Nowadays to enjoy the best table or card games you don’t need to go to Las Vegas. Moreover, you don’t even need to have a computer. It’s possible to play favorite games on mobile. According to the latest statistics, mobile gaming revenue has been increasing steadily throughout the years. For instance, in 2016, Google Play Store recorded revenues of 3.4 billion US dollars from mobile games while in the second quarter of 2020, this figure has risen up to 7.7 billion US dollars. For the Apple App Store, these figures are 5.1 billion US dollars in 2016 and 11.6 billion US dollars in 2020. The same is true for online mobile casinos, betting, or playing platforms.
Challenges faced by game developers
The growing demand for table and card games on mobile poses new challenges to game developers. The main of them are the following:
● Attracting the target audience.
Any game is created to be played. It’s important to understand that every type of game has its fans. It’s a big mistake to think that only teenagers spend their free time playing online table and card games. Nowadays the average age of a mobile gamer is 36.3. The greater part of them prefers playing games via smartphones. The most popular genres are table/card games (12%), puzzles (11%), and shooter types (11%);
● Creating safe, sensitive, and responsible games.
It’s of prime importance to increase community awareness and understanding the peculiarities of online gambling. It’s especially important for the younger generation;
● Creating unique and appealing designs.
There is vast competition for players. Each company that deals with online gambling tends to involve as many new players as possible. For these purposes, it’s necessary to pay attention not only to the main features of the game but also to its design.
Tips to make a game attractive
There are 8 traits table/card games should pose in order to be attractive to users. They are:
1. Concentration.
Any game should be able to require concentration. If the gambler can’t concentrate on the process, he or she probably shuts down the game in a couple of minutes;
2. Challenge.
Challenges should meet the needs and desires of the target audience. If the payer loses all the time and can’t cope with the tasks for hours, he or she probably gives up an idea of playing this game;
3. Skills.
Online card games are meant to develop leadership and problem-solving skills. Moreover, online gaming helps players to stay engaged and promote communication and teamwork. Online gambling is the best way of entertaining users with convenience. You can play anytime and from anywhere you want:
4. Control.
The winning online card games give players a sense of control for their actions. For users, it’s important to understand how to play and make the right choice;
5. Clear goal.
Goals are fundamental to mobile games. They give a sense of accomplishment and progression;
6. Feedback.
Mobile games should be designed in a way to give the players a sense of engagement in the process of playing. Users should receive feedback on their progress;
7. Immersion.
There are several factors that are prominent for immersion in mobile gaming. They include screen size of the device, comfort of gameplay, length of gameplay, audio, and video effects;
8. Social interaction.
When playing BlackJack or any other card game online, users should be able to communicate or even build communities.
To realize all these points, it’s necessary to use the best interface ideas. A User interface or UI design is a graphic layout of the mobile game. It includes various components that help players navigate, find information, and accomplish goals. The most crucial UI elements include buttons, dropdown lists, list boxes, and text fields. Icons and progress bars are also important for mobile games.
Yet, the success of the online card game design depends not only on the chosen elements. It’s a large mistake to think that mobile card games are very easy to design. Although the greater part of them has a simple design and clear interface, there are dozens of points developers have to take into account. To realize the best interface ideas, it’s necessary to consider the following things:
● Go simple.
If you think that the more complicated the design is, the more successful the mobile card game is going to be, you are wrong. Oftentimes, users don’t appreciate complex card game designs for several reasons. First of all, it’s important to take into account the technical possibilities of all users. There are still gamblers who play games via old-fashioned models of smartphones. Such gadgets may be unable to support some functions.
Moreover, a more complicated design may require more complicated rules for playing. When it comes to table and card games, gamblers prefer variants with short and clear instructions;
● Get rid of cramped design.
When creating gameplay, it’s necessary to find proper space for each element. Players should be able to distinguish important information in no time. The secret of the successful interface is that users spend time playing games rather than understanding how to do it;
● Visual hierarchy is a must.
When it comes to creating the best interface for card games on mobile, you should take into account the small sizes of the screens of smartphones. In this case, applying contrasting elements is a winning solution. It can be realized through the use of color, shape, size, and relationship. By the way, color is the easiest way to create contrast for card games design.
The next important feature is continuance. It allows proceeding from one step to another smoothly. It allows not to lose attention and concentration. Continuance can be realized through three main techniques: lines, similarity, and space.
● Fonts are still important.
The best fonts are Adobe Caslon, Adobe Garamond, Albertus, LL Akkurat, and some others. The minimum size of the font should be 8pt.
Designing the best virtual interface may be rather tricky. A good interface design improves the gambler’s interaction with the game and makes the process of playing more efficient and straightforward.
