Captain Laserhawk: The G.A.M.E.

UI/UX Design

Led a UI/UX overhaul to make the game more PC-friendly while keeping its retro style. Designed the UI/UX for 7 new features and delivered 150+ screens, states, flows and supporting documentation.

I also designed the UI/UX for Tournaments, Events and the Token Shop.

• Game UI/UX Redesign

  Homepage redesign

  Although the original UI/UX was intended to look and feel like a retro game, I wanted to make it a bit more PC-friendly while preserving as much of that experience as possible. The original homepage’s large buttons and competing colours made it visually overwhelming.

  

  

  Before After Reveal the original homescreen

  A clearer homepage

  Removing one-time progression entry points freed space for a Newsfeed and frequently used features: Quests, Battle Pass, Social, Leaderboard and Profile Customisation.

  Homepage references

  PC homescreens UI style

  Homepage iterations

  After looking at other PC games, I created 12 homescreen mockups. We voted on iteration 11 as the final layout. It brought frequently used features into the main navigation and made room for changing information such as daily quest status. All 12 explorations are below, with the selected version marked.

  1. 01
  2. 02
  3. 03
  4. 04
  5. 05
  6. 06
  7. 07
  8. 08
  9. 09
  10. 10
  11. 11Selected layout
  12. 12

  Locker revamp

  I wanted all the cosmetics accessible from one page, instead of keeping each category on a separate page. I also wanted the Locker to have a bit more character, with space for each cosmetic’s narrative and fun details.

  The redesign needed to accommodate different cosmetic types, long item names and an expanding inventory that included tickets and unique currencies. I allowed flexible space for text and tailored the preview area to each item type, extending the Locker beyond cosmetic selection.

  

  

  Before After Reveal the original locker

  One place for the collection

  I grouped the categories on the left, kept the selected cosmetic in the centre, and placed its details on the right. Selected and equipped states show the difference between the item being previewed and the one the player is using.

  Cosmetic details and previews

  Bloodstain preview and flavour text Emote wheel and equipped state

• Settings and Remapping Keys

  I worked with Leonardo Maimoni on Settings and Keys Remapping. He handled the system design, and I designed the UI/UX and visuals. We checked in with each other throughout the design process.

  The screens covered Display, Audio, Keyboard + Mouse, and Controller. We worked through how players would select, change, and remove key bindings.

  

  What I focused on

  The game was still in its early stages, and the art direction was still being finalised. I experimented with different visuals to find something that fit the vaporwave, retro aesthetic and would be easy to reskin if things changed later.

  References

  I referred to settings screens and control layouts in other games.

  

  Visual iterations

  We voted on the first iteration for the settings screen.

  

• Quests

  For Quests, Leonardo Maimoni handled the system design and balancing, while I designed all the UI/UX and visuals. We exchanged feedback as the system and interface took shape.

  Quests gave players objectives to work towards and rewards to collect. Daily Missions refreshed each day, while Season Operations grouped quests into chapters that unlocked through the season.

  

  My UI/UX work

  • Quest progress is visible at the homescreen and Battle Pass entry points.
  • Daily Missions and Season Operations use separate tabs, with collapsible chapters and countdowns for upcoming operations.
  • Distinct states show quests in progress, ready to claim or collected. When a reward is ready, the whole row is clickable.

  Visual iterations

  I explored card and list layouts, text casing, and different panel treatments.

  

  Quest notifications

  I designed progress and completion notifications so players could see quest updates during a match.

  

• Leaderboard

  I designed the leaderboard's UI/UX and visuals, working with Leonardo Maimoni, who created the system design and initial wireframes.

  The leaderboard let players compare their seasonal ranking globally, within their region, among friends, or within a community collection. Players could also look back at previous seasons.

  

  My UI/UX work

  I translated the wireframes into the final interface, grouping the location, collection and friends filters beside the rankings. I kept the player's own rank visible below the list, with avatars, titles and scores carried through each row. I worked through the filtered views, a list with no friends to show, and navigation into the season archives.

  

• Niji Career Path

  Leonardo Maimoni designed the Niji Career Path system. I was responsible for all the UI/UX and visuals, and wrote the feature's text and narrative. We reviewed the UI/UX and system design together as the feature developed.

  Niji Career Path was designed as a single-player progression mode to introduce players to the game through challenges. Players worked towards new divisions and could revisit challenges to complete extra objectives and earn prestige.

  

  UI/UX and writing

  I designed the flow from choosing a challenge to reviewing its results and claiming a promotion. The results needed to show both how the current attempt went and whether each reward had already been claimed.

  I framed the screens as an Eden military personnel file and carried that language through the labels and messages, from “Classified challenges” and “Performance report” to the promotion and prestige messages.

  Visual iterations

  I explored different layouts for the challenges, division progress, and player information.

  

Primary Content Designer

Led the FY25–26 content roadmap and designed 250+ cosmetics (live-ops collaborations, events, battle passes). Oversaw an additional 70+ cosmetics, documented the assets and worked closely with the art team.

• Cosmetics

  I led cosmetic content design, from collection ideas and item briefs to naming, rarity, pricing and release plans. Ideas came from the Netflix series, seasonal events, collaborations, pop culture and memes. I also followed conversations on Twitter and Discord to see what players were asking for.

  References, puns and jokes gave the item names personality. For collaboration cosmetics, I introduced Dimensional above Legendary, with the same functionality and a blue and pink portal treatment.

  Alongside my own designs, I oversaw Jonas Noronha’s work on 70+ cosmetics. I set themes and the required mix of cosmetic types and rarities, reviewed concepts and names, and provided feedback before briefs went to the art team.

  Our art team created the artwork and animations:

  Art Director

  Daniel Kovacs

  Animator

  Sachin Desai

  2D Artist

  Alaa Altheraawi

  2D Artist

  Joemar Maribujoc

  3D Artist

  Alexandr Pinzari

  Selected Cosmetics

  Some of my favourites from the cosmetics I designed.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  Collections

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  DEDSEC rollout

  The marketing team and I developed the idea of presenting the DEDSEC collection as a virus released by hackers, taking over the game’s presentation.

  I proposed the Battle Pass reveal to carry this idea into the interface. Selected reward thumbnails appeared glitched until a configurable reveal time, while free/premium and mintability labels remained visible. Hidden items could not be previewed before the reveal.

  I also adapted familiar memes and pop-culture references into cosmetics, giving them a Laserhawk character and context.

  Reference

  Cosmetic

  Reference

  Cosmetic

  Reference

  Cosmetic

  Reference

  Cosmetic

  From design to production

  The roadmap covered outfits, laser guns, profile pictures, emotes and victory animations across Battle Passes, standalone releases, surprise drops and game modes. I balanced seasonal and evergreen ideas, cosmetic types and rarities against the art team’s capacity. I also checked for duplication, cultural sensitivity and copyright concerns.

  I wrote briefs and created mockups, organised reviews with the art team, and presented cosmetics for Ubisoft Paris approval where needed. Emote briefs specified animation, sound, thumbnails and animated previews for the artists and animator to work from.

  I maintained an asset tracker for release status, configuration and localisation. Battle Pass sheets tracked the mix of cosmetic types and rarities across free and premium rewards.

  

• Profile Customisation

  I designed Profile Customisation to give players more ways to express themselves beyond a profile picture. Banners, badges and player titles expanded the cosmetic types available for their profiles.

  The same identity needed to work across the homescreen, post-match summaries, leaderboards, friends and lobbies. I defined the components of the profile card and how they fit together.

  

Live-Ops Feature and System Design

Conceptualised 7+ live-ops systems and features, including recurring game modes, the Tournament System and its matchmaking, new cosmetic types and the Web3 token shop. Defined participation rules, player flows and recovery paths for failed or interrupted actions.

• Tournament System

  I designed the Tournament System and all its UI/UX, from the participation rules and tournament structure to the player flow and final screens.

  Official tournaments gave players a scheduled competition to enter, advance through and earn rewards from. The initial scope focused on Solo Deathmatch.

  

  Tournament structure

  The experience followed five phases: registration, lock-in, bracket formation, battles, and results. Lock-in confirmed players were present before brackets formed, reducing the chance of matches starting with absent players.

  Low turnout required planning for both bracket completion and graceful cancellation. I worked through how bots could fill brackets to a power of two without outnumbering human players. The structure also split larger groups across simultaneous tournaments.

  Entry and participation

  Event details and eligibility sat beside the ticketing panel, so players could see the requirements before registering. Players could invite friends and offer them tickets, with registration available once everyone had a ticket equipped.

  I initially proposed preparing tournament teams around players who were already logged in. The online programming team raised concerns about the storage overhead of recording that participation. I changed the default so players remained non-participants until they actively formed a tournament team.

  Following the competition

  A consistent event-information panel carried through each phase, while the action area changed from registration to upcoming opponents and results. Players could also open the full bracket to follow the competition.

  

  

  

  

  Selected screens from the UI/UX flow, showing key stages of the tournament

  Handling interruptions

  I defined recovery paths for failed registration, cancelled events and reward-claim errors. Tickets returned through the inbox when registration failed or an event was cancelled; the inbox also delivered rewards if claiming failed.

• DEDSEC Game Mode

  I designed this limited-time PvE mode, defining its gameplay rules, UI feedback and art requirements in collaboration with the art and development teams.

  Built around DEDSEC's hacking theme, the mode put the player alongside allied bots against Eden forces. Defeated enemies dropped access cards that players could collect and upload at active terminals to earn points.

  Game mode design

  Only one terminal was active at a time. Limited activation windows and changing locations gave players a reason to move between combat, collecting cards and hacking. The design retained the game's existing movement, shooting and dash controls.

  • Pulsing chevrons guided the player towards the active terminal, with a timer showing how long it would remain available.
  • Access-card slots showed the player's inventory, with distinct feedback for reaching capacity, uploading cards and losing them.
  • Terminal lights changed from blue to green while being hacked, with point feedback confirming progress.

  The visual brief used a CCTV and CRT treatment to carry the hacking theme into gameplay, alongside the event's splash art and landing page.

  We also released a battlepass to accompany this game mode, as covered in Cosmetics.

  An issue during DEDSEC exposed a limitation of keeping art and development GDDs separate. I subsequently developed both sets of requirements together, in parallel, so both teams could follow the complete feature.

  

• Event System

  I worked on the Event System with Leonardo Maimoni, supporting configurable, limited-time game modes. The framework covered event availability, schedules, entry requirements and the transition from announcement to active play and cooldown.

  The flows also covered rewards, rankings, expiry warnings and recovery through the inbox. The event’s state determined what players could see and do:

  Before, during and after an event

  1. UpcomingA countdown and desaturated artwork announce the event before it opens.
  2. ActiveThe event becomes available to play, with its rewards and rankings.
  3. CooldownEvent information remains accessible after play has ended.

  Exploring the event entry point

  The preferred layout gave the event a prominent card alongside the standard game modes. These mockups compare that direction with an alternative menu arrangement.

  

  

  From discovery to play

  

• Battle Pass Research

  I explored an alternative Battle Pass structure built around player choice. After a shared reward track, players could complete a quest and commit to one of several themed tracks.

  Completing the quest made a track available to choose without automatically committing the player. A separate confirmation protected players from accidental commitment, while saved XP preserved progress earned before they chose. The proposal also included rewards beyond Battle Pass completion. This remained internal research and was not released.

  A shared start, then a choice

  

  1. QualifyComplete the quest for a themed path.
  2. ChooseSelect the eligible path and confirm the commitment.
  3. ContinueApply saved XP and progress along the chosen track.

Narrative & Thematic Design

Wrote feature descriptions, instructions, announcements and cosmetic names and lore. Kept the writing, features and cosmetics consistent with the Captain Laserhawk show’s world and tone.

• As I designed features, I also wrote the text players would read in the game. Instructions, announcements, feature descriptions and other in-game copy were usually written by me, including for features created by other designers.

  I used Eden's futuristic dictatorship as the voice behind that text. Official-sounding language, references to citizens and government authority, and dark humour helped practical instructions feel like part of the game's world.

  

Economy Design

Built Excel sheets to balance cosmetic prices and quantities in the Web3 store. Linked the balancing model to offer planning, and configured shop availability, recurrence, pricing and supply.

• Shop Balancing

  I built and maintained an Excel model to balance cosmetic prices and supply across content updates. Shared assumptions sat above the item calculations, with linked offer sheets for release planning.

  Pricing against player effort

  Shared pricing factors covered cosmetic type, rarity, mintability, character or collaboration recognition, and estimated appeal. The value assigned to each cosmetic type considered both production cost and its visibility in-game.

  The model combined item factors with multipliers based on my design judgment. Pricing also considered average currency earned per match and assumptions about how frequently and how long players played, connecting item costs to earning effort.

  The model also converted prices between currencies.

  Balancing supply

  Separate quantity ratios and weights combined item characteristics with the assumed player population. Keeping price and supply controls distinct let me adjust availability alongside an item’s value.

  Planning shop offers

  Offer sheets linked back to the balancing model through item configuration IDs, applied shop-specific adjustments and rounding, and brought together currency prices, quantities, placement and release dates. Shared assumptions made changes consistent across items, with separate sheets retained for successive updates.

  

  

• Token Shop

  I designed the Token Shop’s navigation and purchase flow for collaboration cosmetics, including offers that required ownership of a partner token.

  Organising the shop

  The proposed layout separated Offers, Token Shop and Resources into top-level tabs, with controller shoulder-button navigation and space for temporary event sections.

  Resources provided a dedicated destination for currency purchases, including redirects from insufficient-currency prompts. Configurable collection titles and placement supported new collaboration releases.

  Explaining purchase eligibility

  Everyone could browse the collaboration collections and preview an item. At confirmation, eligible token holders could proceed with the purchase; other players saw the required token ownership explained in place of the purchase button.

  The specification accounted for players holding tokens from multiple collaborations, and included tracking requirements for the section and category each purchase came from.

  I also designed the Not Enough Currency (NEC) flow with Leonardo Maimoni and our producer Sergiy Turkevych to address new EU requirements for in-game microtransactions. I handled the UI/UX.