#GamesNightViz is a 6-weekly Tableau community project focusing on using data from your favourite games to improve your skills with data visualisation, data preparation and visual design, and maybe a winning strategy for your next game night (no guarantees! 😉)
Working with datasets from your favourite games we'll build and develop a portfolio of real world data skills including
- Data visualisation
- Data preparation
- Design techniques
Each month, we will have a theme and a range of datasets available, with a challenge to prepare one of the datasets and a principle of design to focus on. Datasets will come with a difficulty scale to help those newer to data visualisation or those with limited time to practice. We will be sharing our creations with the #datafam and the wider teaching community.
Difficulty scaled datasets
- Casual - For those new to data visualisation or with limited time available
- Normal - A fair size data set that could create multiple data visualisations
- Heroic - A large data set for those with more time available
- Legendary - Bring your own data, #IronQuest style
There will also be two bonus 'Special Ops' tasks:
- Data preparation - Recreate one of the datasets using a tool or coding language, Preppin' Data style
- Visual design - A design technique to practice in your data visualisation, supported with some online tools
For this project you can choose which challenges you undertake depending on what you want to learn, e.g. you may want to focus on Design + a dataset, alternatively, you may want to just learn data preparation with a new coding language or tool.
What Type of Games?
All of them!
At #GamesNightViz we love all types of games: card games, board games, video games, party games, game shows, and the list goes on!
Season 1 of #GamesNightViz will consist of 6 sets of challenges released on a 6-week to monthly basis.
Bonus Levels
- Preppin' Data | Week 47 2021 - Top Poker Players
- GamesNightViz | Holidays 2021 - Notable Holiday Games
- Preppin' Data | Week 8 2022 - Pokémon Evolution Stats
- Back 2 Viz Basics | Week 6 2022 - Dealing with Outliers #B2VB
- Preppin' Data | Week 22 2022 - Dungeons & Dragons: Critical Role
- Preppin' Data | Week 37 2022 - Elden Ring Adventure
- Preppin' Data | Week 48 2022 - Tiddlywinks Tidy
Be sure to check out the #GamesNightViz Data Archive 💾 for all the datasets from our challenges.
- Make sure it 'sparks joy'
- Support your fellow #GamesNightViz participents
- Make time for yourselves away from the project
There's no expectation to complete all the tasks or participate every month. This project is designed to inspire you to develop new skills and build a portfolio showcasing what you've learnt, not be a chore or something that doesn't spark joy.
We want to have a safe and supportive place where everyone feels comfortable sharing their work regardless of their skills. So please be supportive to each other and keep feedback overall positive.
Please make yourselves familiar with two great resources from Storytelling With Data:
There are also #datafam initiatives around feedback you can look to:
- Michelle Frayman & Zak Geis regularly host a #VizOfficeHours
- Sam Parsons started #datafamfeedback for constructive feedback on Twitter or LinkedIn
- Post your submissions on Twitter with the hashtag #GamesNightViz, and tag the team @WJSutton12, @Visual_Endgame, @ninjavizlouis so we don't miss your great work!
- Submit your work to the project tracker here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScqFaHnRcX2uBX7h5PkbigXim1kfQMsnC7ZloF8UvxzfRog4w/viewform?usp=sf_link
I'm Will, an avid fan of games of all kinds. I've been working with data for over 10 years and now work as a Consultant, helping clients gain better insight from their data.
I owe a large amount of my career development down to passion projects; either part of the Tableau community, producing insights for my running club, or just questions I wanted to know the answers to.
You can check out Will's work on:
Twitter | Tableau Public | GitHub
I'm Tina and I've been in the data visualization space since 2015 and a gamer for life! I joined the #datafam and Tableau Public community in 2021 and it has been such a welcoming experience.
I am very passionate about both topics and am excited at the opportunity to work with Will and Louis to bring this passion forward for all!
You can check out Tina's work on:
Twitter | Tableau Public
Hi, Louis here! Have been working in various industries in the past decade but finally found my way into the video game industry as a Senior Data Analyst, driving customer insights and building dashboards for 2K Games.
I spent a good chunk of my growing up playing games as I always enjoy a good jRPG or anything with an immersive narrative. Which probably explains why I am fascinated by the storytelling potential of data vizzes!
Most of my work revolves around Tableau and Adobe (I’m not a full-fledged designer, but I know enough to pull my own weight)
You can check out Louis's work on:
Twitter | Tableau Public