Sisritha Avala
I'm a Senior Digital Narrative and Interactive Design student at the University of Pittsburgh, passionate about immersive storytelling and user-centric design. I specialize in UX/UI design for games with experience in wireframing, prototyping, and interaction design. I love creating designs that reflect a balanced blend of aesthetics and functionality!
Follow Along On My Newest Project!
As the project lead for my senior capstone, I developed the concept for GlotQuest, a gamified and conversational language learning app designed to make language acquisition more immersive and engaging. GlotQuest addresses the common challenge of limited real-life interaction in language learning by incorporating interactive storytelling, NPC conversations, and skill-based minigames. I'm leading a multidisciplinary team to bring this idea to life, focusing on creating a compelling user experience that supports active, contextual language practice.
GlotQuest
Core Gameplay Loop
The player will speak to a non-player character(NPC) who will give them a quest and guide them through the tutorial. This quest will cause the player to encounter different non-player characters throughout the game world. Each encounter causes the player to play a minigame in which they will learn a new Spanish concept. Each encounter with a different NPC will repeat this Spanish concept with increasing difficulty. The player will then return to the original non-player character to complete their quest.
Quest: The player will start out playing the role of a tourist who was set up on a blind date by his buddy. He will begin his journey by going to the supermarket to buy groceries for a meal he wants to make for his date that night. After that, he will then proceed to begin cooking only to end up burning the food, which will then lead to him making a reservation for a restaurant. Lastly, he will meet his date at the restaurant with a bouquet of flowers and have a meal at the restaurant with her.
NPC Interactions: We will be incorporating ChatGPT API for some of our NPCs which will allow them to respond through text back to the player.
Our first quest is currently in development, and we plan to expand GlotQuest by introducing additional languages and new story-driven quests as we continue to build out the game.
User Personas
Persona 1: James, 21 years old
Background: James is a man in college from the United States, who has only been surrounded with English speakers his whole life. He has never left the country before, and has only ever taken a couple beginner Spanish classes in high school. Him and his friends are planning a trip to a Spanish speaking country for spring break, and he is concerned about not being able to get around well with none of them being able to speak the native language.
Fears and Anxieties: It’s been years since his Spanish classes, and he doesn’t remember anything other than “Hola”. James is worried that they won’t be able to navigate the area, order food, or just have a simple conversation with a local without brushing up on his Spanish first.
Motivations: He wants to be able to experience the country he is visiting to the fullest, and not have to count on finding people that speak English. He wants to be the one that is able to read the street signs to navigate around, chat with locals, and anything else.
Goals: James wants to just work on the Spanish that is necessary for the basics when visiting a foreign country. He wants to brush up on everything in order to feel comfortable when visiting this country.
Persona 2: Emma, 15 years old
Background: Emma is a girl from the UK whose family is taking a trip to Oaxaca in the summer. She doesn’t know a lick of Spanish, but is planning on taking a class the following semester in school after her trip. She knows that her parents will be there to help them get around, but she is curious to learn more about the culture, starting with their language.
Fears and Anxieties: She knows that her parents don’t know much Spanish, and is mildly anxious about getting lost in a new city. She also doesn’t want any confusion at restaurants either, as she has some allergies, and would prefer not to end up in the hospital.
Motivations: She primarily wants to help her parents with getting around, along with making sure she doesn’t have an allergic reaction to any food, but she also wants to be able to show off a bit in her Spanish class the following semester.
Goals: Her goals in playing this game are to become familiar with this new language. She wants to learn more about the culture, how to communicate, and navigate with her parents instead of just following them around everywhere silently.
Persona 3: Juan, 23 years old
Background: Juan is an adult man who just finished grad school and is going to Mexico for a wedding with his family. His parents immigrated to the US from there long before he was born and so he grew up speaking English at home. He can understand some basic Spanish but can’t speak it or write it well himself and he’s trying to learn enough to talk to his cousins and extended family during the wedding festivities.
Fears and Anxieties: He’s embarrassed to ask his family to speak more Spanish with him so that he can learn. He wants to learn enough so that he won’t be the butt of the jokes during the wedding.
Motivations: He wants to feel more connected to his roots and his culture. He really wants to have some real conversations with his extended family in Mexico even if they’re basic. He wants to surprise his family by showing them that he knows how to speak Spanish.
Goals: His goal is to build his confidence in his conversational skills by talking to the NPCs. He wants to know how to form sentences without the need for a translation app. He also wants to learn in a way that feels like fun rather than a chore.
User Stories
User Story 1: (Navigating a New City and Talking to Locals) - James’ Trip
James was worrying about not being able to get around and talk to anyone outside his friend group during Spring break. He started prepping for his trip to a Spanish speaking country by playing GlotQuest for two weeks straight. He started out by playing the easy minigames that reinforced what he knew about basic greetings and directions. As he went on, he started to talk to NPCs in the game and practiced ordering food and asking for directions to a landmark with ease. The game gave him a couple hints whenever he had a little trouble but he was slowly getting the hang of it. By the time his trip started, he felt so much better about using Spanish in real life scenarios. He even took his friends around by navigating through the streets easily. He even asked for help from a local when they got lost down an alley. Overall, he ended up making his experience and his friends’ experiences much more enjoyable.
User Story 2: (Ordering at a Restaurant) - Emma’s Trip
Emma’s enrolled in a Spanish class for the upcoming school year but since her family is taking a trip to Spain before the class begins, she won’t be able to apply anything she’s learned until much later. She downloads GlotQuest in order to learn the basics because she really wants to avoid confusion when she’s at a restaurant with her family because she’s the only one with allergies. She has a fun time playing around and having conversations with NPCs. She learns about different kinds of ingredients and how to request for certain substitutions in Spanish. The game lets her practice in the restaurant until she gets it 100% right. When she arrives in Spain, she’s still a little nervous but when she gets to the restaurant, she’s confident when she tells her waiter exactly how she wants her food done. She converses with him freely and gets complimented on her Spanish.
User Story 3: (Attending the Wedding) - Juan’s Trip
Juan was worried about being made fun of during his cousin’s wedding in Mexico. He has always wanted to feel more connected with his extended family but his limited skills in Spanish made him feel a little self conscious. In an effort to get better at Spanish, he downloads GlotQuest so that he can learn how to converse properly. The game allows him to interact with many different NPCs and teaches him common phrases and some small talk so that he can put it to use at the wedding. The minigames help him form sentences correctly and respond in a natural way during a conversation. Because he grew up understanding some Spanish, when he gets to the wedding, he can now understand it and speak it confidently. He even surprises his family by showing off his new skills and doesn’t get teased.
Current Progress
Watch My Initial Pitch!
Watch The Rough Draft of the Restaurant Minigame!
Work Experience
I have experience in both UX/UI and game design and have had the opportunity to apply my skills across various projects, contributing to clean and intuitive interfaces, engaging gameplay mechanics, and immersive storytelling.
Projects
Game Design & Combat Mechanics
Optimized battle systems by refining combat mechanics and improving player feedback loops to create a more engaging gameplay experience.
UX/UI Design
Designed and developed wireframes, user flows, and interactive prototypes using Figma to enhance the interface design of a gaming application.
Monetization & User Experience
Character & Narrative Design
Collaborated with the design team to implement strategic ad triggers, ensuring a balance between monetization and a non-intrusive user experience.
Created character concept art for anthropomorphized combat animals and developed a narrative that was integrated into the battle system, ensuring a cohesive blend of storytelling and gameplay.