2D is Better Than 3D

Usability expert Jakob Nielsen wrote 8 years ago about the uselessness of 3D effects in web design, and I think its still true today:

"Note that 3D works for games because the user does not want to accomplish any goals beyond being entertained. It would be trivial to design a better interface than DOOM if the goal was to kill the bad guys as quickly as possible: give me a 2D map of the area with icons for enemy troops and let me drop bombs on them by clicking the icons. Presto: game over in a few seconds and the good guys win every time. That's the design you want if you are the Pentagon, but it makes for a boring game."

2D is Better Than 3D (Alertbox Nov. 1998)

Categories: technology