Poke Shiny Dex began as a personal project fueled by my interest in the game. Pokémon GO has evolved into a global phenomenon, and with the introduction of shiny Pokémon, collectors seek more efficient ways to manage and keep track of their Shinies. I took it upon myself to craft an app to tackle this opportunity, and to sharpen my own design and development skills.
Objective
To design and develop Poke Shiny Dex, a fan-made Pokémon GO companion app aimed at enhancing the user experience of avid Pokémon GO players in managing and tracking their Shiny collections.
User Experience Design
Understanding the needs and pain points of Pokémon GO players and collectors was crucial in shaping the app’s features. Key requirements were identified by analyzing competitors and similar companion apps.
Organized Collection Management:
Users desire an intuitive interface to manage their shiny Pokémon collection efficiently.
The ability to mark favorites, create wish lists, and designate Pokémon for trading is essential.
Customization and Notes:
Collectors want to add personal touches to their entries, such as custom data and notes for each shiny Pokémon.
Trading Facilitation:
Although there’s no direct integration possible to connect the app to Pokémon GO, being able to mark and track Shinies for trading was identified as a desirable feature for users to easily share with friends.
Search Functionality:
Users seek a quick and effective search mechanism to navigate through their growing shiny collection.
The design approach prioritized a clean, visually appealing interface, ensuring a seamless experience for users. The main features are prominently displayed, allowing for easy navigation and quick access to essential functions. The color scheme and imagery align with the Pokemon GO aesthetic, creating a cohesive and immersive experience.
Development
Integrating and managing data was the biggest challenge in this project. With close to a 1000 Shiny Pokemon, an efficient method had to be explored to process all those entries. Luckily, through CSV files in Unity3D, allowed me to seamlessly integrate external data into the app. By employing this approach, I could effortlessly handle large datasets for various in-game elements such as asset management and user data. The simplicity and versatility of CSV files streamlined the development process, enabling quick iterations and updates without the need for extensive code changes. The app also allowed users to authenticate themselves using Google Play Services and iOS Game Center to save their data. Users would be able to retrieve their saved progress upon reinstalling the app.
Highlighted Reviews
Pretty awesome app so far y’all just got it DL and started messing with it awesome job devs
Wow just wow I have been looking for a shiny dex for a while and this is just perfect you can have a wish list, and can personalize the shiny down to ivs cp date caught if it was traded if its lucky If you want a shiny pokedex this is it, it doesn’t get better than this
Its the best app for what i want how ever some pokemon are missing i know of at least 2 whishmur and its evelotion i will make full list of all missing pokemon(great job on app you would of got 5 stars but due to missin pokemon you get 4)
Results
Poke Shiny Dex successfully addresses the needs of Pokemon GO enthusiasts, providing a comprehensive solution for managing Shiny Pokemon collections. The data sets were constantly being updated with the support of the community. And the app even expanded its realm from Pokemon GO to other Pokemon games, allowing players from other series to use the app as well. Unfortunately, due to strict copyright infringement monitoring by Nintendo, the app has been removed from the Google Play Store and iOS App Store.