CHROMA·ZONE

Product Design
Project Overview
Chroma Zone is a social experience that combines the idea of conversation as therapy, with conversation starting prompts that allow users to share their experiences with others in a fun and interactive way. This project aims to tackle a combination of stigmas and misconceptions surrounding mental health.
My Contributions
This project was a culmination of all my practice as I carried this project over three semesters. I stuck with this subject from its conception all the way through to its completion as a marketable product. I took care of the entire project from design to user testing and asset building. Its end point was a playable game and marketing website.
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CHROMA·ZONE
Product Designer
Sept 2019 - April 2020
How To Play

The object of the game is to share part of your experiences in order to win. The card deck prompts players with a card and topic asking them to share their experiences.

If the player chooses to do so, they keep the card and obtain a point in doing so.

If the player chooses to refuse, they may skip the card surrendering their turn.

The game incentivizes players to share in order to win. They're not punished for choosing not to share, instead they simply do not progress. An odd number of cards in the deck ensures a clear winner, that being the player who has the most points obtained.

Approach

The initial approach to this project was very different in the beginning. This project moved over three semesters and went through a major re-design half way through. I realized that there were different ways to approach this problem space and made choices to head in those directions later.

My problem space ultimately changed as well, it went from focusing on the idea that men struggle with their feelings and emotions more often than women do on average. My work and research did ultimately prove this but the difference was not as drastic as I had imagined. I finally came to the conclusion that it wasn't worth dividing the problem space down the middle if both participating groups struggled to identify their emotions at a similar pace.

The first approach came in the form of an interactive map of emotions and feelings that users could interact with. The idea was for them to input their feelings into the interactive map/chart and in-turn the chart would map out the normal range of feelings that people feel on a daily basis. The point was to create an interactive map that people would help inform through their experiences, creating a geographical landscape in which these feelings exist.

There are interesting points in the way people perceive things, These sections between two of four primary feelings suggest interesting and complex human emotions. Here, Fear meets happiness, this is where emotions such as surprise and excitement are found.

On this side of the diagram we can see that happiness also meets anger, this is where we find competitive emotions as well as the conflicting ones we feel while building puzzles.
There are many complex emotions that people may feel on a daily basis. In some individuals many feelings can be felt at the same time, building interesting relationships between two opposite feelings on the diagram.

Ideation

In the ideation phase of this project, I did a lot to approach the problem space with a different solution. Many of the first ideas to come up usually seem to be based in some sort of application for a smartphone. I worked really hard to move away from this by moving into more social space activities, such as talking with friends and cooking or even writing clubs.

Concept

The final concept that was decided on was a portable card game that could provide players with the opportunity to share their experiences and to allow others to share and have players provide help. The game was named Chroma-Zone and would go on to become the second iteration of the project. I later worked on how the game would work and possible expansions for the game.

Design

The final design would come in the form of a website made to market the product. I used this product to follow my project from its concept and ideation all the way through to its completed marketable form. The website works in tandem with the game in the sense that it not only provides information about the game and and instructions on how to play but also provides information on where Chroma-Zone can be bought and what stores actually carry the product.

Below is a link to the website and more information regarding the conceptualization of the product.
For more information reach out to the email provided at the bottom of the page.

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