Cosplay Guide and Look & Feel
I was originally asked by 2K Games to design cosplay guides for the characters in Marvel's Midnight Suns video game. I started by developing and presenting three different roughs of some possible visual directions/ themes based on elements of the game (shown below). The first direction was a modern take on mystic elements like runes and magic circles, focusing on a light versus dark theme using the black and gold from the character designs. The second was based on tarot cards that exist for each in-game character and incorporates illustrative elements and organic, flowing lines. And the third was based on the "fire and brimstone" themes of the game to highlight the intensity of this "darker side of Marvel."
The marketing team decided on the "Modern Mysticism" direction, and asked me to pivot from the cosplay guide, to helping them develop the look and feel for overall marketing based on this direction. In addition, I was tasked with creating a style guide and various design elements to be used in marketing.
Below are a few page examples from the Doctor Strange cosplay guide. I used a combination of flat character renders and screenshots provided by the marketing team to outline the details of the Midnight Suns costume for cosplayers and artists to use as reference.
Style Guide and Visual Direction
Using the provided key art, I helped the marketing team determine the look and feel of the overall marketing for the game. I focused on the themes of light versus dark shown through the gold and black color palette present in the Midnight Suns hero costumes. Additionally, I wanted to communicate the themes of mysticism and magic through use of design elements like runes, magic circles, organic illustrative elements, and a touch of fire and brimstone. The style guide and overall look & feel were reviewed and approved by Marvel.
I put together a style guide document to outline the proper usage of design elements, fonts, themes, color palettes, character groupings and more. And provided design elements like dividers, text effects, text containers, buttons, backgrounds, textures, and visual lockups.
Below are a few examples from the style guide I designed to communicate the look and feel to the marketing team and designers, providing them with the resources to create strong and cohesive marketing.
Shown below are some examples of graphics I created while developing the look and feel to help test and demonstrate the guidelines laid out in the style guide.
Website Design
In addition to the style guide and cosplay guides, I was tasked with designing the mobile website, which would later be used as a base for the desktop version. I used a combination of flat character renders and screenshots provided by the marketing team with the design elements I had previously done for the style guide to create something that fit the action-packed, mystical and hellish themes of Midnight Suns.
Many of the elements were edited, photo-bashed, and painted-over to create the final product. The design and concept were reviewed and approved by Marvel. Note: website design has since been updated.
