My views on The Sims Social

Sims social really gives me headache.. I mean literally. Before i could type this entry out, i was exploring the sims social on fb and then my mile headache for half of the day just got worse. I had to nap abit and get back to work now.

Before i conclude why it is giving me headache, i shall summarize what the presenting team said about the app yesterday in 3 points.

1) Success story.

Indeed, as quoted from the group's presentation, Sims Social has 10,679,619 monthly active users and perhaps, it just had 1 more - me. From the moment, i clicked Play Now, I was brought into a world that stimulates a real social world where my character is supposed to interact with my friends' characters. But of course, all on a virtual and controlled level.

The reason why the app has so many users should be partly due to the popularity of The Sims PC game in the first place. Of course, i guess it adopts many functions of the original game thats why the success are brought over to Facebook. Essentially, Sims Social's success can be largely attributed to its pervasiveness. Before its launch, gamers had to pay USD40 odd to purchase the game and that, hugely limits the number of people playing it. Once its out on Facebook, and its free, people spread the word, and the app becomes super popz.

2) Gamification

The Sims Social uses really smart game mechanics: constant reward system. As I just started playing, it gave me step-by-step guide on how to interact with every object in the room, what to do when my Sim gets bored and how to visit my friends' Sims. Immediately after every single step i follow, my Sim gain moolah, gold diamond coins, blue diamon coins, social points and bla blahblah. It's realy encouraging for first time users like me who don't play much games. The game is constantly reminding users to interact with any items in the room by giving pop notifications and even playing different kind of sound clips. The rewards, points and level ups are exactly the factors that keeps the user captivated.

I was shocked that my Sim could automatically do activities without me controlling it. This is a pretty smart way to make the user wanting to gain back control. To be honest, i was thinking if it is really true that people are playing games to feel that they are in power, esp these kind of role playing games. The world is making us feel powerless, so many natural disasters, wars, miscommunications.. Sims is like building the perfect world, all our dreams can be realized through our Sim. Too much sentimental stuff eh..

3) Bugs bugs bugs

YES. This is what super agree with the group. I am a pretty unlucky first time user: Opened up the game, it took 5mins to load and its still loading... Then i had to refresh and it finally worked. I picked a gender for my Sim and i let it generate a random character with abit tweaks of skin colour and there i go, i Japanese looking 109 Harajuku girl.

I liked how it always gives us so much choices. Yet it does not give us any choice when it decides to hang. Like for example, when i reach the invite friends page for the first time, i clicked the "cancel" button, it led me to another tab that has got weird codes all over. I had to refresh again.

Another eg of how buggy it is: i was trying to click add my friend as my neighbour, after i clicked send request, the main game screen remained greyed out. =.= so what the game wants me to do now, refresh one more time? if not for this review, i would probably have stopped trying to use the app altogether. Can they please fix all the bugs?

Extras.

As a designer, i can't help but to keep commenting on the UI/UX

This is something i noticed while waiting for 8 years for the app to load. It's really a cute way to reduce boredom while waiting. The caption below will keep changing to other cute phrases.

Somehow, the app required too much to be done on the user side? so many coins to click on!! (but after a while i realise they will be automatically added to the Sim)

Lastly, the playing canvas for apps on FB is already super limited and the control panels on top and below of the screen occupied about 1 third the space. I think its quite irritating. especially when users have to keep zooming in and out to get a better view of the house. A good app should reduce efforts on the user side.

**How could i FORGOT TO MENTION: the illustration is fantastic!! i love all the colors, the every detail of the avatars, cute icons for rewards. Every little detail about the illustration is keeping users addicted to the game. There's a lot we designers can learn from Sims Social and so many FB games out there. So many different styles of graphic designs and they are all successful in their own ways. I wonder when can i find mine.

Mobile

I think this kind of apps have a great potential on mobile platforms! People can use it on-the-go while waiting for a meeting to start, in the toilet, waiting for bus.. etc. Just like Tiny Tower, it is gonna be well-liked by people of different age groups! Coupled with in-app purchase, closing the loop on the mobile app itself, the game will be brought to the next level. However, we are not sure when mobile payments will come to Singapore. :/ Soon i hope.

So basically, Sims Social gave me headache for 2 big reasons: 1 its buggy. 2 it looks really addictive and i hope i won't be addicted to it despite it being buggy. LOL

L3 HTML5, WP7

Today's lecture brought back memories from my intern company 2359media. I remember i had to come up with this presentation on 'Native Apps vs Mobile Web App'. One of the key point raised in the presentation was the role played by HTML5 in the mobile app. With HTML5, Mobile Web Apps seem to be a better choice for a brand's mobile strategy due to its ability to reach various platforms and it having improved functions to provide rich media interaction to users. I shall not summarize what we all have heard in the lecture, but let me show you some of the cool products of 2359 Media.

An example: rich media ad for HTC on the iPad

Employment of touch-based interactions... Video embedding... Mobile devices coupled with HTML5 redefine advertising. So much more can be incorporated to enhance the user experience.

MobDis, the key product of 2359 Media, are a HTML5 site builder for the non-programmers. Zero coding knowledge is needed to create a complete functional site with simple drag and drop.


Yup, i'm awed by what HTML5 brings to the mobile industry. That's exactly what we should explore for the mobile assignment!

WOW ok i just spent 10+mins watching the Mango demo. WP7 seems pretty cool. I like how it has big words and the pages flips to display. I like the fact that the UI is really inspired from objects in our daily lives (ok maybe not ours, theirs).

However, no matter how good a new technology is, tech diffusion takes a relatively long time. With the mobile phone market alr saturated with iPhones, Android, BlackBerry, blah blah, its gonne be hard for WP7. So the sad thing is, most people are not gonna adopt e new design quick enough due to habits. Evangelists gotta do their thing to tell people how great it is. Hopefully, innovators + early adopters can make a difference after sometime.

excited much.

Funny old advertisements?

I'm really happy to be working with my fb app groupmates. They are all super efficient people and are all super understanding! Xianyou is always high and tends to bring up the group atmosphere! Chunteck is cool and calm, like the thinker of the group, overseeing our progress and all! Alan has really good ideas and has helped me with some designs. Such nice people!! I'm thankful :D Mid term submission was fast and furious! :) good job guys!

The saturday workshops are interesting, only thing is that i can't really practice what i learned. i'm a more hands on person, so more practices would be good. But i know there aren't much time for me to slowly explore, so basic intro is the best solution, the rest depends on individual's efforts. I would love to learn more technical skills, gonna hit the online tutorials when im more or less done with random tutorials for other mods and the rest of the designs!!!

OH! i was really impressed by the movie booking loophole thing he found. wakaka. Don't think can openly say here.

L2 principles of software engineering?

So here's what i wiki-ed:

Software Engineering (SE) is a profession dedicated to designing, implementing, and modifying software so that it is of high quality, affordable, maintainable, and fast to build. It is a "systematic approach to the analysis, design, assessment, implementation, test, maintenance and reengineering of software, that is, the application of engineering to software."

Lecture wasn't a dry and boring one. It kind of summarized and simplified alot of complicated info into a simple presentation + sharing session from seniors (to suit non programemrs ^.^).

Key take-aways

1) SE involves Process, Programming,People. In our class, mostly are programmers & designers. Programmers are the core drivers of a project i would say, cause any app would require them to churn out all the complicated system. While the designers are the ones that make the outlook of the app pretty and easy to navigate for users.

2) Software development life cycle (SDLC) is somewhat similar to design iterations taught in previous design modules I took.

Iterative design is based on a cyclic process of prototyping, testing, analyzing and refining. Changes should be made according to feedback and thus the process helps to improve the quality and functionality of a design.

3) Decomposition | Abstraction | Design for Change

4) What I found interesting is the "High Cohesion, Low Coupling" theory. Cohesion i understand. Each module should be highly cohesive such that components are closely related and meaningful. But Low Coupling is kinda different from what i learn from Comms which is always stressing in the importance of making lotsa interactions with people. Everyone talks about networking and based on social networks, everyone is linked together. "6 Degrees of separation" proves that. We have been to told to tt interaction good, thus, without much thoughts, i chose the first diagram in my heart Prof Ben asked in class.

Based the programming pov, perhaps we can reflect abit more and probably too much connections with other people ain't good afterall.

On the side note! I created a foursquare venue for SR@LT19! LOL. Im gonna check in every single time and be the mayor! woohoo!

In the midst of being whiny

Today i'm in a total whiny mood. I'm like negative nancy.

Partly because of Sat's workshop - Even though the workshop taught simple stuff, it's kinda killing me. LOL. I could understand if i follow very closely, but i realise once i encounter a problem, "that's it" for me. Cause i'm not sure of the very basics of coding, so it's kinda hard to troubleshoot. But i was glad for my cnm senior to be sitting beside and learning tog! At least i wont be lost on my own. Programming is feng (means crazy)! But in a good way. Fellow classmates are so zai (pro)!

Partly because of the start of fb app assignment - Our group had a meeting after the workshop. We've decided our app and each of us are assigned with stuff to do. Mine of course is design. So i spent the whole day searching of ideas for the outlook and style... maybe im spending too much time researching. Should have just dived into it?

Anyways, 4-hour long workshop and a 3-hour long meeting was totally physically and mentally strenuous. I CANNOT believe i fell asleep from 8pm til 12nn the next day. =.= Unacceptable. Oh wells, i gotta sort out myself and be HIGH to get things done!!!!

This set of fonts are so nice. i like.

The very first lecture

I survived day 1!!

What i got out of it...

1) I'm more motivated and less anxious of the module. (erm, as i type this, i just got the jitters agains oh wells.)

2) Prof Ben Leong's motivational words are pretty helpful. Kinda reminded me of the very reason why i chose to take up cs3216.! I really like the second quote.

Make a difference.

What doesn't kill you, makes you STRONG!

3) hearing the seniors' advices and experiences made me more certain of this module. Despite the hell-like workload, they persevered till the end and remembered the joy. I would want to experience that as well. The only concern right now is that i'm really scared of my module combination this sem. 3 project-intensive module and 2 examinable ones. Just gotta pull through i guess.

4) OMG. Everyone is SUPER talented!!! Show & Tell was a blast!!! I was amazed by how diverse the whole class is and especially the pharmacy guy who can do programming. Those engine guys who can code and design.. and even make REAL ROBOTS. I mean look at myself, im merely a nooby designer with limited skills and probably no one knows i can design since i forgot to mention that. I totally should have shown the interactive design project i did last sem that won my team a 2nd placing in the UPA competition held in Atlanta. What i wrote on the CS3216 Superheroes paper was mostly for i'm a blogger", "worked in a real company before" and just 1 or 2 "photoshop guru". :/ Ah well, what's done is done.

I guess what i need to do right now is to keep the PASSION going! Not to let it wither!!!

On a side note, i'm really EXCITED about the saturday workshops!! I finally get to learn some programming. Hope i'm not tooo noob to pick it up.

What I hope to learn in cs3216

This is kinda crazy, but lemme start with saying my favorite 2 words these days.

Hello evleybirdie!!!

So what do i mean by "kinda crazy"?
Honestly, I'm not sure what has gotten into my head for having the guts to take up a computing module, and not just any computing module but THIS!! I mean it is software developement!!!! %^^$#^$&&# I know nuts about normal coding already (except for some basic dreamweaver), I still decided to try. I'm hoping to exercise my creativity in the course of coming up with killer app ideas and also to design the UI for them. I'm not 100% confident of my design skills, but i'm willing to learn and upgrade myself!

I hope to learn...

1) definitely, some basic programming skills! I'm a kinda maths person since young. I like to count and i'm pretty good with numbers. From what i know, that's a good thing to have to learn programming! When i see my friends doing their programming assignments, i feel this desire to understand the codes also. hehe and of course I wanna know more LANGUAGES~

2) more about UI/UX design that i happen to encounter during my internship with 2359 media. Helping colleagues brainstorming app ideas for clients was something i really enjoyed doing. CS3216 will give me the chance to realise design dreams of my own i suppose and also to hear about others' ideas and work on them.

3) how to work well in a team, especially under the simulation of a real working environment with people from the diff fields. It is rare chance that i will get to work with computing students and there will be many habits of them that im not aware of. There will be times that we all disagree with each other where we will need to take a step back and think for the greater good of the whole project.

These are just 3 fundamental points i wanna know. Due to the lack of knowledge for this module yet, more to be added throughout the semester when i know more.

As i always believe: More knowledge brings more queries!