Devotion of Escher UI
Overview
The user interface in Devotion of Escher was designed to immerse players in a mysterious 1900s setting while ensuring that information remained clear, readable, and intuitive. My goal was to create a visual language that complemented the game’s investigative tone. A subtle, analog-inspired, and grounded in player discovery. Each interface element, from the Base UI to Dialogue and Menu screens, needed to feel like a natural extension of the world rather than an overlay.
The challenge was to balance style and usability: building a UI that enhanced the sense of immersion without sacrificing clarity or pacing. Every component was iterated through sketches, prototypes, and playtests to ensure players always understood their objectives and context while staying deeply connected to the story.
End Results
Research
Before designing the UI, we conducted visual and usability research to understand how early 20th-century aesthetics could inform a modern, functional interface. I studied antique journals, typewriter layouts, and analog dials to capture the feeling of a personal investigation while keeping legibility and feedback modern. The team also referenced narrative-heavy games like Return of the Obra Dinn, Disco Elysium, and The Vanishing of Ethan Carter for their use of minimalist, story-driven UI that guides the player through tone rather than overt instruction.
From this research, I developed a clear interaction structure for all major UI systems — Base, Dialogue, and Menu. Each flowchart mapped player pathways, system dependencies, and contextual triggers. For example, the Dialogue UI flow focused on pacing and emotional clarity, ensuring each choice felt intentional, while the Menu UI flow emphasized quick access to key information without breaking immersion.
Flowcharts
The Notebook UI flowchart visualized how players would interact with the game’s investigative systems. It mapped the progression from opening the notebook to analyzing residents, rooms, and inventory objects, ensuring that information was revealed naturally and supported a sense of discovery. Each pathway linked visual, audio, and written feedback, such as photos, names, descriptions, and “detective thoughts” (to reinforce the player’s investigative role). This structure helped the team balance narrative pacing with clarity, making sure players always felt like they were uncovering the truth rather than being told it.
LoFi Mockups
After completing initial research and interaction flowcharts, I created a series of low fidelity mockups to test functionality, readability, and player flow before committing to final visuals. These mockups covered the Base UI, Notebook UI, NPC Dialogue UI, and Time Travel UI, allowing me to explore how each system communicated information and emotion within the 1900s mystery setting.
The goal of this stage was to validate user experience early while ensuring that each interface supported clarity, narrative pacing, and world cohesion. By keeping visual elements simple, I focused on the structure of information, interaction timing, and player feedback loops. This process also made collaboration easier across disciplines, allowing designers, programmers, and artists to align around core usability principles before production.
Post Audience Testing Notes
Once the low fidelity designs were implemented in-engine, we conducted a series of audience tests to evaluate how players interacted with each system. These sessions helped us identify which elements felt intuitive and immersive, and which needed rethinking. Through observation and direct feedback, we gained insight into how players approached investigation, navigation, and dialogue flow within the game.
One of the first major findings was that combining the notebook and inventory systems created unnecessary clunkiness during gameplay. Separating the two allowed each to serve its own purpose more clearly, improving usability and pacing. Our tests also revealed that fusing our initial concepts for NPC interactions created a smoother and more engaging player experience, enhancing narrative flow and emotional impact.
The Watch UI, which handled time travel mechanics, stood out as a player favorite. Testers found its design and responsiveness satisfying, which guided us to refine rather than overhaul its structure. Meanwhile, the notebook system evolved to include individual sections, giving players a stronger sense of organization and progression as they gathered clues throughout the game
Final Results
Thanks to the detailed research process and iteration, we were left with the final results.
Post Project Reflection
Designing the user interface for Devotion of Escher reinforced the importance of iterative, user-centered design and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Through continuous prototyping, playtesting, and audience validation, I learned how usability and immersion can coexist when visual hierarchy and interaction feedback are intentionally balanced. By applying principles of information architecture, cognitive load management, and accessibility, each UI element evolved into a system that served both function and narrative. The process deepened my understanding of how user experience design can guide emotional pacing, support player autonomy, and strengthen storytelling through cohesive visual communication.