Paper Prototype

☻Qualitative Method:
Explore how players feel and behave through interviews, observations, and open-ended feedback.

Best Stage: Early Concept → Early Prototype

Primary Goal: Quickly testing ideas, flows, and interactions before building them in-engine

Effort: Low

Overview

Paper prototyping is a low-fidelity, hands-on method where game ideas are sketched out on paper to quickly explore and test mechanics, UI, or player flow, before investing time into digital development.

Paper prototypes can represent:

Game UI/menus (e.g., mockups of inventory screens, settings)
Level layouts or puzzle design
Gameplay systems (e.g., turn-based combat or card interactions)
Player flow (e.g., onboarding steps, choices in narrative games)

Researchers or designers "act out" game logic, and participants interact by pointing, moving pieces, or role-playing decisions. The designer plays the role of the "computer," updating the state manually.

More Resources:

Stavropoulos, A. (2021, May 6). Use paper prototyping to design your games. Game Developer. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/design/use-paper-prototyping-to-design-your-games

Nielsen Norman Group. (n.d.). Paper prototyping cutout kit. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/paper-prototyping-cutout-kit/