The Room
A tactile puzzle box game made for touchscreens.
Where The Room comes up1 episode or test
- Poke, pull and twist objects
- Player controls the action directly
- Tactile, playful, leads to mastery
- Contextual button prompts
- Max plays guitar, waters plant
- Players lose tactile challenge
Skip prompts when you want skill-based interaction
From Game Maker's Toolkit, Mark Brown
What was said about The Room
The Room lets players poke, pull and twist objects directly on iPad. Game Maker's Toolkit points to The Room, alongside Monument Valley, as a case where direct touch on iPad is fun because players physically manipulate the world. Direct control can feel tactile and playful, and can lead to challenge and mastery.
Mark Brown contrasts this with Life is Strange, where Max plays guitar, waters a plant or takes a photo through simple contextual button prompts. He says those players "lose out on the fact that directly controlling the action can be tactile and playful, or lead to challenge and mastery." The lesson is to avoid context-sensitive prompts when you want tactile, skill-based interaction.
Controllers Control Everything
Shows how fun direct touch can be on iPad, where you poke, pull and twist the world.
The Room lets players poke, pull and twist objects directly on iPad. Game Maker's Toolkit points to The Room, alongside Monument Valley, as a case where direct touch on iPad is fun because players physically manipulate the world. Direct control can feel tactile and playful, and can lead to challenge and mastery.
Mark Brown contrasts this with Life is Strange, where Max plays guitar, waters a plant or takes a photo through simple contextual button prompts. He says those players "lose out on the fact that directly controlling the action can be tactile and playful, or lead to challenge and mastery." The lesson is to avoid context-sensitive prompts when you want tactile, skill-based interaction.
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