What mobile apps can learn from games

The iTunes App Store, Google Play and other markets have given us reason to never let go of our phones as we use them for everything from keeping our appointments to hurling angry birds at pigs. If I asked you what your favorite app to use is I can almost guarantee you it would be a game. Why? Because even while you may use your calendar religiously or always be Instagram-ing your food, your utility apps (let’s call them that) are downright ugly and sometimes a pain to use.

Last month I took a trip up to Silicon Valley, a place widely regarded as the home of technological innovation, and had a long talk with a couple of entrepreneurial strategists about the interfaces used in utility apps today. We were talking about how both mobile and desktop utility applications that you see today are ugly, slow, and clunky.

My 4-year-old cousin can pick up my iPhone and immediately start playing "Annoying Orange" but my mother on the other hand holds on to her dumbphone because the cryptic icons and gestures of the latest smartphones don’t make sense to her.

I wouldn't touch this software with a ten-foot pole, let alone my finger.

Apple, as much as I love them, even seems to encourage a cookie-cutter type of app for their iPhone. Their Xcode tool gives a simple drag-and-drop interface to create user interfaces (UIs) that trap a developer eager to get their app to market into creating a subpar, boring UI that requires a manual (or makes you wish you had a manual).

Android gives more control to the developer, but that often results in the age-old problem of an ugly interface that screams engineering degree. No offense to those engineers who also have good design intuition. I know you exist too.

So here’s my point: what if we stopped thinking about utility app development from a boring, “this is an app to do work,” mantra to a more game-like point of view. Before you think I’m trying to turn everything all "Fruit Ninja" on you (although, you might like that), hear me out.

Game UIs are less restrictive. Maybe having that back button shoved in the corner of the top navigation bar isn’t the best place. Heck, maybe that top navigation bar needs to disappear altogether. Game designers are rewarded for making designs that don’t stick to a cookie-cutter style while utility app designers are punished for not being consistent.

Game UIs communicate more information using less screen real estate. The heads-up display in "Diablo III" relays more information in a smaller space than any office application I’ve used.

They also communicate that information more fluidly and less-intrusively. I hate how I have to switch windows or even spaces just to respond to a simple text or instant message. Games typically make use of windows with different opacities to attract focus.

Game UIs are easier to use. When I ask my game-shy friends if they want to play a game, the usual response is that they’ll watch me play for a little while and then give it a shot. When they pick it up, it all comes fairly easily because the game teaches you as you play.

Games are that easy to use because players have demanded an experience that doesn’t require them to read a manual. Game developers have already faced a lot of UI design and human interaction problems, and have fixed them (well, the good developers have) while standard utility-software development has been stuck thinking inside a box full of restrictions and standards.

Beenox talks Amazing Spider-Man

"The Amazing Spider-Man" game has been released, the team at developer Beenox has some time to kill between projects, so I got the opportunity to talk with producer David Boudreault about the most recent installment in the Spidey franchise. 

[Ed. Note] This article will be presented in a question-then-answer style, with our question to Boudreault in bold text followed by his answer in normal text.

Spider-Man movie games have been coming out for as long as the movies have been, most of them not so good, but it seems that "The Amazing Spider-Man" is trying its hardest to break that stereotype, what drove you to make an (forgive the pun) amazing game?

At Beenox, everyone is a huge fan of Spider-Man so we dedicated all our passion and energy on making this a great game. The core team of "The Amazing Spider-Man" already delivered the awesome "Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions" two years ago, therefore we had strong and experimented resources working on this title.

 Because it is a movie tie-in game, were there any limitations that you had when creating the game?

Our main limitation was self-imposed . We wanted a great Spider-Man game, respectful of the source material and respectful of the movie universe created by Marc Webb.

With the game coming out a full week before the release date of the movie , should players be worried about any big spoilers in the game?

The game is heavily linked to the movie on some ways, but we made sure that we would not spoil anything too major.

Spider-Man is a little sneakier this time around.

On that note, did the team over at Beenox get a chance to see the film or at the very least read the script to help with the game?

Sony was really cooperative and they helped us tremendously in making sure the game would rock. We had the chance to read the script at the beginning of the project, and we were in constant communication throughout the course of the project. We received movies and images as references in order to make sure we were staying as close as possible to the movie universe.

You mentioned to me at E3 that the actor for "The Amazing Spider-Man," Andrew Garfield was too busy with the films shooting schedule to do the voice over for the game. Who did you get to replace him in the game, and do you think players are going to have a hard time reconciling the different voice actors?

Even though the game is an epilogue to the movie, we also made sure it was standing out on itself. Having a different actor won’t be such a big deal, especially since Sam Riegl did an awesome job in voicing Spidey/Peter.

The camera in this game has been brought to an over the shoulder position, which differs from many of the past Spider-Man games. What prompted this decision?

Spidey takes on Rhino.

We wanted to offer the most immersive experience yet for a Spider-Man game. To achieve this, the most clever solution, in our minds, was to bring the camera as close as possible to the character. That way, the player is able to experience the world as Spidey experiences it - from the sense of vertigo felt while web swinging to the pleasure of getting rid of opponents in close combat.

I recently just downloaded the "Amazing Spider-Man" demo for my 3DS and the villain of choice in the demo was Felicia Hardy, also known as the Black Cat. In the comics, she and Spider-Man have a little romance, so are we going to see that interaction as the story progresses?

You don't want me to spoil the story, do you?

The combat system has reportedly been built from the ground up replacing the old X, X, X, B combo style for a more free-flowing combat mechanic. What inspired this transition?

Spidey is a strong character, but we wanted to showcase his spectacular agility. We wanted the combat to be as acrobatic as possible. We feel our new, unique combat system will allow the player to experience that agility since you’ll see him execute moves never before seen in a Spidey game.

Beenox has become relatively well known for creating good Spider-Man games. Does the team still want to continue working on the franchise, or are they just fed up with the web slinger and want to move on?

Beenox thrives on challenges, be it with a character like Spidey or other characters. If fans like the game, we definitely would want the chance to give this game a great sequel. That being said, we might also have a surprise or two in our future.