storytelling and gameplay. Get to know a little about Neerja Shah:
What are 3 fun facts about yourself?
I have an identical twin sister
I enjoy art, dance, and music
I enjoy traveling and have been to 9 countries so far!
How long have you worked at Red Storm?
3 years.
What do you like most about working at Red Storm?
The workplace culture and my coworkers. :)
What project/game are you working on?
XDefiant.
Describe what you do in your role?
I work on designing user friendly, accessible, and enjoyable interaction points for players! A big part of the storytelling and gameplay in a video game happens with the user interface! Our goal as UX/UI designers is to empathize with our player through the creation of personas, user stories, userflows, wireframes/mockups, and user testing. We want the game's UI to guide the player to make the right decisions and aid in gameplay.
What is the best part of your job?
Getting to be creative, and work with incredibly talented people.
What part of your current game and role have you loved working on?
(regarding current and past games) I really enjoy working on customization features! Customization features offer players a fun/enjoyable way to engage with their characters/equipment, interact with other players, and allows for freedom of expression.
What part of your current game and role has been the most challenging?
I’m currently working on a live game, so we get a ton of feedback - which is every UX designer’s dream! But it can also be challenging to predict or interpret quickly changing online opinions.
What is it like working with different Ubisoft teams?
I enjoy working with different Ubisoft teams across the world! Although working across different time zones comes with challenges - the global perspective it offers is invaluable!
What motivated you to get into the gaming industry?
I like that games challenge me as a UX designer, which is what initially motivated me and continues to motivate me to work in gaming.
What do you like most about working in gaming?
I enjoy story telling and cultivating a complicated and intricate user experience.
What are you top tips for those looking to get into gaming and/or your specific role?
UX Design in video games is a whole new world in comparison to web/app development. There is a new factor that is introduced: gameplay difficulty. While website/app users want an easy and seamless experience, that is not always the case in games! Sometimes we need to breadcrumb hints, add mystery, and add difficulty to challenge our players. If you are interested in learning more about video games UX/UI, understanding the balance of difficulty and learnability in games is a great place to start!