Mental Models, Affordances, and Signifiers: Design for What Players Think the System Is
Technical terms: Player mental model, Affordance, Signifier, Telegraphing, Readability
A player mental model is the person's working understanding of how the system behaves. An affordance is a possible action offered by an object or interface. A signifier is a visible or audible cue that communicates that possibility. Telegraphing shows a likely event or consequence before it occurs. Readability is how easily relevant state and relationships can be perceived.
What you can do with it
Make important actions and consequences inferable before error. When a player fails, distinguish a difficult decision from an incorrect model of the interface.
Ask a player
What did the screen make you believe would happen before you acted?
Nearby ideas
- Sensory feedback — show what happened after action.
- Perceived action space — describe possibilities the player sees.
- Onboarding — establish a useful initial model.
- Accessibility — make cues available through more than one channel when needed.
Terminology synthesized from interaction design, especially the distinction between affordances and signifiers associated with Don Norman, and common game-design usage of telegraphing and readability. ---