Eye candy

For the Mis-Teeq album, see Eye Candy (album).

Eye candy is something that is most remarkable for its visual appeal.

This term has been applied to visual effects in film, computer games and user interfaces; it often adds little to the overall plot, game play, or interface, and people have criticized developers who rely on eye candy too much. However, it is equally important to have some form of eye candy in most games, as it adds a sense of realism. It is also used to refer to actors cast solely for the visual enjoyment of the audience, i.e. for their sex appeal.

The term is sometimes derogatory, implying that the object relies solely upon its visual appeal for any value it may have.

Something or someone who competently fills a role as well as looking good may be referred to as eye candy as a compliment.

"Eye Candy" is also used to describe graphics in PowerPoint or other presentations that provide visual stimuli to a viewer. Sometimes the graphic (e.g., photo, cartoon, image, logo, etc.) will be directly relevant to material on a slide. Other times the eye candy may not be relevant except to provide the eye a "rest" from the tedium of an all-text slide. In a side-by-side comparison of slides with and without eye candy, the presentation (and presenter) using eye candy is always favored over those without. Sometimes the eye candy may be used in a presentation header or footer to help separate parts of a larger presentation.

Other uses

Eye Candy also refers to a plugin for Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Fireworks that adds new filter effects.