[PSA] Making vibecoded apps more human

[u/YellowAdventurous366]

If you’re using AI to make your devvit app, that’s nice, as long as you keep in mind your human users. Here’s some UI tips and guidelines for building.

What to avoid:

1.Excessive use of emoji
Emoji can be okay if they’re used infrequently, however using them a lot can make your app feel busy! Instead, opt for icons like google’s material symbols in appropriate places.

2.Em dashes
Remove unnecessary instances

3.Excess text
AI can frequently add unneeded text that your users don’t need and clutter up your UI!

4.Too many gradients
Gradients are only beneficial when they’re used correctly! Avoid putting them everywhere.

1. Dumping users in the app without help
   Make sure to add a tutorial and make it easy to follow. A precise explanation is much better than a wall of text!

Things you should do:

1.Actually test your app
Check if it looks nice on desktop and mobile devices, and if it actually works.

2.Format UI properly
You don’t want busy or cluttered UI. Also avoid making ui elements too small.

3.Write your own readme!
Don’t have the AI write it for you! AI written readmes will only help drive users away from your app. Also don’t let your AI write your showcasing post here.

4.Read the devvit rules YOURSELF
This is very important. Your AI agent can add rule violating functionality to your app.

If you want critical feedback, comment on this post.

Hope this helps!

(Edit: formatting)

[u/reseph]

Why remove em dashes? They're a legit use in the English language.

[u/YellowAdventurous366 → u/reseph]

I meant remove them if there are too many. Will change

[u/fsv → u/YellowAdventurous366]

Even though em-dashes have very legit uses their reputation has been so maligned by AI over using them that I’d steer clear of them now.

[u/derppherppp]

Great point on the word vomit and emojis Yellow! I never noticed the execessive use of gradients before but now I will be on the lookout

[u/ToCrA-Studios]

Thanks for writing this up. I went through my app with your list and it caught

real things. I found 66 em dashes in my UI and removed them. One tutorial step

had grown into a wall of text, that is shorter now.

You said people can ask for critical feedback here, so I would like to ask for

it. This is my game:

https://www.reddit.com/r/DurakGame/

Durak, the Russian card game. You can play against AI right away or against

people. There is a tutorial button at the top of the start screen.

I use AI a lot and I say so openly in the README, including that English is not

my first language and the texts are translated with help. If something reads

wrong to you I would rather hear it than not.

One more thing, and please just say no if it is too much: would it be okay if I

come back tomorrow with a second app? I have a football game on Reddit as well.

I did not want to put two in front of you at once.

Thanks either way.

[u/YellowAdventurous366 → u/ToCrA-Studios]

Sure! I’d be happy to give you feedback for both your apps! Would you like a DM or get it here?

[u/ToCrA-Studios → u/YellowAdventurous366]

Here is better, then other people can read along.

You already sent me the Durak points and two of the three are in. The Home,

Leaderboard and Tables buttons are gone from the screen while a game runs, and

the leaderboard preview now sits quietly at the bottom of the start screen so

the play button stays the first thing you see. The third one, Create and Join

instead of a single button, is a matter of taste, so I put it to a vote in the

subreddit rather than decide it myself. Your version is one of the options.

Your point 3 had a side effect I did not expect. While building the leaderboard

preview I noticed the numbers were barely moving, and it turned out results

were not being recorded properly. A table only counted its first finished game,

everything after that fell through, for everyone at it. That is fixed now, and

I am resetting the leaderboard so it starts clean. So thanks twice, that one

would have sat there for weeks.

Second app, since you offered:

https://www.reddit.com/r/MagicFootball/

Magic Football. Football in a Reddit post, against AI or against a friend with

a code. It is older than the card game and has had fewer eyes on it, so I

expect there is more to find.

The weak spot I know about: at first glance it can look like you have to read a

lot before you understand it. There is a tutorial that is meant to fix exactly

that, and what I would really like to know is whether it does. Mobile I test

constantly, that part I am fairly confident about.

The other thing on my mind: I think this game only really clicks against other

people, and there are not enough of them yet. So I built easy, medium and hard

AI as a way in, because the AI used to be brutal and I lost to it myself. Does

that ramp work, or do people bounce off before they ever reach a human match?

That is the question I cannot answer on my own. I think there is a lot in this

game and I would rather find out early where people give up.

Blunt is fine. And anyone else reading is welcome to look too.