The Art Style of Reveal It! — And Why We Chose It
- 7 days ago
- 5 min read
One of the first decisions we made while developing Reveal It! – The Word Game had nothing to do with gameplay.
It was about art. Specifically, one question kept coming back during development:
What should a modern word game look like?
When we looked at the market, we noticed something interesting.
Most word games look remarkably similar,
Minimalist single-color backgrounds or zen style landscape photo backgrounds,
Flat interfaces,
Thin typography,
Minimal colors, and
Simple rectangular buttons...
In many cases, they resemble productivity software more than games. That isn't necessarily a bad thing—they're clean, readable, and familiar. But it wasn't the experience we wanted to create. We didn't want players to feel like they were opening another utility. We wanted them to feel like they had just opened a toy box as if they are playing an A-quality mobile game.
The "Software UI" Problem
Take a look at many popular word games today. Most follow the same design language:
Flat buttons
White or light gray backgrounds
Minimal shadows
Thin borders
Simple icons
Lots of empty space
Many of them could easily be mistaken for:
a note-taking app,
a flashcard application,
a language-learning tool,
or even a spreadsheet.
Some games try to make things livelier by adding:
an animated mascot,
a scenic background,
or a few playful animations.
But underneath, the interface is still very close to modern software design.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with this approach. It works well for many audiences. It just wasn't the audience we wanted to reach.
Honestly!.. We started the same way. Same old software design principles, boring visuals. But we knew that design understanding wasn't what we were looking for.
We Wanted Reveal It! to Feel Like a Real Game
When someone launches Royal Match, they instantly know they're playing a game.
The same happens with:
Candy Crush Saga
Block Blast!
Angry Birds
Everything feels tangible. Buttons look pressable. Coins look collectible.
Boosters look like physical objects. Even menus feel playful.
That feeling is difficult to describe, but players notice it immediately.
We wanted Reveal It! to evoke that same emotional response.
In our progress, we created many designs. Clean, colorful, and functional.
But then we realized that we are unconsciously leaning towards a design that looks much like the Wheel of Fortune's board.
We got our original inspiration from already existing physical games like the Scrabble and mobile games like Royal Match. Not by copying those games, but by adopting the same design philosophy:
Every element should feel like it belongs inside a toy box.
So, we continued iterating our designs, and we tried new designs.
Designing a Digital Toy
When designing Reveal It!, we treated every interface element as if it were a physical object. Instead of flat buttons, we created chunky buttons with depth. Instead of plain tiles, we designed rounded letter blocks that resemble wooden puzzle pieces.
Finally, we come to point that satisfied our initial objective. Instead of generic icons, we created boosters that feel like objects players could almost pick up. Coins have volume. Keys shine. Even the chapter banner resembles a sign hanging above an arcade attraction. Nothing is merely functional. Everything is becoming part of that digital world.
Why This Matters
Visual design affects player expectations. Imagine seeing two games. The first looks like an educational app. The second looks like a colorful toy.
Without playing either one, most players already expect the second game to be:
more relaxing,
more rewarding,
more entertaining.
Visual language communicates emotion long before mechanics do. Players begin judging your game within seconds. Often before the tutorial even starts.
Our Target Audience Isn't Just Word Game Fans
One of our biggest goals was expanding beyond traditional word-game players.
Many word games primarily appeal to people who already enjoy:
crossword puzzles,
Hangman,
word searches,
Scrabble,
vocabulary quizzes.
Those audiences are valuable—but relatively niche.
We wanted Reveal It! to appeal to a much broader audience. Players who normally enjoy:
Match-3 games
Puzzle adventures
Hybrid casual games
Collection games
Relaxing mobile experiences
For these players, visual familiarity matters. When they see rounded buttons, collectible currencies, colorful boosters, and polished animations, the game immediately feels approachable.
Even before solving the first puzzle, the presentation tells them:
"You already know how games like this feel."
That familiarity lowers the barrier to trying something new.
Familiar Doesn't Mean Unoriginal
Some developers worry that borrowing visual conventions from successful puzzle games makes their game less unique.
We see it differently. Players don't learn visual languages from scratch every time they install a game.
They already understand that:
green buttons usually mean "Play,"
coins are currencies,
keys unlock things,
glowing objects are valuable,
rounded buttons are tappable.
Using familiar visual language lets players spend less time learning the interface and more time enjoying the gameplay. Innovation doesn't require reinventing every button. Sometimes it means presenting a new idea inside a familiar package.
Why We Chose Themed Levels Instead of Endless Puzzles
One design choice that supports our visual style is the themed level system. Instead of presenting players with an endless list of puzzles, Reveal It! groups puzzles into themed levels.
Each level has its own identity.
Historic Figures
Wild Cats
Breakfast Foods
American Car Brands
The level selection screen becomes part of the adventure. Rather than progressing through an abstract level number, players feel like they're traveling through different collections of knowledge and this gives Reveal It! a stronger sense of progression than many traditional word games.
Building a Hybrid-Casual Word Game
Reveal It! wasn't designed as a classic word game. It was designed as a hybrid-casual puzzle game whose core mechanic happens to involve words.
That distinction influenced nearly every artistic decision.
Instead of asking:
"What should a word game look like?"
we asked:
"What would players of Royal Match or Block Blast expect from a modern puzzle game?"
The answer shaped everything:
Large, tactile buttons
Colorful boosters
Collectible currencies
Friendly typography
Rich animations
Decorative chapter screens
Reward-driven progression
Bright, inviting environments
The result is a game that feels familiar to casual puzzle players while still offering a fresh word-based experience.
Looking Back
Could Reveal It! have worked with a minimalist, software-like interface? Probably. But it wouldn't have felt like the game we wanted to build.
We believe great mobile games are remembered not only for their mechanics, but also for how they make players feel the moment they open the app.
Our goal was simple:
Not to make the cleanest word game.
Not to make the most realistic word game.
But to make a word game that feels like opening a beautifully crafted puzzle toy. If players smile before they even solve their first word, then we've achieved exactly what we set out to do.
