Tencent Design Week - 3rd Place
Reimagine the future of SNS games, enhanced by augmented reality.
Duration
06/2018 (3 Weeks)
Contribution
Concept ideation
Marketing & UX research
Video producing
Team
Darcy Wang
Lu Wang
Ding Huang
Xi Chu
Qiang Fu
Tools
Sketch
Photoshop
After Effects
Cinema 4D
Premiere
The Prompt
{Reimagine The Entertainment}
Among various new ways of human-computer interaction driven by advanced technology, augmented reality becomes one of the most accessible and emerging way of empowering entertainment.
More than ten years ago, when Tencent was one of the first few companies in China exploring the world of internet technology and social media, it successfully blew up the country by launching a series of PC based SNS (social networking service) games.
However, when mobile devices and high speed internet took up the market, the old games didn't seem to keep pace.
How might we redesign the SNS games to make them alive again?
Concept Statement
“WoodAR” is a mobile-based farm management simulation game integrated onto social media platforms.
With AR (Augmented Reality) and LBS (Location Based Services) technology, WoodAR combines entertaining and socializing by one simple action, “plant a tree.”
Research Deck
The History of SNS Games in China
Opportunities
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Tencent has the largest user database attached to its popular social media platforms including QQ and WeChat.
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The new version of the classic game may attract not only previous users with the familiar IP, but also younger generations with the virtual reality feature.
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Many users already have strong and stable social networks based on QQ and WeChat, giving the game the potential to enhance and expand their online and offline social networks.
Key User Scenarios
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WoodAR could be an entertainment extension attached to QQ and WeChat.
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Users could easily play with their plants, and interact with friends within fragmented time slots when they're indoor.
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The AR feature provides a new way to explore the neighborhood when the users are on their way.
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When going on a trip, users could learn more about the foreign city withe the extra layer provided by WoodAR.
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Various fantastic plants around the real world become a new type of attractions, especially when they are created by the every single unique player.
Main Feature Walkthrough
Area Enclosure and Planting
Every place in the city is plantable.
The larger area the player has enclosed, the more soil they will have for planting. In this way, we want to encourage the users to get our of their houses and to feel the beauty of the real world.
Trading System
Seeds are available by purchasing, exchanging with each other, or scanning real plants or fruits. When they travel to new places, there are chances of getting special seeds based on the location.
Planting System
With real soil and virtual seeds, players can plant, water them, and collect the fruits after a while. Every plant is available in both AR mode and classic mode.
When meeting a tree on the road, or visiting a friend's virtual garden, the player can also help watering others plants, or collecting their fruits secretly.
User Generated Content (UGC)
In the AR mode, users can easily take photos or videos with AR trees along the street. Special plants make every trip full of surprises.
In addition, the photos and videos can be directly shared to the social media platforms, which highlights the function of socializing.
Future Vision
Marketing Opportunities
"Everything can be plantable." Except for natural species, trees and fruits can also be relevant to culture and history. In Chinese traditional culture, there are many beautiful myths with the symbol of special plants. Each ancient festival has its own unique plants, too.
WoodAR also provides unique interactions & visual representations for commerce and social events. For example, coffee shops can attract the customers by planting a virtual coffee tree in front of it, life style stores can use different plants to introduce their eco-friendly material.
WoodAR got the 3rd place at Tencent Design Week Hackathon in 2018, beat over 100 teams.