Team up for 2-player adventures

Skills

Play Design, Interaction Design, Digital Play Prototyping, Rapid Prototyping, User Testing, Concept Design

Role

Interaction + Play Designer

PrototypingUser Experience

Note on confidentiality
Due to NDAs and child-safety guidelines, I can only show publicly released assets from this project. The visuals below represent final or promotional material; my contribution focused on interaction design, prototyping, and playtesting earlier in development.

Play Video
The Challenge

How do you take an iconic character and give him new powers—without needing screens, instructions, or adult help?

The LEGO Super Mario team needed each power-up costume to:

  • Feel physically distinct and instantly understandable

  • Introduce new game mechanics

  • Deepen engagement without increasing complexity

View Product

Our Goals
  • Introduce clear, replayable mechanics through each costume
  • Prototype + validate them quickly through kid testing
  • Align interaction logic with physical model design and audio-visual feedback
My Approach
Play Concept Design

  • Each costume started with a core “verb” (e.g. climb, shoot, smash). I explored how to map that into intuitive, physical actions—ones kids would try without being told.

Rapid Prototyping
  • I built low-fi prototypes using Unity and custom sensors to simulate costume effects. This helped test ideas fast before they were locked into final builds.
User Testing with Kids
  • We ran structured playtests with 6–10 year olds. Watched what they did, not just what they said. Measured time to discovery, joy reactions, and how powers changed their play patterns.
Outcomes
  • 3 tested & shipped power-up costumes
  • Faster discovery time in tests (avg. <10 seconds per costume)
  • Longer play sessions (+12 mins on average)
  • Overwhelmingly positive qualitative feedback from kids and parents