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Make it Rain is a game mode where prizes are allocated to tournament players at the beginning of a poker game. The prizes can be offered to hundreds of people at a time, with only a few prizes winnable, therefore a creative solution which delivers this in a modest way, but still provides engagement and excitement was the greatest challenge.
The key issues were to contextualise winnings and prizes across the whole tournament. There would be people winning prizes but this was made abstract by the fact that this may or may not happen on your table, in theory all players seen on your screen could lose. As this product is brand new on the market, I had the advantage of exploring the best delivery of this message.
Poker
Design the delivery and manage disappointment in a complex game mode. Most players lose.
User Flows
Conceptualisation
The problem
The challenge is to create animating items on screen where the parameters extend beyond placement and positioning, into time, trajectory and inertia. Developing and implementing this in a UX space was technically complex and required hands-on collaboration with developers.
The Solution
I defined start and end parameters and defined a system on Figma to help translate speed, rotation and positional indices easily. The result was defined interaction design which used the screen as a full canvas for exploration.
After Effects | Figma
Poker Spins
The problem
Most poker clients use slots machines to present this mechanic. We wanted to position ourselves away from this, but also present the other multiplier figures to increase anticipation of winning a large prize pool
The Solution
Using the facets of a hexagon you can see adjacent multiplier figures while keeping the winning facet highlighted and in view. The table colour was configured to correspond with winning prize pool. Adding a unique colour scheme each time you play.
Strategize ways of presenting a spins mechanic without relying on generic or typical representations
V1 - Shortlisting winning tables and experimenting with where to place anticipation
V2 - Shortlisting winning tables
First attempt solved all issues however from a pace perspective appeared convoluted. The user may not understand the process
Second attempt simplified the solution however a very boring process for losing tables as the holding animation would take a while for other tournament players in that time to be winning prizes
V3 - Prioritising information
At the time of creating this I knew that this flow would need to be carefully balanced against creative concept. Delivery of the losing message needed to be held in the right container. I next explored the 'box' and what kind of container would be best for the user.
Storyboarding
Initially I explored ways of delivering this prize, boxes, chests, golden nuggets etc. However the project needed a device which you can associate with a losing prize. Eventually, I finally chose to use the ‘humble’ scratch card as a device to subtly convey the probability problem (semantically people associate these with low risk low reward disposable items bought alongside other supermarket items). Delivering a losing message on a scratch card feels familiar. I have also utilised the thumb swiping action across mobile formats for engagement and anticipation.
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