game-ui

Core Philosophy

User Interface (UI) design for video games is fundamentally different from web or SaaS design. Game UI exists in service of immersion, situational awareness, and gameplay flow. A cluttered, opaque web-style dashboard pasted over a 3D game world shatters immersion. Game UI requires strict classification across diegetic and non-diegetic layers, controller-first spatial navigation (the 10-foot television rule), rapid glanceability during high-stress combat, and responsive resolution scaling.

4-Step Game UI & HUD Architecture

Step 1: The 4 Interface Immersion Layers

UI Layer Classification:
- Diegetic UI: Exists inside the physical 3D game world and is experienced by the character (e.g. Dead Space holographic health spine, Pip-Boy wrist computer, physical map held in character hands).
- Non-Diegetic UI: Traditional 2D screen overlay completely invisible to the character (e.g. Health bar at top-left, floating minimap, pause menu).
- Spatial UI: UI elements positioned in the 3D world but invisible to the character (e.g. floating waypoint markers over mission objectives, player name tags).
- Meta UI: Visual effects representing character state on screen (e.g. blood splatters on screen when injured, water droplets on camera lens).