"Color Psychology In Video Games"

Color Psychology In Video Games


Introduction:

Are you working on a game and wondering what colors to select that match your game theme?

You are in the right place because right now, when I am writing this, no one has described it in detail as I will in this article.

So stay with me until the end, and I will tell you about:
  • What is color theory?
  • psychology of colors?
  • How do they affect the gameplay?
  • What are the different techniques?
  • What are the properties of different colors?
  • How do you choose the right colors?
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What Is Color Theory?

Color theory studies colors, their combination, and how human eyes perceive colors.  It deals with color symbolism, color mixtures, and different color schemes.

Color theory allows us to choose the best colors for our brand or product to attract more customers.  Each color has unique properties and can change people's moods if used correctly.

Color theory has applications in all industries, including video games. So, it's better to know about color psychology in games and how to use them correctly.

According to this theory, colors are grouped into primary, secondary, and tertiary colors.


“Color! What a deep and mysterious language, the language of dreams.”

— Paul Gauguin


Types of Colors:

Primary Colors :

Any group of colors that can be used and mixed to produce more colors. There are commonly 3 primary groups. RGB ( red, green, blue ), CMY ( cyan, magenta, blue), and RYB ( red, yellow, blue ). New colors are made by additives or subtractive mixing.

What Is Additive Color Mixing?

In additive color mixing, light waves of two colors combine before reaching the eye.

What Is Subtractive Color Mixing?

The subtractive is just the opposite of the additive. In this process, two different colors are subtracted from the white light.

Secondary Colors:

A secondary color is formed by mixing two different colors in the same amount such as orange from red and yellow and green from yellow and blue.

Tertiary Colors:

These colors are formed by combining primary and secondary colors. For example, in Blue-Green, blue is a primary color, whereas green is a secondary color formed by combining yellow and blue.


Some Important Terms In Color Theory:

There are some important terms and methods you should know before using colors in your products or games.

Color Psychology In Video Games
Hue: 

Since this website is for game developers, I am not going into the scientific definition of hue. Still, in simple words, Hue is a set of core colors, including red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet, and their different shades.

Color Psychology In Video Games
Saturation: 

This simply refers to the intensity of color. As the intensity increases, the color looks more original and dark, but as it decreases, it looks light or pale. Look at the image to better understand.


Brightness:

It is the same as intensity, the relative darkness, and the lightness of color. For example: light red and dark red.

Value: 

Value is how light or dark the color is. Lighter colors have higher values, and vice versa. For example, yellow is light, and navy blue is dark, so yellow has a higher value, i.e., #FFA500.

Tint:

It is defined as the relative lightness of color with its core hue. It is obtained by combining white color with the hue. For example, adding white color to dark red gives us a light red shade.

Tone:

Tone is the mixing of gray color to the hue to get darker shades of that color.

Do Colors Affect the gameplay?

That's why I am writing this article to help you understand the psychology of colors in video games.

We can use colors in different ways in our game. Such as giving some information about the level, e.g. a red light in a room shows danger. Similarly, a green light is used to tell the player that this particular room is safe.

There are so many ways you can use different colors to convey your message to the player. Not only levels but colors are also used for mechanics and other gameplay elements.

What Colors Represents Gaming?

There are some core colors which are primary and secondary colors. These have their properties and convey emotions such as anger, fear, happiness, comfort, surprise, and so on.

It is important to choose the colors correctly because they have different meanings in different situations. For example, red is used to show anger or fear, but at the same time, it's a color of love ( I 💓 gamedesignschool ).

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Color Psychology In Video Games


All Color Symbolism In Games List:


Red: fear, passion, danger, power

Example: In GTA, when cops are chasing you, on the map, it is shown in red color.


Blue: Calmness, wisdom, coldness

Example: In "Final Fantasy VII," the character Aerith is associated with the color blue, reflecting her calm personality


Green: Nature, growth, health

Example: In most games, the health bar is green.


Yellow: happiness, caution, energy

Example: In many games like Super Mario, the powerup items are yellow.


Purple: Mystery, Magic, Royalty

Example: In "Dark Souls," purple represents magic and mystical elements.


Black: Death, Evil

Example: In horror games, black or dark themes represent fear.


White: Purity, Peace

Example: In "Journey," the protagonist's white robe represents purity and the journey towards enlightenment.


Orange: Warmth, Enthusiasm

Example: In "Portal," the orange portal gel represents speed and acceleration.


Pink: Romance, Innocence

Example: In "Animal Crossing," pink items and clothing often convey a sense of playfulness.


Brown: Stability, Reliability

Example: In "Minecraft," brown is used for various natural materials like dirt and wood, reflecting the game's focus on building and resource management.


Color Techniques In Games:

Now you know the color theory, the properties of colors with in-game examples, and what colors represent in games.

Let's learn about different color techniques used in video games. I will also give you examples of games so you better understand. There are more than 10 color techniques.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Monochromatism: 

In this technique, only a single color with different shades is used throughout the game. It creates a visual style and mood.

The best example of this is Limbo, a platformer game that uses shades of gray and black only to create a minimalistic style.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Achromatism:

It is different from Monochromatism in the sense that it includes only white and black colors. This is for a minimalistic approach in games.

One example is The Unfinished Swan. The game begins in a white world where players use black paint to reveal the environment.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Analogous colors:

Colors adjacent to each other in the color wheel are called analogous colors, such as red and orange. This color combination also enhances the mood.

In Stardew Valley , analogous color schemes are frequently used throughout the game. In Hollow Knight, dark purples and blue shades are used for deel areas.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Triad: 

These three colors are equidistant from each other on the color wheel. When you have three colors, they form a triangle.

For example, red, blue, and yellow are triadic colors, and if you notice, they form a triangle. In the Celeste triad, yellow, pink, and blue are used to highlight the important areas.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Complementary: 

These colors are opposite to each other on the color wheel, such as red and green. In Legend of Zelda, I like the contrast between green grass and an orange sunset, again complementary colors.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Split-Complementary:

In this, we have one base color, and the other colors are adjacent to the opposite of the base color. For example, purple is our base color and the other colors will be green or orange on the color wheel.

In Firewatch, red and orange, combined with blue and green, are used in the landscape.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Tetradic: 

It includes two complementary pairs. This color scheme offers a rich palette with much contrast and balance.

In Hollow Knight, The deep blues and oranges of the environments and characters give a strong contrast and a sense of depth.

Color Psychology In Video Games

Square: 

It includes four equidistant colors and forms a square on the color wheel. In Hyperlifter cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and dark blue colors are used to create a visually appealing world.


Some Other Color Techniques In Games:

Color Isolation: 

This technique is used to get the player's attention and focus of the player. The object is to be caught by the player; it is colored differently from the background color.

For example, in a 2d level, Platformer items stand out from the background to draw the player's attention.

Gradient Shading: 

In this process, we transition between colors smoothly to create a sense of realism.

Limited Palette: 

In this technique, we use only specific colors in the game.

Desaturation: 

This technique is opposed to color isolation. If we have a dark background, we can decrease the saturation of the object to draw focus.

Colors And Emotions In Video Games:

We have discovered techniques for using colors in video games above. Now, let's learn about the effects of color theory on video games.

Controlling the player’s attention:

We can use colors to change the focus of the player by using bright colors for items or pickups and dark or dull colors for the background.

In Legend of Zelda, bright blue and green colors are used for items and interactive elements.

Providing Feedback:

We can also use colors to convey the feedback based on players' actions. Such as red for fear and green for success.

In Overwatch, when a player takes damage, the edges of the screen turn red, giving the player feedback of being under fear.

Setting the Mood:

Colors are also used to set the tone or mood of the game. If a game is serious, we use dark colors like black or dark shades of other colors. Light colors are used to show excitement and joy.

In Limbo, the use of black and white color creates a tone of mystery and seriousness.

Character Design:

Using different color palettes in characters gives the player a different personality and visual identity.

In Team Fortress, the use of different colors for each character helps the player quickly identify them, enhancing their visual clarity.

Cultural Considerations:

Game designers should be mindful of avoiding misunderstandings among players of different cultures. The same color has different meanings in different cultures and regions.

In Final Fantasy 15, different color palettes are used for each region, making them different, which reflects cultural identity.

Visual Hierarchy:

We can also use colors to establish the importance of different elements in the game. Guiding players through the level by highlighting key features.

In Hades, pick-items, enemies, and objectives are highlighted in different colors to guide player action and attention.

Progression:

We can also use colors in our game to show player progression. Shifting from a black-and-white theme to a color theme gives players feedback on achievement.

Mechanics:

Colors are also used in puzzle games' mechanics. In Tetris, different colored shapes help the player quickly identify and sort them.

Content Variation:

Different color palettes can also be used for specific areas at the same level. In Mario Odyssey, each kingdom was colored with different palettes.

Branding and Fashion:

As we all know, big brands have unique colors in their icons. Similarly, we can also use a set of specific colors in each franchise game. This makes our games stand out from the others, and players quickly identify them.

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Experimental Research About Colors:

The colors that make our world attractive and vibrant have a whole science behind them. Many famous scientists, including Sir Isaac Newton, have worked on color theory.

Colors have a huge effect on our products, content, and business. Whether it's the front page of a book, a movie poster, or our games, it all depends on color psychology.

As game developers, we want our games to be successful, and choosing the right color combination is the first step in this process.

I have provided basic and essential information about color theory. However, there is a huge amount of information out there, including research papers and books.

I am including here a link to a PDF about the psychology of color. Read it carefully and apply it to your game.


Game Design Color Palette :

A palate is a set of a few colors used throughout the game. I have explained above the properties of different colors, which will help you in choosing the right color palette. Well, the color palette looks like this:

Color Psychology In Video Games

Color palette generator: Adobe color generator

Conclusion:

In short, colors can change the mood, draw the attention of the player, change the focus from one object to another, convey emotions, help players differentiate items from the background, and so on.

Color theory is a detailed subject in itself and scientific and quantitative research papers. If big brands focus on it so much, why can't we? As game designers, it is our responsibility to choose colors; for this, we must know about color.

As a game designer, I try my best to explain color theory and its applications in games. If you find this article helpful, please subscribe to our blog to learn more about game design. Thank you for reading!



Maaz Ayub is an experienced game designer with 10 years in the industry. He has worked at NorthGamz Studio and Bluestick Studio, creating engaging games. Maaz also runs a game design blog, where he shares tips, insights, and advice for aspiring and experienced designers. He is passionate about making games that people love and helping others succeed in game design.