Building a Game Discovery Website with GameBrain API
API Integration
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Overview:
GameVault is an interactive web experience designed to simplify how players discover new video games. The site pulls live data from the GameBrain API and allows users to search by title, genre, or platform while viewing dynamic recommendations. Throughout the project, AI was used as a supportive tool to explore ideas, understand technical concepts, and debug issues, while all UX decisions and final implementations were guided by user needs and design principles.
Role:
UX Designer
Tools Used:
HTML/CSS/ JS
Problem:
Many game discovery platforms overwhelm users with dense layouts, excessive options, and poor visual hierarchy. Finding relevant games often takes too long, especially for users with limited free time. Existing tools prioritize volume over clarity, making the discovery process feel frustrating rather than enjoyable.
Visual Studio Code
ChatGPT
GameBrain API
User Research:
This website is geared towards casual to dedicated gamers who want a faster, less cluttered way to discover new games especially after work or during short play sessions. These users value clarity, relevance, and an experience that respects their time.
This is the ideal user persona for the game API website.
This is a UML Use Case diagram to show the websites functional requirements and use case.
Key Features:
Real time game search using the GameBrain API
Dynamic recommendations that refresh on interaction
Clear visual hierarchy to reduce cognitive load
Design & UX Decisions:
Design decisions were grounded in user centred thinking and supported by AI assisted exploration. Early layout and visual experiments helped identify effective hierarchy and spacing, while UX principles guided refinements to reduce overwhelm.
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This is before and after changing up the initial hero layout.
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When addressing NSFW content, AI assisted debugging helped implement filtering logic, but the decision to include a user controlled Safety Mode was driven by inclusive design values protecting users without limiting choice.
Final Outcome:
The final product is a visually engaging, user friendly game discovery website that balances dynamic data with thoughtful UX design. GameVault demonstrates my ability to work with APIs, iterate through technical challenges, and use AI intentionally to enhance both my design process and technical understanding.
Reflection:
This project significantly improved my confidence working with APIs and JavaScript. Using AI as a learning and debugging partner helped me move past roadblocks while deepening my understanding of how dynamic data impacts user experience. More importantly, it reinforced the value of pairing emerging tools with strong UX fundamentals to create intentional, human centred design.