Interaction and Interface Design

Ok, here it is. I will show you an image first and explain it second:


Click on the picture for a larger image

So, this is how it works:
The music staff at the top of the screen moves from right to left, with the dotted line located on the left hand side of the screen staying stationary. On this staff, there are various icons that represent what instrument is to be played at any one time. For instance, when the drum marked ‘L’ reaches the dotted line, the player must ‘hit’ the left drum.

The next icon on the staff indicates the synthesizer part in the song. To play the synthesizer, the player must ‘grab’ the synth icon with his left hand. The player then must ‘control’ the pitch of the synth by following the musical note on the right hand side of the screen with his right hand by moving his right hand up and down. The closer the player comes to following the pitch of the synth with his right hand, the better he will do in the game.

Next on the musical staff is the microphone icon. This signals the player that it is time to ‘sing’ the song. The player ‘grabs’ the microphone and follows the pitches of the vocals with his left hand. Also, there is a bouncing ball that helps the player follow along with the melody of the vocals.

During the game, there must be some sort of real time feedback as to how the player is doing. For drum parts, an exaggerated audio sound of the drum playing out of sync with the game’s music will indicate that the player has missed the beat. The farther off the beat the player plays, the more exaggerated the bad note will sound.

A similar phenomenon will happen when the player is using his right hand track pitches. For instance, when the player is ‘playing’ the synth and his hand is below where the proper pitch should be, a pitch that is slightly below the proper pitch will be played, signaling to the player that the have missed the mark.

Filed by Administrator at 5:31 pm under Blog Post