Role: UX Researcher, UX Designer, UI Designer
Date: 2021
Title: Animal Crossing: New Horizons & COVID-19: the importance of community in a social distancing context. Design of a complete user-centered interface.
Software: XMind, Google Moduli, Adobe XD, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Indesign
Since march 2020, in the middle of the Coronavirus pandemic, we have found ourselves in a situation that is unprecedented in history and for this reason the rules we are used to apply are no longer valid. Billions of people find themselves fighting a battle they know they can only win by rowing with responsibility and civic sense in the direction indicated by doctors and scientists. In this context, the digital world has become an indispensable tool in order to guarantee the continuity of services and activities, such as distance learning and smart working, but above all it has been a channel that has allowed moments of closeness and sociality, despite physical limitations.
In particular, an important contribution was made by the entertainment and video game industry.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons, launched by Nintendo Co. Ltd in March, quickly became a worldwide success, giving players the chance to find a new everyday life, frozen by the emergency, within the game itself.
The main objective of this thesis will be to provide a complete analysis of the current context and design a VoIP application, directly linked to the Animal Crossing New Horizons game, as a socialization tool.
The application allows a faster and instant connection with other players and provides the use of various useful functions to make the gaming experience more immersive, flexible and consistent by increasing the interaction between different activities and strengthening the bonds of the community in a neutral and unprecedented space.
