orangehop-blog

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[orangehop-blog]

[orangehop-blog]

[orangehop-blog]

[orangehop-blog]

Creative design brief

The Company: It’s a startup (ITG - Immersive Tabletop Gaming - my own) that set out to build a software platform for immersive board game experiences. The platform will work with partnering/compatible games, RPGs like dungeon crawlers, or games that use mini-figures. The purpose is to create immersive, delightful experiences for board game players, reduce set-up and clean up times, and save paper.

Project Title: Project-FX (working title)

Project Objectives: Create an exciting experience for table-top gaming community. To add life to tabletop gaming, with the use of special effects and sound. To add ease of tracking game stats with handy stats tracking, saving, and viewing. To decrease game set-up time and save paper by using projected terrains, player stats and player stat sheets.

With the advent of accessible 3D printers, there is a growing interest in printing and painting mini-figures and terrain pieces. The projector could work with those, and eliminate the need for any other paper materials.

Project Goals and Expectations: Board game providers can create better, immersive experiences for their existing or new games. Board game players can play games faster, and easier, and in a more delightful way.

Competition: There isn’t anything quite this elaborate available on the market, or anything that would work with games produced by various game makers, not just one.

The closest thing is a TouchJet Pond projector, that can project screen  on a surface and make it touchable. Or private set-ups that use laptops and projectors to create a projected map.

Strengths/Weaknesses: There are gamers out there that made projection possible. However, it works only for their favorite games, and it simply projects the terrain. There is no interactivity, an app to track stats and set-up games, ability to play variety of games, see visual effects, timely sounds, mini-figure stat augmentations, interactive move assists, paperless stat tracking. P

The projector is highly portable, works with any table, and all data is stored online, and can be accessed through a phone or a tablet. No elaborate set-up or expensive tables/equipment required.

Unique Positioning Statement: To create immersive, fun, paperless, time-saving, and easier to set-up and manage tabletop gaming experiences for board game lovers.  

Brand: The elements that should be uniform and recognizable to the new customers are mostly the  language and layout of stats. The Project-FX and its app and branding will be unique, and the screen layouts and mechanics more or less uniform across games accessible through Project-FX. The actual “skins“ of the game-play screens will be designed based on the specific game currently played.

History and Reputation: ITG, for now just me, will be based on a history of passion for playing tabletop games. I have access to a community of players, and can continuously test and ask for feedback from real potential users, who are excited to participate.

Previous Projects: This is the first project of its kind for this company. The company will use its expertise in motion animation, design, and expertise and passion for the subject matter to see the project through.

Define the Audience:

The end users of the product, based on actually RPG research pulled from several sites, are about 95% male individuals, 20% of which are between 18-25 y.o, and 75% between 25-50 y.o, with the bulk of them being around 35 years old. Majority of  them have some college or grad school education. About half of these people are willing to spend under $80 on a game, and another half up to $150. In other words, the median user is a 35 year old, educated guy, who makes an average or above average income. This is based on a preliminary research, and mostly for RPG games.

The audience could also be companies like Envidia, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Dell, Alienware, Razer - companies that could build smart software.

Behavioral Habits: These are mostly tech savvy users, especially here in the California community. They work long hours, and they like to get together to play board games and socialize. They like staying intellectually active and are usually advanced technology users. They follow latest news in technology, space exploration, board and video gaming, science. They appreciate good food and dinners out, though most struggle with small talk and socializing, and prefer to socialize in a setting that has interesting context to it - like, board games, escape rooms, archery lessons, glass blowing lessons, etc. They are open to new types of technology and are advanced device, app and internet users.

Project Components/Media Implementation:

Identity

A mock-up model of projector (3D or made of actual physical materials)

A concise interactive In Vision prototype of the app (due to app complexity and lots of data involved, demonstrating main features)

Stand-alone animation of main feature app screens and elements like player panel, and mini-figure augmentation panel

A promotional video of people playing  a board game, using the projector. The above mentioned animations will be integrated into the video using green screen technology, so they will be the same animations, which saves time. There will be no 3D animation - everything 3D will be real objects. I will keep figure augmentation and movement assist effects minimal and to the point. Stretch goal - utilize some visual effects, like explosion fire, or magic dust - if possible. There are ways to scale the ambition down in this video piece, in case I run out of time.

Length of Project: The length of the semester. It will require constant work, though, once Project-FX partners with and adds new games - as each game will require designing of skins and game specific assets.

Geography: The plan is to initially launch it in the US and Canada. International expansion will depend on the types of games played overseas, and whether Project-FX is a suitable platform for them.

Budget: Besides my time, which is priceless, it’s under $100 for project materials.

Terms: 50% up front, and 50% upon completion.

Client-Side Team: Anna Istomina

Restrictions and Limitations: Extensive user testing is required so that the project is well-received and is actually solving real problems.

Research:

rpg.net

darkshire.net

classicrpgrealms.blogspot.com

grogtard.com

stonemaiergames.com

boardgamegeek.com

Word Lists and Mood Boards (visual word lists) consist of:

immersive, playful, fun, happy, good times

community, warm company, socialization, cozy

clean, accessible, inviting

friendly technology, non-intrusive, helpful, smart, adaptable

simple, fast, intuitive, time-saving, easy

attractive, texturized, awe-inspiring

Concept: Demonstrate that technology can be integrated into current hands-on board gaming experience, in a way that enhances the experience and makes it immersive, and doesn’t make it “screen based“ or “electronic“. At the same time, it saves precious time, minimizing set up and clean  up, and helps save paper used for player sheets, terrain maps, and stat tracking plastic chips.

Theme:

Cozy, fun, immersive and playful board game experience. Spend your time on playing, not organizing.

Miscellaneous: This is a project that could be incredibly large and intricate, but it can be scaled down to some concise, important points that need to be demonstrated. The purpose of this project is to convey the concept clearly, and demonstrate the main ideas and features in an appealing way. The purpose of this project is not to develop a full scale, functioning applicationt, with all the potential features and capabilities.

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Project proposals

Project Idea 1: Interactive Board Game Projector

Client: Any tabletop game maker.

Problem: Long set up time, cumbersome paper-based game stats tracking, large volumes of information to deal during game play, non-interactive scenes, steep learning curve - lack of immersive experiences.

Solution: An elegant and easy to set up table-top projector with AI, AR and IoT integrations. A curved projector that mounts easily onto a table, and projects an interactive, sound-enabled scene of choice onto a game table and mini-figures. Game parameters can be chosen via mobile app. Player stats are input via projected player sheets and a pointer tracking pencil, and are automatically stored in the app. Fun components added, like special effects and terrain animations, and sounds. Mini-figures will have fiduciary markers that will enable augmentations like relevant, context-depended player stats displayed next to the mini figures. Visual help and prompts, like figure movement and trajectories, will be offered and tracked by the main processor.

Deliverables: Mobile app prototype (demo relevant screens), physical projector mockup, animation or video of and example projected map with interactive elements, examples of figure stats augmentations, example of projected player stat sheet. Stretch goal - video of the game in action with “real“ players.

Exploration opportunities: link physical objects with AR augmentations, create paper and time saving solutions, streamline processes, explore camera vision and projection, take advantage of IoT, create immersive, delightful experience.

Project Idea 2: Smart screen voice-only and mixed-media interaction language

Client: any Internet-based service provider, such as Airbnb, Doordash, Food Network, or Uber, or a new service that I invent, wishing to deliver their services via virtual assistant devices with a screen (a.k.a. “smart screen”), such as Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa enabled TVs and smart screens.

Problem: How do we use our everyday apps via a smart screen? Is there a way to get things done on it using voice only? Or a combination of voice and touch? Can we get things done while our hands are busy?

Solution: Design a voice-based experience for an existing service (or a new service) on smart screen devices, such as Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa. I’d like to create a voice interaction language that would enable me to successfully use a specific service of choice (Airbnb, Uber, etc). For example, an Airbnb smart screen app would allow me to book a place while minimally using touch (voice/touch hybrid model). To be device-agnostic, I’ll invent my own smart assistant and name it something. The device will have a touch screen.

Deliverables: a smart speaker/screen app prototype. A system of voice commands (language) that could potentially be applied to other apps. A video of a person using the app using a smart speaker: during the interaction, the speaker screen will keep displaying appropriate content that could be interacted with using touch, but the user will mostly use voice.

Exploration opportunities: Creating a mininal touch, mostly voice (mixed-media) interaction language and process for complex apps on a smart screen, like Alexa or Gogole Home.

Project idea 3: in-car entertainment system for self-driving taxi services (e.g. Waymo)

Client: self-driving car (autonomous vehicle) manufacturers (such as Tesla) and services (such as Waymo).

Problem: First problem, and a pressing issue, is that these manufacturers have a time-sensitive task of creating an autonomous vehicle interface that will help build trust. It’s hard for humans to trust a machine and let go of control. Second problem is that an average driver, according to AAA spends 48 mins/day on average driving. During that time, what kind of activities could the vehicle offer? What would the interface be and what opportunities could be explored?

Solution: build an autonomous vehicle interface that would allow for smooth transition of control from human to car to human. The interface that would be transparent give timely feedback about the car’s actions, but not overwhelm the driver. And during long stretches of autonomous driving, offer the driver entertainment options  The entertainment could be video, music or even smart assistant planning. Real-time messaging could also be explored, like “would you like to stop by Starbucks that’s coming up soon?”

Deliverables: interactive prototype/digital mock-up of the proposed car UI in action.