MelZombi
Mel

Games UX Research and Design - Reading for Professional Development

Interested in User Experience (UX) and video games? This list began as a curation from personal and professional recommendations as my career has evolved in games. It has grown to include influential works from throughout my academic and professional career that have shaped my working philosophies and provided me with invaluable perspective.

This is my current active reading list for own professional development in Games UX Research and Design. Always looking for new recommendations!

Notable Mentions:
- Includes amazing recommendations from the IGDA Games User Research SIG:

Designing Quality Survey Questions

Designing Quality Survey Questions
BySheila B. Robinson,Kimberly Firth Leonard

2018 • 256 pages

Don't Make Me Think, Revisited

2000 • 295 Readers • 216 pages 4.1

Games User Research

Games User Research
ByAnders Drachen(Editor),Pejman Mirza-Babaei(Editor)

2018 • 2 Readers • 560 pages 4

@MelZombi
Last finished on
Game Usability: Advancing the Player Experience

Game Usability: Advancing the Player Experience
ByKatherine Isbister,Noah Schaffer

2008 • 3 Readers • 400 pages

How To Be A Games User Researcher: Run better playtests, reveal usability and UX issues, and make videogames better

2021 • 2 Readers • 183 pages 5

@MelZombi
Last finished on
Interviewing Users: How to Uncover Compelling Insights

2013 • 28 Readers • 158 pages 4

Just Enough Research: 2nd Edition

#9 of 25 in A Book Apart

2013 • 186 pages

Quantifying the User Experience: Practical Statistics for User Research

2012 • 6 Readers • 350 pages 3

The Design of Everyday Things

1988 • 113 Readers • 368 pages 4.2

The Gamer's Brain: How Neuroscience and UX Can Impact Video Game Design

2017 • 11 Readers • 266 pages

Theory of Fun for Game Design

2004 • 51 Readers • 297 pages 3.8

The Pocket Mentor for Video Game UX Ui

2025 • 1 Reader 4.5

@MelZombi
Last finished on
The Secret Science of Games

2023 • 3 Readers • 208 pages 3