UX/UI Case Study · Mobile App

Pinterest for Gamers

Pinterest for gamers. One app to save builds, outfits, clips, and step-by-step guides.

Role

Product Designer · UX/UI

Platform

iOS Mobile

Tools

Figma, After Effects

Personal Interest

When I look up a build, an outfit, or a walkthrough, I bounce between Pinterest, YouTube, Discord, and wiki pages. I lose my place every time I switch apps.

I hunt Pinterest for outfit ideas from armor sets and Minecraft builds.
I get stuck in story games like Zelda: Majora's Mask with no simple step-by-step help.
I wanted one place for inspiration, builds, and guides.

How Might We

How might we give gamers one place for inspiration and guidance, so they never get stuck or jump between apps?

The Big Idea

Pinterest, built for gamers.

For You

Posts from other gamers, picked only from what you like.

Organized

Boards and sub-boards keep every idea easy to find.

Guided

Step-by-step help, so you never leave the app to get unstuck.

Competitors

Gamers use four apps, and each one does one job.

I compared the apps gamers told me they use, based on each app's own pages. Pinterest sorts ideas. HallOfFramed shows them off. Reddit and Steam help when you're stuck. Reboot puts all of it in one app, made only for games.

	Pinterest	HallOfFramed	Reddit	Steam Guides	RebootMy app
Built for gamers	Any topic	Game screenshots	Gaming communities	Player-written guides	Only games
Feed picked from what you like	Home feed	Not listed	Home feed	Not listed	For You feed
Boards to sort ideas	Boards + sections	Not listed	Saved posts	Not listed	Boards + sub-boards
Step-by-step help when stuck	Not listed	Not listed	Community threads	Step-by-step guides	Step-by-step guides

"Not listed" means the feature isn't mentioned in the app's own store page, website or help pages.

Swipe the table to compare →

Focus Group Findings

Participants

Xally
Kathy
Isabella

March 2026

How many of the 3 participants raised each issue

Confused where to start / Explore not visible

3 / 3

Tight spacing felt visually overwhelming

2 / 3

Wanted clearer step-by-step guidance

3 / 3

From the session and app reviews: gamers use Pinterest, TikTok, and screenshots, and they lose track of ideas. They want one app to find and save them.

Personas

Click a name to see that persona.

SUBJECT_01

Ava Martinez

20 · Creative Builder · PS5

A design student who builds Minecraft worlds for class projects. She wants her group's inspiration in one shared place, not scattered screenshots.

Goals

One place for Minecraft screenshots & builds
Share and collaborate with classmates

Pain Points

Screenshots scattered across devices
No collaboration tools for inspiration

Quote

"I need one place to keep all my game ideas so I can find them easily."

SUBJECT_02

Ethan Parker

19 · Adventure Enthusiast · PC (emulator)

He picked up Majora's Mask again on an emulator after years away. He keeps hitting puzzles he barely remembers and doesn't want to search five forums.

Goals

Step-by-step guide with pictures
Replay childhood Zelda games confidently

Pain Points

Gets stuck on puzzles/bosses he barely remembers
No clear guidance without leaving the game

Quote

"I just want to know where to go next without hunting five forums."

SUBJECT_03

Lily Kim

22 · Aesthetic Lover · 3DS

She collects Nintendo 3DS themes that match her style. When she finds one she loves, she wants a fast way to find ten more like it.

Goals

Find themes/games matching her aesthetic
Discover more like what she already loves

Pain Points

Hard to find a matching Nintendo theme
Hard to find more once she finds one

Quote

"When I find a theme I love, I want ten more just like it."

Ava's Story

01

Teacher says the class can use Minecraft for their design project.

02

Screenshots pile up across PS5, phone, and computer.

03

She opens Reboot, an inspiration app made for gamers.

04

Organizes builds into boards: Buildings, Outfits, Maps.

05

Finds new inspiration and shares her board with the group.

06

The group builds together, referencing one shared board.

Moodboard

Neon arcade, cyberpunk edge

REF_BOARD.EXE

Typography

Audiowide · Futura · Outfit

Palette

Task Flow

Click a name to see that task flow.

Task: Ethan is stuck in a game he hasn't played since childhood and needs a clear way forward.

1

Taps Explore, finds the Majora's Mask walkthrough he needs.

2

Opens it and gets a location-by-location step-by-step guide.

3

Follows the steps.

4

Clears the puzzle without ever leaving the app.

Why it matters: Ethan needs clear steps he can trust.

Task: find info to add to a board for her class project, and share it with her group.

1

Opens Boards and sees her categories.

2

Taps Minecraft, arrives at organized sub-boards.

3

Saves new pins into the right sub-board as she finds them.

4

Shares the whole board with her group.

Why it matters: Ava needs one shared, organized space her whole team can reference.

Task: Lily found a theme she loves and wants ten more just like it.

1

Scrolls For You, finds a 3DS theme that matches her aesthetic.

2

Taps it, unlocks a Similar Pins panel.

3

Saves the ones that match her style.

4

Builds a personal collection of only what she'd use.

Why it matters: Lily can find one theme she likes. Finding more like it is the hard part.

Focus Group & Results

Focus Group

I watched three gamers use Reboot together in one session and let them talk.

Kathy

Make Explore easier to see so new users know where to start.
Add inspiration and "stuck" categories to guide unsure users.
Round the corners for a more consistent, balanced feel.

Xally

Reduce heavy borders, improve spacing between images.
Add Step 1 / Step 2 guidance so the next action is obvious.
Highlight selected boards, add a favorite icon.
Move main navigation to the bottom of the screen.

Isabella

Make strokes bigger. Some areas were hard to see.
Use a heart icon on the For You page instead of a pin icon.
Center the title at the top of the screen.

More Feedback · The For You Feed

For You should mean for you.

A friend tried the prototype. His feed kept showing cute posts and PC hardware, and he only cares about creative screenshots and guides. So Explore is now a For You page. It only shows what you say you like.

1

You pick

The first time you open Reboot, you choose what you like: creative shots, guides, builds, or outfits. Nothing else shows up until you add it.

2

It learns from you

Every heart, repost, and save brings more of the same. Posts you scroll past don't get pushed.

3

You can say no

Tap Not for me to hide a whole topic, like cute posts or PC setups.

The rule: if you didn't pick it, save it, or heart something like it, it stays out of For You.

Concept for the next version. The Figma prototype doesn't have this yet.

More Feedback · The Approach

Less pinboard, more timeline.

The same friend said Reboot should feel less like a pinboard and more like a feed of real players. A lot of gamers don't use Pinterest at all. So now every post comes from a person, with a caption and replies, instead of an anonymous pin. Reboot keeps its name.

Before · like Pinterest

A grid of pins

Images without a person attached.
Saving to boards is the main action.
Works best for artsy browsing.

Now · a timeline of posts

Posts from gamers

Every post has a person, a caption and a time.
Reply, repost, heart, and save.
A Following tab next to For You.
Guides can be threads, one step per post.

What stays: Boards are still there for saving and sharing ideas. Only the feed changes.

For YouFollowing

Tuned to: Creative shotsGuidesEdit

pixelframe @pixelframe · 2h

Photo mode at sunset. No filters, just waited for the light.

↩ 14↻ 32♡ 210Save

Because you like: Creative shots

questnotes @questnotes · 5h

Every hidden shrine in the first area, in order. Thread 1/6

↩ 41↻ 88♡ 530Save

Because you like: Guides

Concept for the next version. The Figma prototype doesn't have this yet.

Next · Asking the Same People Again

Does it feel like yours now?

I'm showing the new version to the same three people. I want to check that the changes worked and find any new problems.

What I'm asking

Scroll For You for a minute. Is there anything in it you'd never look at?
Hide a topic you don't care about. Was Not for me easy to find?
Does the feed feel more like a timeline or a pinboard now? Which do you want?
Would you follow people on Reboot, or only scroll For You?
Is there anything new that feels off?

ROUND 02PLAYTEST

WAITING FOR PLAYERS_

Their answers load in here once they've played the new version. No results yet, so none are shown.

PRESS START

Prototype · Explore

Explore what you like.

Mod pack showcases, gameplay highlights, and console tutorials, all in one feed.

View Prototype →

↓ Scroll inside to see more

Prototype · Boards

Boards that stay organized.

Sub-boards for every project keep builds, outfits, and inspiration sorted.

View Prototype →

↓ Scroll inside to see more

Prototype · Guides

Help when you're stuck.

Step-by-step guides for puzzles and bosses, right in the app.

View Prototype →

↓ Scroll inside to see more

The Companion Walkthrough

The walkthrough video.

Branding Guidelines

BRAND_KIT.SYS

Conclusions

What I Learned

Reboot had to show enough inspiration without making the app hard to use. I let tester feedback decide the bottom nav bar and the rounded corners.

What's Next

First, build the For You feed into the prototype: posts from other gamers, a first-open picker, and a Not for me button. Then in-app sharing, so groups can work on one board. Then community features, so gamers hang out in Reboot.

Sources

Sources.

Competitors

Books

Jenifer Tidwell et al., Designing Interfaces (O'Reilly)

My own research

Focus group with 3 gamers, March 2026
Second round with the same 3 people, in progress
Published app reviews of the apps above

> session_complete_

THANKS FOR
PLAYING