MEEP Gaming App

Overview

Our project focused on creating a user-centric design that empowers players to manage different facets of their well-being, like mental health, in-game spending, and sleep schedules.

What started as a goal to improve mental well-being led to the development of an assistive wristwatch concept and an interactive robot companion, both engaging and beneficial.

Team

This portfolio project emerged as a result of my participation in the course “Introduction to User Research” at Miami University.

  • Taylor Villella M.A User Experience and Digital Marketing

  • Skyler Jenkins M.A User Experience and Digital Marketing

  • Thomas Gilman M.A User Experience and Digital Marketing

Problem Statement

Recognize the psychological impacts of excessive gaming and build solutions that address the mental health of users without compromising on the pleasurable immersive experience of gaming.

My Role

  • Facilitated brainstorming sessions for design challenges

  • Conducted user research interviews to gather insights

  • Created physical prototypes to visualize concepts

  • Delivered engaging progress presentations

  • Led exploration of incorporating a robot into the project

  • Assessed feasibility and implications of robot integration

  • Developed MEEP prototype as tangible design representation

  • Evaluated functionality, gathered user feedback, iterated design

User Research

Young people have the most impressionable minds. Gaming is popular amongst young adults, and hence we chose a user group of young adults between the ages of 18 and 24.

Below are a few quotations that were brought up throughout our user research interviews.

  • "I used to get so frustrated if I lost a match that I could not concentrate on my work."

  • "After school I would start playing video games at 9 or 10 and not stop playing until 2am and would have a hard time getting up for school."

  • There are many games I played such as league of legends that encourages gambling and I didn't realize it until I was older."

  • "I skipped so many plans with family and friends to play video games."

Deeper Research

https://tinyurl.com/36bes5xs

“Increase aggression among adolescents and who play violent video games.”

https://tinyurl.com/86na75mj

“3-6.5 million gamers in the United States are estimated to have mental disorders due to gaming.”

Affinity Mapping

We made an affinity map in which we included quotes from our interviews.

  • We made an affinity map in which we included quotes from our interviews.

  • We started deriving themes out of all the quotes.

  • And further, we developed eight "How might we?"

Affinity Mapping Themes

  • Aggression

    Players face performance pressure while playing with peers which can lead into frustration which can leak into their personal lives

  • Virtual & Real World

    Games may serve as an escape to reality especially when an individual feels stressed

  • Expenses

    Players that are addicted to games may overspend

  • Physical Health

    Excessive gaming may result in laziness or change in sleeping habits

Crazy 8’s

During our research phase, we carefully conducted interviews to gain valuable insights. From these interviews, we successfully identified key themes that guided our design process.

Idea Generation with the Crazy Eights Method: To generate a multitude of creative solutions, we employed the popular Crazy Eights method during our ideation process. Here, you can find a visual representation of my Crazy 8s, showcasing the diverse range of ideas we explored.

Pain Points

The Solution

Following thorough primary and secondary research and insightful discussions with professors and peers, we developed the concept of an AI support animal robot integrated into smartwatches. This innovative idea aims to re-engage users with the real world and support their mental well-being, combining advanced technology with the companionship of a support animal for a comprehensive user experience enhancement.

Our concept involved connecting the watch's face to a robot's body, aiming for enhanced user connection and cost-effectiveness. The integration of a physical robot was designed to foster a personal connection and emotional attachment, similar to a desktop pet. The unique feature allowing the watch face to detach and connect with the robot minimized manufacturing costs by combining functionalities into one unit, offering an affordable, seamless solution that caters to users' mental health and provides an engaging experience.

Introducing MEEP

It was a creative risk to build a prototype of a AI Support Animal for solving this problem. Yet I took the risk and pitched it to the team first and then to our grad teaching staff and class. And it was a hit.

​

‘MEEP’ is a cute AI Support Animal that is always with the players like a loyal companion. Meep cheers the players with music, dance movements, and adorable expressions!

Meep is also a great helper that reminds players to sleep on time, encourages them to take a walk, helps them track their gaming activities, and answers their questions.

Wireframe

During our project, we considered how a smartwatch might disrupt a user's immersion in gaming. To balance the gaming experience with mental health needs, we aimed to design the smartwatch integration in a way that minimizes distractions and maintains the gaming immersion.

High Fidelity Interaction with Meep

What did we learn?

  1. Thorough Research: Comprehensive research provided deep insights into the problem space, opening doors for innovative solutions.

  2. Collaborative Feedback: Input from professors and colleagues was crucial in refining our ideas, adding diverse perspectives to create a more effective solution.

  3. User-Centric Approach: Focusing on user needs highlighted the importance of addressing their desire for real-world connection and mental health support, guiding our decision-making.

  4. Holistic Solution: We aimed for a solution that addresses both emotional and practical needs, enhancing overall user satisfaction.

  5. Iterative Design Process: Our design evolved through multiple rounds of feedback and refinement, emphasizing the value of iterative development.

  6. Balancing Innovation and Feasibility: We ensured our AI support animal robot concept was both innovative and technologically feasible.

  7. Real-World Impact: Our focus on mental health and real-world connection underlines our commitment to creating meaningful design impacts.