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[Aliencube]

I've listened to many people argue over the virtues and flaws of flat design. No one style in inherently perfect and no designer (his or herself) is without fault.

When it comes to games, a designer has many potential options. Putting aside that flat design doesn't work as well in certain types of games, do you find flat design more pleasing? Are there limits for you?

My thoughts:
Things that should never be anything other than flat: Road Signs
Places where I wish there were less flatness: buttons, toggles, and switches
Places I wish there was more: 3D games (we can argue over whether cell shading is flat design another time)

[Artylo]

I mostly thing it is just a trend. In a few years hyperrealistic drawings may be the new thing and everybody is going to be on that boat.
Of course the minimalism of flat design is probably it's only benefit for conveying information and the overall lack of detail makes it more accessible if done right (that's the whole point).
It's exactly why road signs are designed that way - easy readability. You wouldn't want drivers stopping in front of a sign to read a 3 page essay on how sharp the next turn is.
Some 3D games have tried pulling off the flat style, but it feels contradictory at its core, due to 3D being depth and all...
And most people look for details in 3D games, because having cubes and rectangles simply doesn't look finished.
 

[Cobralad]

color theory and composition are the only design and you cant cheat that
"flat design" was comeback of standart production draphic design after 90s and oughts were captured by techno-gradients and blue glow.

[Zorg]

I like clear design, it does not necessarily have to be minimal/sterile/flat. Flat design can be boring and is most efficient if there are a lot of interface elements shown at once. If you have a screen containing nothing but three buttons, you could make a painting for every button and it would be visually more interesting.

[Netsu]

Games are a different thing, but I really like flat design in OS and application UIs. Been using it on Linux for many years now and I am happy to see it enter more and more mainstream software.
Minimalism is not only usable but also visually pleasing to me, especially when it comes to digital mediums.

[ProgramGamer]

In a few years hyperrealistic drawings may be the new thing and everybody is going to be on that boat.

Have you looked at the mobile market?

[DragonDePlatino]

When it comes to flat-looking designs, it all depends on your artistic ability. If you are a very talented artist and are using flat designs to reduce your workload or get a particular aesthetic, then it can work really well. Like this guy's cool mockup.

But if you are a poor artist and are using flat designs to compensate for a lack of artistic ability, people will see right through that. In my opinion, Nidhogg is a good example of the latter. Just...ugh.

[P-Flute]

Can 'flat design' mean the same in games as it does on the web? Seeing as one is so thoroughly about information and the other experiential.

I suppose it wouldn't hurt my feelings if more game UIs were flatter. I mean it's nice that you can make your UI look like a wizard spilled his junk drawer all over the screen, but sometimes the amount of hunting for information is too damn high.

[Jad]

"Simply in terms of visual style, do you enjoy flat design?"

sure

[Adhesive]

do you find flat design more pleasing? Are there limits for you?

I like minimal design in general. As for strictly flat design, I definitely prefer it for menus/ui. I also love the way the game Lovely Planet looks, but since the style is so restrictive, I think I would get sick of it if a lot of games did this.
I think it works well in Lovely planet because even though everything is pretty flat, there is enough fun stuff to look at that the lack of details don't come across as dull.

[de11ed]

When it comes to UI I like to think of Microsoft and Apple. I really enjoy the general direction both of them are taking (they probably wasn't the first but they are the biggest, so that usually sets the trend whether you like it or not). Apple's new flay design feels fresh and simple enough. But I like Microsoft's approach a bit better, with the flat squares in different colors. It feels like they took apple's idea with apps being lined in a orderly fashion and went a bit further by using big squares that "touch" each other. And I also like their color scheme a bit better as well, if but a bit too childish maybe.

As for games it all depends on how you use it and what it's for. I'm always rooting for minimalism and simplicity, but that goes to a certain degree. Although I can't think of an example where a game would have benefited with pulling back on the flat approach, I know that I have thought plenty of times that some games would have benefited of the less is more approach, which not necessarily mean flat.

But like some of you pointed out, today flat design is on the wall, which makes everything done in that fashion feel fresh, new and cool. But in a few years that will fall off and something new is brought up, who knows.