Typography in games

[Marek]

That's almost Comic Sans MS. Almost!



Times New Roman? Really? The whole Wii system (and branding) uses sans-serif fonts, and for some weird reason only these screens use a serif one. Also the letter spacing is wonky, probably a case of each letter being a separate bitmap.



More forgivable but still ... that's the freeware font I used on one of my Geocities sites in 1997. Who put that text there? Is it chalk? It doesn't look like chalk. It looks like a font put on top of a wood texture.

Anyway. Yeah.

There's probably a better way to spend my lunch break than making this post.

[Spaff]

Thanks Marek, for your wonderful post.

[brkl]

You should've made this into an article.

[Marek]

Articles are for babies.

[Spaff]

this is an article of the future.

[nsps]

I've never noticed a particularly strong sense of typography in games. Designers spend so much time creating these immersive environments, then skimp on a crucial detail and just throw in whatever font catches their fancy, with little care for kerning.

[BigJKO]

I thought I knew what serif and sans-serif was, but realize now I have no idea. Anyone?

Awesome post, btw. Great way to spend your break.

[Jake]

Serif fonts have the little ornaments on their corners.


example care of google images


Metronome looks to have really solid use of typography. Also the Metal Gear Solid games are pretty ... solid.

[nsps]

My friend Stephen Coles, operator of the blog Typographica, had this to say:

You're right. Game designers come from a motion and graphics background where typography isn't a focus of education. Even graphic design students often miss the basics of typography, so it's no surprise that these folks do too.

Everyone — even those whose only interaction with type is when they write a letter — could benefit from The Elements of Typographic Style by Bringhurst.

[Marek]

Little effort is also usually spent on the typography and the general design of title sequences and the start menu, which is a shame cause they can really draw you in. A couple of exceptions I can think of, just off the top of my head, are the modern GTAs, Sam & Max (hi Jake), Battlefield Vietnam, ermm......

[loonyboi]

Marek:

Little effort is also usually spent on the typography and the general design of title sequences and the start menu, which is a shame cause they can really draw you in. A couple of exceptions I can think of, just off the top of my head, are the modern GTAs, Sam & Max (hi Jake), Battlefield Vietnam, ermm......

There are always exceptions. GTAs have always done it well. Games with a really heavy focus on art direction tend to do it well.

It's hard to convey in screenshots, but Bioshock is a typographical masterwork:





Like I said, it's really hard to get across in images, but there are tons of retro-styled fonts in the game. It looks fantastic.

[Marek]

Ah yes it's great that you mention BioShock. I noticed it before and agree completely.

[Nappi]

I usually don't notice the fonts in games at all, except if they are very cheesy. And usually that has to do with terrible colour choices.

..Or if the makers missed something obvious. This screen from No One Lives Forever, for example, makes me want to scream "No! Make it again!" I mean, how can they choose not to use some groovy 60's-like font? Something similar to the font used in the title of the first game.... not the sequel.


----
I, for one, find it extremely hard to choose good fonts when I'm photoshopping or skinning. I have always hoped that people just don't pay attention to the fonts, but... well.. apparently some do.

[toblix]

I thought the fonts used in Fallout were cool. I can't find a good screenshot, though.

[Aussie Ben]

I like the font used in the GBA version of Rayman Rabbids. It is something relatively unique, and they made all the capital "Y"s look like Rabbid heads, similar to the logo. Cute. Can't find an instance of the capital Y right now, but here's the normal font:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/gamebo...ShotId,197760/

Dunno if they use the same font in other versions of the game though.

[Wrestlevania]

Aussie Ben:

/me points at Aussie Ben being bitch-slapped for image leeching and laughs

[Aussie Ben]

I can link you to the mobygames page for it if you really want me to, but I thought it wouldn't actually matter considering that I took that damn screenshot anway

Ah, didn't know it blocked images if you linked them off-site - it was coming up fine on my machine. Linked instead.

[lobotomy42]

Typography truly is an area where just a little effort can go a long way. And when there's no effort, it's just really distracting.

At least, for me.