“Sweet, a whole website of video game menus”
The Game UI Database is a website that covers the interfaces of almost 2,000 games via over 75,000 screenshots.
It has meticulous information architecture, so you can jump into specific sections, for example:
Even if games and productivity software seem worlds apart – the creator of the site, Edd Coates, calls himself “UI artist,” which is not a title I’ve ever seen in my line of work – I’ve long thought games do some things better, and these can be an inspiration.
The database was started by Coates a few years ago. This launch article on Mashable has this interesting passage:
The site is relatively short on context, with only the collections of screenshots gathered under different tags for visitors to go on. […]
That’s the site working as intended. As Coates explained: “It’s useful for designers to identify recurring and pre-established patterns in successful titles when building their own interfaces.” Added context isn’t necessary because the contrasting approaches evident in each image is the whole point.
Needless to say – I mean, you know this after spending 12 seconds on this blog – I disagree. But it seems the author does too, since he’s working on a book called The Game UI Bible, to be released in the first half of 2027:
I recognize the volume is pricey and last time I was excited about a book, it turned out to be quite a disaster. The Game UI Bible book also touts a lot of interviews with UI artists, and I find these to be a mixed bag in practice; it’s really hard to interview people in a way that yields something interesting.
But still, I am excited again – and if you’re not, the Game UI Database is worth checking out.
The title of the post comes from a different blog post about the database.