Industry

Data Science/Gaming

Company

Data Science Alliance

Role

Experience Designer & Producer

Transforming Educational Game Onboarding Through User-Centered Design

Impact At A Glance

Established rigorous playtesting frameworks that became the foundation for all design decisions.

Solved three critical engagement challenges through targeted, user-validated solutions.

Created an onboarding experience that successfully balances education with engagement.

Proved complex concepts like data science can be taught through compelling, accessible gameplay that resonates with young players.

Secured leadership buy-in through prototype-driven demonstration of impact.

Main Project Image
Main Project Image
Main Project Image

The Challenge

One year into production of an educational video game teaching responsible data science, we faced a critical problem: we were building in a vacuum.

Four of six game sections were playable, but we had no validated user feedback. The team had been operating on assumptions and design theory for months, and when we finally conducted initial playtesting, the results were alarming—players struggled with story overload, navigation confusion, and lack of immersion.

The core question: How do you design onboarding that motivates, educates, and hooks players ages 10-17 from the very first moments?


My Approach: From Assumptions to Evidence

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Phase 1: Establishing Real User Feedback

The Problem: We weren't getting feedback from our actual target audience. Most testers didn't represent educational game players, and initial builds failed to produce actionable insights.

What I Did:

  • Built a grassroots research strategy: gathered insights from project interns, peers with younger siblings who played educational games, and adults with retrospective experience

  • Conducted comprehensive competitive research across forums, academic papers, and industry analyses to identify best practices

  • Designed rigorous playtesting sessions using industry-standard UX methodologies, geared to gather insights into our game’s fun-factor, engagement, and educational levels

  • Shifted the team from assumption-driven development to evidence-based, user-centric design

Impact: Established a repeatable playtesting framework that generated targeted, actionable insights from 13 participants, creating the foundation for all subsequent improvements.

Note: Our initial playtester pool was intentionally small for this pilot launch, aimed at validating our survey and testing formats. More playtesters will be joining, which may shift results, but early feedback has been strongly positive

Phase 2: Solving Critical Engagement Challenges

Armed with real feedback, I identified and solved three critical pain points preventing players from connecting with the educational content:

  1. Story Engagement & Comprehension

Pain Point: Players repeatedly skimmed or skipped heavy dialogue sections. Feedback flagged difficulty following the story and extrapolating key lessons.

Solution: Introduced illustrated story sequences and celebratory art cards to break up key narrative moments and highlight RDS lessons, making content digestible while motivating players with small wins throughout their journey.

Result: Improved story comprehension and sustained player engagement by 88% through visual storytelling that respects attention spans.

  1. Player Confusion and Navigation

Pain Point: Players hesitated or asked for help with basic movement and objectives. Instructions and goals weren't coming through clearly, creating friction that derailed the learning experience.

Solution: Implemented a comprehensive navigation system:

  • Pregame testing area for controls familiarization

  • Intuitive keybinding presets

  • Contextual UI prompts at critical moments

  • Always-visible objective banner

  • Objective compass for spatial guidance

Result: Eliminated early-game confusion by 67%, enabling players to focus on learning rather than struggling with basic mechanics.

  1. Lack of Immersion & Personal Connection

Pain Point: Feedback showed players lacked immersion and wanted a stronger connection to the game world and its characters. Several mentioned wanting to change their character's appearance or gender; the world felt static and impersonal.

Solution: Implemented a character customization system enabling players to personalize avatar appearance and name. Directed a substantial increase in dynamic environmental animations, elevating the baseline and making the world feel more vibrant. Built foundational frameworks that allowed us to further diversify the environment and NPCs, resulting in a richer, more dynamic game experience.

Result: Increased player investment and immersion by 14% through personalization and representation features.

Leadership & Process

Identifying pain points wasn't enough; I needed to secure leadership buy-in to implement solutions. Written proposals alone weren't sufficient for a team that had been building without user validation.

My strategy: Built in-game prototypes to demonstrate impact and create team alignment in tandem with system briefs. This "show, don't tell" approach built strong leadership support, accelerated development, and maintained momentum by making solutions tangible and compelling.

What I've Learned

Leadership & Process

By the midpoint of this ongoing journey, the RDS Game had grown from an unformed idea into a showcase-ready product.

No One-Size-Fits-All: Every design project requires a unique approach; there’s no universal formula for success.

Resourceful Creativity: I adapt to project needs and constraints, letting creativity drive quality outcomes.

Audience Matters: Age ranges like 10–17 are not a single market, further market segmentation can be done; different groups process information differently.

Problem-Solving Focus: Success means solving the right problems for the right people, not just meeting business constraints.