Heckinchonkeires Developments

What in the Heckin' Dungeon? Design Diary #1

This is part of a series about how I am designing What In the Heckin’ Dungeon?: a web app for tracking information tabletop role-playing game players need while exploring the world.

What In the Heckin’ Dungeon? was inspired by a player in my D&D campaign telling me that they were the sort of person who “yellow paint” is for in video games. Yellow paint is an umbrella term for visual indicators in video games that signify interaction and help guide the player.

"Yellow paint in Dying light. Fully described in the following figcaption"
An elevator shaft in the video game Dying Light. Splotches of yellow paint indicate the path the player must climb in an overly obvious way.

That player’s comment told me that they needed a visual reference for information when playing D&D. We also discussed how to do that as a group. We used to use maps on a physical dry erase grid for combat, and I suggested a virtual table top app like Roll20. None of us had any idea what we could do outside of combat, so I said I would think about it.

So I thought. Then I had the thought: “We’re using a web app for combat, so why not use one for other things?” I have web design experience, interaction design training, and I’m passionate and learning about accessibility. I didn’t look for an existing web app. It’s not that I thought I could necessarily make the best one, but I was sure making it myself would mean I would learn a lot about the things I want to learn.