City Rebranding: Ghosts of York, A Feline's Tale

experimental ai midjourney aiart york gamification

Ghosts of York: A Feline's Tale

( 2022 )

A vibrant festival city with Roman roots and a Viking past, offering an adventure for everyone. As one of UK's oldest cities, it is rich with history and culture. How can we rebrand the city tourism approach to attract more people to visit?

Problem:

York aims to preserve its heritage while remaining relevant in the modern world, but it must also attract the right visitors selectively to avoid being stereotyped solely as a heritage city, showcasing its diverse and dynamic offerings beyond history.

insights:

I concluded the three popular things about York!

Logo Identity:

Using a typerwriter font in order to give the logo the oldish britain feel yet mysterious spooky feel, I also added a light blue glow to bring out more of the ghost vibe!

I have also added elements such as a ghost in the "O" and star to symbolise witchery. A long tail is illustrated on the end of "tale" as a pun to the word and represents the cat element of the logo

Moodboard:

Creative Direction:

Introducing a captivating gamified campaign experience in York, combining well-known elements to enchant families and folklore enthusiasts.

With game design and AR technology, historic tales come to life, creating awareness and enchantment, enticing visitors for a magical York experience.

Primary Character Design:

Using AI Art Generation from MidJourney to generate for Creative Inspiration, I created

Salem, the black cat companion for the ghost hunt game! Salem will follow you throughout your gameplay, using their magicial star symbol tail to capture ghosts.

Secondary Characters Designs:

For the undertaker, I used squarish shapes to depict authority, and included a suitcase and glowing blue magic lamp based on real-life undertaker references.

Using a rat as the basis, inspired by the cat trial’s ability to protect York from diseases that rats tend to attract.

Utilising AI as my Tool!

Using Midjourney to generate backgrounds featuring York’s attractions, I needed to maintain a consistent art style. I developed my own prompt template after conducting various experiments.

Mary GrandPré’s Harry Potter Illustrations

Final Backgrounds with Prompt Template:

"(image of place), (harry potter illustration image), in york england, magicial, fantasy, blue colour scheme, blue light glowing, night, dark lighting, harry potter art style, traditional colour pencil art style"

AR Ghost Hunt Game:

Link to full game prototype: https://www.figma.com/proto/J2vv9Fyd6RkoxEwofZpV4Z/Workingfile_Keer-Soong_210784Z_EB-ICA-2?page-id=0%3A1&node-id=1-76&viewport=-8989%2C523%2C0.48&scaling=scale-down&starting-point-node-id=33%3A3&show-proto-sidebar=1

The Storyline...

1. As a young and ambitious ghost hunter who has just arrived at York, England. You are excited to explore the city’s rich history and rumoured paranormal activity.

2. You’re not alone in your ghost hunting endeavours, accompanied by your faithful feline companion, a black cat named Salem, given to you by the local undertaker.

3. Prowl the streets of York and use Salem’s keen senses (Shooting Game Mechanic) to track down and capture ghosts by exploring the city’s haunted locations and gather evidence of the paranormal.

Print Applications (Outdoor Posters):

Featuring AR posters that will be strategically placed around Singapore. They offer a captivating preview demo of the AR game. These promotional materials are to entice and generate enthusiasm among the potential tourists, and to inspire them to embark on a magical journey to York to experience the full game in all its glory!