UX case study: signup flow redesign for an indie game studio
Black Salt Games · 0-minute redesign
Black Salt Games
by andres ·
Open the prototype →
The approach
Black Salt Games had a signup page that worked like a brochure: GIFs, feature bullets, and a wishlist button. People clicked, left, and forgot. What they needed was a page that turned that click into someone who shows up in Discord before launch day. I rebuilt the flow around small acts of contribution. On Screen 1 I kept the line "The door is open" and added "Leave your first mark" next to the wishlist, so the invitation comes with something to do immediately. On Screen 2 the banners used to just illustrate a vote that would happen later in Discord; now you pick one on the page and see it placed in the scene before you register. That makes the first personal tie to the world. The form on Screen 3 only appears after you've chosen, under "That's your mark. Let's make it count." Signing up now protects a contribution you already made. Screen 4 carries your choice into Discord with an opening line, "I picked The Spiral because…", plus "Reading along counts. No introduction required," so arriving in a new group is less uncomfortable. Screen 5 describes the community by behaviour: people who overanalyse the lore, notice small details, or file a bug and come back with a sketch. It makes the group recognisable. Screen 6 returns your choice, shows the result, explains how the team used it, and acknowledges your input even if your banner lost — so the relationship holds either way.
The screens
The brief
Black Salt Games — Indie Game Studio · Wishlist + community signup page before a Steam release
The page is a wall of GIFs and feature bullets. It doesn't build a tribe before launch — visitors wishlist and forget.
Objective: Design a signup that turns wishlist clicks into Discord-active fans before launch day, using behind-the-scenes investment hooks.
What the client already had
The first version their own LLM produced — the thing this redesign had to beat.
The behaviour design behind it
Belonging
| Momento del flujo | Dónde intervine | Qué busca provocar | | ----------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **1. La invitación del hero** | Conservé “The door is open” y añadí **“Leave your first mark”** junto al wishlist. La invitación tiene una acción inmediata. | «Puedo entrar mientras este mundo se está construyendo». | | **2. La primera elección** | Antes, los estandartes ilustraban una votación que sucedería en Discord. Ahora puedes **elegir uno en la página y verlo dentro del escenario**, antes de registrarte. | «Ya hay algo de mí aquí». Es el primer vínculo personal con el mundo. | | **3. El registro** | El formulario aparece después de elegir, con **“That’s your mark. Let’s make it count.”** El registro conserva una aportación que ya hiciste. | «Quiero mantener mi lugar en esta decisión». Registrarse adquiere un motivo concreto. | | **4. La llegada a Discord** | La bienvenida recupera tu elección y te dirige a su conversación: **“I picked The Spiral because…”**. Añadí “Reading along counts. No introduction required.” | «Tengo algo que compartir y puedo entrar a mi ritmo». Reduce la incomodidad de llegar a un grupo desconocido. | | **5. Reconocer a tu gente** | La sección de comunidad describe comportamientos específicos: quienes sobreanalizan el lore, notan los pequeños detalles o encuentran un bug y vuelven con un boceto. | «Estas personas disfrutan las mismas cosas que yo». Hace reconocible la identidad del grupo. | | **6. El regreso** | El siguiente capítulo recupera tu elección, muestra el resultado y explica cómo lo incorporó el equipo. También reconoce tu aportación **si tu estandarte perdió**. | «El equipo responde y sigo teniendo un lugar, aunque no gane mi propuesta». Aquí se fortalece la relación. |
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