The rise of gaming popularity has meant that more and more games are being produced every day. From online multiplayers to easy click-and-play phone features, there are so many different options for both amateurs and experienced players to try out.

The saturation of the market has led the industry to become incredibly competitive. There are now massive budgets being pumped into different elements of storytelling, graphics, animations and sound. One of the best ways that gaming companies can stand apart is through their web design.

Here are the top five gaming websites with fantastic web design.

League of Legends

With a 2009 release, League of Legends is a multiplayer online battle arena video game that’s really exploded over the last few years. With an active user base of 32 million users, the game — developed and published by Riot Games — was inspired by Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne mod Defense of the Ancients. It follows the now popular freemium model and is supported by microtransactions and has one of the most played computer games in Europe and North America. With its mass audience and competitive nature of play, it’s one of the biggest eSports — and definitely contributed to the legitimisation of the industry in as a ‘sport’ activity.

With such a large following, and over 1000 people working on the game, the web design for League of Legends is a top priority for its developers. It’s visual appeal comes from its larger than life graphics used for the main navigation and backgrounds, with a colour palette that works with the brand design guidelines. Their UX/UI is simplistic in nature in an attempt not the overcomplicate the page for its users — making it easy as possible for people to navigate the website. As an expansive, large scale enterprise setup, League of Legends is a great example of gaming websites with a considered web design to accomodate a massive playerbase.

Screwattack

Screwattack was a gaming news site, using the Drupal CMS to bring users a really unique experience. An innovator in online content creation, the website was rebranded in 2019 as Death Battle Channel, with all of its legacy content shifted to Rooster Teeth’s portal. While not a game itself, it did host loads of gaming-related content including news and reviews. The simple, 2 column layout made it easy for users to access the information they needed.

A fan favourite feature was the “Our Latest Videos and Stuff” sidebar block with posts coloured from blue to red according to their popularity. Screwattack was definitely way ahead of its time when it came to the industry; and it’s web design, and the impact of the website itself, is still talked about in the community to this day.

888poker

888poker is one of those gaming websites that seems to have been around since the start. Launched in 2002, the popular online poker platform has earned a great reputation, constantly attracting both experienced and novice players. This website has a license from both the UK Gambling Commission and Gibraltar Gambling Commission — making it safe to play from.

With such a large, international userbase, 888poker is constantly looking to improving its software, graphics and overall design. With a neon setting, there are four different options for players to choose from. Of course, as with any game the UX and UI are especially important for the 888poker; ease of use is something the company have clearly invested in, and gotten right. All elements of the design are there to make it as easy as possible for new players to navigate, and keep on playing.

Star Wars: The Old Republic

One of the biggest popular culture brands in the world, the Star Wars film series has proliferated all types of entertainment — including, of course, the gaming industry. One of their most ambitious titles, Star Wars: The Old Republic is a multiplayer online role-playing game developed by BioWare Austin and first released in 2011. One of the most developmentally expensive games ever made, the game had almost one million subscribers within just three days of launching.

The design, of course, is impressive. Filled with large, action packed imagery and incredible concept art, the site uses iconography throughout the body of the page. They’ve also done a great job of emphasising the multilingual capabilities of the site. With such a global reach — and a continuing to attract an international, growing audience — the game developers have ensured that it’s available in three languages, which are able to switch into from the top of the page.

Need for Speed

The Need for Speed racing game franchise is definitely a classic. Published by Electronic Arts, its first title was released in 1994 — and they’ve been producing games ever since. Like other games on this list, the web designers were definitely thinking about UX and simplicity when creating the website. It’s also a super responsive platform; which, with the rise of mobile gaming, we all know is so important these days. There’s a lot to offer on the site in terms of content and layout design; and the Mega Nav for the Games section definitely helps users navigate the site with ease.