Are you lonely?
When certain circumstances forced me to a new country, an experience I hadn't eagerly anticipated, I found myself stuck in complete isolation, which is a common issue in large cities. Living in this environment, I observed how individuals often remain confined within their own social bubbles, especially outside work or school environments. This phenomenon seemed exacerbated by recent trends in personalization and the impacts of COVID-19. My project began as a personal quest to understand and address this issue. By promoting simple, real-life interactions between strangers, my aim was to create micro-connections, countering the growing trends. The quantitative research further validates this issue.
Visual research
As part of the problem development, I conducted major research in culture to collect precedents and examine social instincts that drive us to form and shape communities. This study served as groundwork for product development and customer understanding, showcasing through visuals how shared beliefs bind us and the symbols we use to express our belonging.
Market research
In the realm of digital solutions for social connection, dating apps, online gaming, and social media dominate, yet they often fall short in addressing the deeper aspects of human connection. These platforms, underpinned by capitalist motives, tend to commodify social interactions, leveraging loneliness to drive engagement and profit. While they provide temporary relief from isolation, they often lack the ability to foster substantial, long-lasting relationships
Trends
Who is this for
Personas
How it works
This game is designed to connect people in real life. First, you pick your social priorities. Then you select a resident character that moves into your physical necklace to assist you on your quest. As you walk around in physical world, the device points out other people nearby who share your interests.
NFC stickers serve as a unique exchange mechanism. Creators can use them to make item dispensers and share their creations that can be collected to decorate a character or their virtual room, adding a layer of customization to the user experience. In addition to images, tags can store small notes, allowing users to discover messages left by others. Old and abandoned tags turn into “egg stations” or loot swaps where everyone can exchange preowned virtual items and hunt for new randomly generated characters. This creates a straightforward barter system, encouraging interaction and personalization within the community.
Characters
During UI onboarding, players are offered a choice of three basic Connectopian scientists to select from. The chosen one will "travel from their planet" and take residence in the user’s device to conduct social research of the human world and offer assistance in socializing based on their unique character and parameters. Once their mission is complete (when the player has met enough people) the Connectopian flies back, and their journey is preserved as an achievement in the gallery. Rare Connectopians that can be discovered inside Eggstations come with unique attributes that may enable the user to more exclusive social circles and interests.
Design system
I designed a set of custom, adjustable UI elements that seamlessly match the brand identity and further gamify the user experience. Modules can be easily scaled without distortion, are lightweight, ready-to-code and look stunning on both mobile and smaller accessory screens.
