See all glossary termsJuicing is the process of improving the feel of a game using animations, special effects, sound effects, and generally any visual or auditory improvement that supports the gameplay.
How you experience a game does not only depend on the game's rules. Everything contributes to making the experience more engaging or immersive: the art style, the quality of the writing, the absence of bugs, the level design, and what we call "juice."
Juicing can include:
Juicing typically involves combining and layering these techniques to create a more engaging experience.
Here's a popular talk that shows a game with and without juicing applied, breaking down all the different layers the developer adds to improve the feel:
Juicing
- Adding tween animations.
- Improving the spacing and timing of hand-made game animations.
- Using particle systems.
- Implementing shaders.
- Adding screen shake when collisions occur.