Loqheart is redesigning the icon for our app: Cannon Cat. And we decided to mockup a bunch and have them duke it out. :) We have our favorites, but we wanted to get opinions from the Corona community.

Please take a look and rank the icons in order from best to worst.

We're going to take the best of the bunch and then continue to rev on them. Thanks!

b
d
f
c
e
a

:)

A is my favorite, followed by B. They're all cool but the details could get lost at 57x57 on most of them.

Peach :)

For me F is the one you should go for because it looks interesting. Especially with a bunch of apps, you have to stand out when people scroll through. They are all cute looking but marketing wise, F is the clear winner to me :)

Also, why isn't your app in the showcase on this site? This is one of the best game play corona powered apps there is!

F (good thing in this case lol)

Sid

I'd go for a version of B without the island in the background. It's too subtle for an icon.

I also quite like A, the only drawback is there is no cannon in it.

F - too busy; the focus on the floating things makes it unclear the cat is the protagonist
D - too busy; and the main character is being pushed into a corner
E - too busy; spoiler alert; and the cat looks like a grumpy neighbor shaking his fist at kids over the fence
C - too busy; and does not have the cat.

@peach we're designing for iphone4, based on our preliminary stats not a lot of iphone users are playing the app for a long time.

@Sid It's not ready for the showcase that's why it's not there. :)

Yeah we definitely need it to stand out on the list of icons in a search. Even if it's not the "best" we need it to be different and still good. That's why we're trying lots of ideas.

Thanks everyone. This feedback is really useful! I hope to hear more comments!

B cos Happy Cat is Happy! :D

I like A because of it's simplicity, but I do see similar sun-ray patterns on a lot of icons, so B could also work.

I like B

A or B

A is my favorite followed by B. I'm with Peach about the others being too busy at the small icon size. I know you're going to think of a 114x114 for the iPhone 4, but visually, if you make it a 57x57 on your screen its going to be about the same size as it will be visually on the device a bit larger than 1/3 of an inch.

@robmiracle We're leaning towards variations on B, but maybe A could just be executed better. We know an ex-iTunes games editorial lead that took a look at A and gave it a ho hum response. It is one guy, but he was the Lead of those responsible for choosing what games to even consider looking at for noteworthy games. So it's really important for the icon to make an impact. That's why we wanted to try some icons that were busy to stand out.

Cause good isn't necessarily "better" in this case if it's one flower among a field of flowers, instead it's the weeds that stand out, then again so would a giant robot. Ok not sure where I'm going with this metaphor, but I smell a game idea: robot flower farmer! :) j/k

Anyways, we're definitely designing for the 114x114 because our early stats show 90%+ of our players playing on higher end phones.

But it seems like one things is clear, you can't fit a movie poster into a tiny space. I wonder if we can use different icons for the 512x512 and the phone version. Maybe we could add more detail into the larger one.

I look at this list, I see B.

printed them out and showed them around the office, 4/5 agree on B, one person was 60/40 on B and F. For what it's worth, age range was late 20s to early 40's.

A is confusing, I'm thinking superhero or something

C is a case of "Why is this here?", it's really bad.

D is interesting, but doesn't really convey the idea

E is interesting too, but I see cloud and some dude he's punching

F is in same ballbark as B, but doesn't have the instant "Ahh I know what this is, I want it" type of feeling I got with B

My real honest opinion is keep B, don't even think about the rest. I really like it. When I'm typing this and thinking which icon I remember, it's B, I can't picture the rest.

I'm thinking I didn't articulate my point very well on the 57x57 vs 114x114. If you bring up an iPhone3G and an iPhone 4 and put them side by side, the icons will be the same size since the 4 has double the resolution, the bigger icon occupies the same visual space.

In photoshop or in a web browser a 114x114 is twice as wide visually as a 57x57 is. In my experience it's important to resize the icons to 57x75 on the computer to get an idea about what the relative size will be on the device. Obviously, you want the 114x114 for sharpness in production.

As for the icons, I can see where A would be ho-hum, everyone and their brother is using a similar style today but it shows off your brand really well. I think B does the best at showing off the cat. F is too busy especially when it's shrunk down to the actual app size. If you go with F, I'd consider loosing the small heliocopter duck and maybe moving the other one and the bubble fish around a bit.

@nicholasclayg Thanks for the feedback!

Here's some background on why we came up with the variations. We're trying to approach this icon design with a bit of trial and error. Don't want to rule things out without trying and testing.

A) Cannon Cat is a super hero in the making. :) This is our current icon for Cannon Cat Lite based off of popular titles at the time we released.

B) We had an initial version of B with the Emu Robot in the upper right, but switched it to the fish. I'm starting to like it the most as well. Not sure if I like the highlight on the cannon turret, but it does catch the eye.

C) We wanted to try something radically different by focusing on the world of Cannon Cat and not on the characters to see what kind of impact it would make.

D) You're going to see lots of cannons in the game. So that's why the cannon is prominent here.

E) This was my concept though I feel that cat should be bigger. The idea was to show the protagonist, antagonist and the innocent bystanders. Kind of like a movie poster. I still think conceptually it's the most interesting, but could have better execution. Cut the Rope is sort of the idea with 3 elements in the icon http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cut-the-rope/id380293530?mt=8 But I can see how at a small size it'd get muddy.

F) I can't speak for David, but I like the element of surprise in it as if the cat is about to pounce.

We're going to continue revving on variations of a central character with a happier expression. Seems like, except for Angry Birds or games with mature themes, people want smiling faces staring back at them. :)

@robmiracle Yeah I understand that the icons would be the same physical dimensions. What do you think of the execution on Street Fighter IV icon? http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/street-fighter-iv/id354655665?mt=8 That's super detailed, I wonder how that would show up as 57.

I gotta let David know that you thought his penguin was a duck. :) Thanks.

If anyone has "access" to toddlers to teenagers I would love to hear their opinions as well. On that note does anyone have a good way to test on kids besides making one and waiting several years? :)

I choose A the rest look to busy to stand out if it's on a page full of other icons

Actually if you click through from SV-IV to STREET FIGHTER IV VOLT then scroll down to the bottom and find the SV-IV icon which is now a smaller version which is a 75x75 I think. You get the basic idea from it, but you really can't make out most of the detail.

But check out this link:

http://www.seedstudio.com/#piratesbattle

How do you feel about that icon? or it's sister app:

http://www.seedstudio.com/#epochwars

Hey! You changed the sheet! lol. In that case, I will have to move my vote E :)

I didn't change anything. :) but ok E it is!

I think Icon B is the best since it's the simplest and most straight foreword.

Regards,
Jordan Schuetz
Ninja Pig Studios

b,
it's the most easy to see when squinting.

what? Why would you be squinting? haha :)

I like b :)

-Angelo

Alright, I'll let Angelo have the final say. hehe

Thanks everyone for taking a look. Icon B, Happy Cannon Cat with the skyfish is the winner. :)

Gosh, it's so hard to come up with a good icon, isn't it? And you've got lots of nice ones to choose from! I'm glad you're able to make a pick with helpful input from many.

Naomi

And Namoi, it may be the single biggest decision you have to make for your app.

Yep, Rob, it sure is, and how painful that is. The one I made for mine and thought was not so bad... was totally shot down. Honestly, this process can be so brutal.

Naomi

@Naomi It is brutal! David and I have had a lot of tense moments and conversations over art and interface. It took a lot of conversations, spending a couple minutes in the other persons shoes and compromise. We've finally come to a point where we can be honest with a few rules. I even wrote a blog post about it.

http://cannoncat.tumblr.com/post/15696909154/asking-for-feedback

You have to build that thick skin and know that you can do better. Pour everything into it, but still be critical of it. But know that feedback is the best way to get better.

Hi everyone!

Thanks to all for their really awesome feedback! I took all your advice and made a new set of icons to choose from. Much simpler and more iconic.

Please vote again and let me know what you think!

Here's the new forum post:
http://developer.anscamobile.com/forum/2012/02/02/cannon-cat-icon-feedback-second-revision-ftw

Cheers,
David