For this week’s usability test, I had one person try my interactive memory game without giving them any instructions at all. I wanted to see if the game made sense on its own and whether they could figure out what to do just by watching and interacting with it.
Right away, they understood that it was some kind of memory or reaction game. As soon as the LEDs started lighting up in a sequence, they naturally tried to repeat it using the buttons. They did not need the main written instructions to figure out what the goal of the game was.
There was a bit of confusion, though. Because of the slight delay that sometimes happens between Arduino and p5.js, they were not always sure if the game had registered their button press or how long they needed to wait before the next LED would turn on. They mentioned that the timing threw them off a little and that they were not sure whether the game was lagging or if the delay was intentional.
What worked well
The buttons were very intuitive. The tester said it was easy to understand that you just press them and see what happens. Even though they skipped the main instructions, the messages that appear during the game, like “Watch the sequence” or “Press the buttons now,” were enough to guide them. The overall interaction felt simple and understandable.
Areas that could be improved
The biggest issue was the timing between the LEDs and the user inputs. The delay sometimes made the game feel slower than it should be, and the tester wasn’t sure when to focus on the LEDs and when to start pressing buttons. This came from the communication speed between p5.js and the Arduino, but from a user’s point of view it just felt like a pause with no explanation.
A simple fix here would be adding a small message before the game starts that says something like “The LEDs will light up in a pattern. Watch carefully. There may be a short delay before you can start pressing.” That way the player knows what to expect.
Another thing I noticed is that when the player presses the spacebar to start, the LED sequence begins almost right away. For someone who did not read the instructions, this means they have to quickly switch attention from the screen to the LED buttons with no warm up. Adding even a two second “Get ready…” screen would help the user settle in before the actual sequence begins.
Final thoughts
Even with the timing issues, the game was still very easy for the tester to understand. The layout is simple, the buttons are satisfying to press, and the idea of repeating a sequence feels familiar. The small delay caused some hesitation, but overall the interaction was still clear enough for someone to figure out without being told what to do.