Searching for a specific game in an online store can quickly become frustrating. Hundreds of references, overlapping menus, filters that are not always suited to players’ habits. The site map is often an overlooked shortcut, yet it provides access to all the pages and categories of a store in one view.
Site map of a video game store: what it looks like in practice
Have you ever seen a page made up solely of links, organized in a hierarchical list, with no images or elaborate layout? That’s a site map. In a video game store, it groups all categories (consoles, PS5 games, Nintendo Switch games, accessories, prepaid cards) in the form of clickable links.
Each link leads directly to the relevant page. No need to go through three sub-menus or guess where the pre-order section is hidden. The site map displays the entire structure on a single page.
To see what this looks like in practice, the site map of 1gameshop.be shows how a specialized store structures its categories, from retro games to the latest releases.
Search filters and classic navigation: their limits for video games
Dropdown menus and search bars work well when you know exactly what you want. Typing the name of a game in the search bar gives an immediate result. Where it gets complicated is when you’re exploring.
A player searching for “a recently released RPG on Switch” may not necessarily find what they’re looking for through a main menu. Classic categories often group games by platform, sometimes by genre, rarely by both at the same time. Facet filters tailored for video games remain rare on many online stores.
Best practices for faceted search recommend filters aligned with the criteria specific to the type of product. For video games, this means being able to sort by platform, genre, gameplay mode (solo, multiplayer, cooperative), or even by price range.
When these filters are lacking or when the catalog is very large, the site map becomes a safety net. It allows you to spot sections you would never have found otherwise, like a category dedicated to collector’s editions or console + game bundles.
Catalog accessibility: a technical and regulatory challenge
The issue of navigation is not just about comfort. As of June 28, 2025, the European Accessibility Act applies to e-commerce services in the EU, with an exemption for microenterprises providing services. Browsing the catalog, viewing product sheets, completing identification and payment steps: all of this must be accessible.
A site map does not replace keyboard and touch accessible navigation. The WCAG 2.2 standard, published by W3C in October 2023, adds criteria on the visibility of the selected element via keyboard and the minimum size of clickable areas. A dropdown menu with subcategories that are too small to be tapped remains an obstacle, even if the site map is complete.
The site map plays a complementary role. For a user navigating with a keyboard or screen reader, a page of hierarchical text links is easier to navigate than an interactive menu with animations and hover effects.
What the site map provides in terms of accessibility
- All links are visible without prior interaction (no click to expand, no hover needed)
- The list structure facilitates sequential reading by assistive technologies
- Link titles correspond to the exact names of categories, reducing ambiguity
Using the site map as an entry point to explore a game catalog
Instead of starting from the homepage and its highlighted promotions, opening the site map directly changes the way you explore a store. Here’s how to make the most of it.
First, identify the main sections. A video game store typically organizes its catalog by platform (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo, PC). The site map makes this architecture visible at a glance.
Next, identify the secondary categories. The most useful sections are often the least visible in classic navigation: accessories by console, gift cards, pre-orders, used games. On a site map, they appear at the same level as the others.
Finally, use your browser’s search function (Ctrl+F or Cmd+F) directly on the site map page. Type a keyword like “retro,” “collector,” or the name of a console, and the browser will highlight all matching links. This technique is faster than the site’s search bar when you want to check if a category exists.
When to prioritize the site map over internal search
- When internal search returns too many irrelevant results (a common issue on large catalogs)
- When you don’t know the exact name of a product but want to explore a category
- When you want to compare the depth of the catalog between two stores before buying
- When a filter by genre or gameplay mode is not available in standard navigation
The site map of a video game store is not a technical page reserved for indexing bots. It is a concrete navigation tool, particularly useful in extensive catalogs where menus are insufficient to show the range of available references.
