I have had a couple of idea about this - one is that games are not type centered for the most part - they are explosion centered or something similar. So type takes a back seat. Another is that games are about instant gratification and type that supports a feeling/sensibility rather than the needs of legibility is going to win out. Yet another is that your complaint might be about any one or more of several possible type “problems” I have seen in games. So... I am not sure which one or more you might be referring to. In fact, I hesitated to even post at all because of the vague nature of your statement. So ... you tell me: What (specifically) is appalling?

There is also the issue that text in games tends to be bitmaps, rather than a ’live’ font. Since games are often running at non-native resolutions, this means that the text is frequently distorted and blurry.

Most game designers are concerned with style, rather than legibility, as Eben said. They view type as a way to emphasize the setting or atmosphere of the game, and less as a data source. This is ironic, of course, as gamers depend on the HUD to give them instant-access information that is directly tied to their performance in the game world. Valve Software does a good job with Half-