Shoegazing in Project Kestrel, a private view of the world
My Role
UX Design Consultant
Product Type
Videogame
Project Kestrel posed an unusual UX question: how does augmented reality work in a third-person videogame, and how is it different from a hologram? I explored that question through hands-on spatial prototyping, using a “Wanted” poster as a model for how information could be revealed in the world. The most useful discovery was simple. Looking down could reveal more.
Early sketches exploring how public notices could become layered spatial information.
Product History
Developer
Platforms
Lifecycle
Incubation 2020–2021
Key Skills & Tools
Figma, Unreal Engine, Illustrator, PowerPoint
My Workgroup
Game Director Ben Jones Art Director Jared Carr Production Director Greg Donovan Game Design David Mendelsohn UX/UI Design Gary Boodhoo, Ruwan Fernando, Keyan Mynhardt, Anton Li Narrative Design Wynn McLaughlin Production Max Krembs, Amelia Wales
Shoegazing in Project Kestrel, a private view of the world
My Role
UX Design Consultant
Product Type
Videogame
Project Kestrel posed an unusual UX question: how does augmented reality work in a third-person videogame, and how is it different from a hologram? I explored that question through hands-on spatial prototyping, using a “Wanted” poster as a model for how information could be revealed in the world. The most useful discovery was simple. Looking down could reveal more.
Early sketches exploring how public notices could become layered spatial information.
Product History
Developer
Platforms
Lifecycle
Incubation 2020–2021
Key Skills & Tools
Figma, Unreal Engine, Illustrator, PowerPoint
My Workgroup
Game Director Ben Jones Art Director Jared Carr Production Director Greg Donovan Game Design David Mendelsohn UX/UI Design Gary Boodhoo, Ruwan Fernando, Keyan Mynhardt, Anton Li Narrative Design Wynn McLaughlin Production Max Krembs, Amelia Wales
Shoegazing in Project Kestrel, a private view of the world
My Role
UX Design Consultant
Product Type
Videogame
Project Kestrel posed an unusual UX question: how does augmented reality work in a third-person videogame, and how is it different from a hologram? I explored that question through hands-on spatial prototyping, using a “Wanted” poster as a model for how information could be revealed in the world. The most useful discovery was simple. Looking down could reveal more.
Early sketches exploring how public notices could become layered spatial information.
Product History
Developer
Platforms
Lifecycle
Incubation 2020–2021
Key Skills & Tools
Figma, Unreal Engine, Illustrator, PowerPoint
My Workgroup
Game Director Ben Jones Art Director Jared Carr Production Director Greg Donovan Game Design David Mendelsohn UX/UI Design Gary Boodhoo, Ruwan Fernando, Keyan Mynhardt, Anton Li Narrative Design Wynn McLaughlin Production Max Krembs, Amelia Wales
Shoegazing in Project Kestrel, a private view of the world
My Role
UX Design Consultant
Product Type
Videogame
Project Kestrel posed an unusual UX question: how does augmented reality work in a third-person videogame, and how is it different from a hologram? I explored that question through hands-on spatial prototyping, using a “Wanted” poster as a model for how information could be revealed in the world. The most useful discovery was simple. Looking down could reveal more.
Early sketches exploring how public notices could become layered spatial information.
Product History
Developer
Platforms
Lifecycle
Incubation 2020–2021
Key Skills & Tools
Figma, Unreal Engine, Illustrator, PowerPoint
My Workgroup
Game Director Ben Jones Art Director Jared Carr Production Director Greg Donovan Game Design David Mendelsohn UX/UI Design Gary Boodhoo, Ruwan Fernando, Keyan Mynhardt, Anton Li Narrative Design Wynn McLaughlin Production Max Krembs, Amelia Wales
Prototype
Looking down to reveal more
Prototype
Looking down to reveal more
Prototype
Looking down to reveal more
Prototype
Looking down to reveal more
I built this prototype in Unreal to turn an abstract UX question into something the team could evaluate hands-on. Because third-person augmented reality was a core design pillar, we needed to discover how it worked through play and iteration.
I built this prototype in Unreal to turn an abstract UX question into something the team could evaluate hands-on. Because third-person augmented reality was a core design pillar, we needed to discover how it worked through play and iteration.
I built this prototype in Unreal to turn an abstract UX question into something the team could evaluate hands-on. Because third-person augmented reality was a core design pillar, we needed to discover how it worked through play and iteration.
I built this prototype in Unreal to turn an abstract UX question into something the team could evaluate hands-on. Because third-person augmented reality was a core design pillar, we needed to discover how it worked through play and iteration.
UX prototype demonstrating tiered information access through a third-person camera.
Unreal Engine Gary Boodhoo
UX prototype demonstrating tiered information access through a third-person camera.
Unreal Engine Gary Boodhoo
UX prototype demonstrating tiered information access through a third-person camera.
Unreal Engine Gary Boodhoo
UX prototype demonstrating tiered information access through a third-person camera.
Unreal Engine Gary Boodhoo
Implementation
Interaction design with the third-person camera
Implementation
Interaction design with the third-person camera
Implementation
Interaction design with the third-person camera
Implementation
Interaction design with the third-person camera
I built the shoegazing behavior as an Unreal material graph so the interaction could be applied to any surface in the environment. By comparing the camera vector with the surface normal, the material used view angle to reveal hidden information as the player looked down.
I built the shoegazing behavior as an Unreal material graph so the interaction could be applied to any surface in the environment. By comparing the camera vector with the surface normal, the material used view angle to reveal hidden information as the player looked down.
I built the shoegazing behavior as an Unreal material graph so the interaction could be applied to any surface in the environment. By comparing the camera vector with the surface normal, the material used view angle to reveal hidden information as the player looked down.
I built the shoegazing behavior as an Unreal material graph so the interaction could be applied to any surface in the environment. By comparing the camera vector with the surface normal, the material used view angle to reveal hidden information as the player looked down.
Reusable Unreal material system with parameters for texture placement, opacity, and view-angle response.
Material Graph Gary Boodhoo
Reusable Unreal material system with parameters for texture placement, opacity, and view-angle response.
Material Graph Gary Boodhoo
Reusable Unreal material system with parameters for texture placement, opacity, and view-angle response.
Material Graph Gary Boodhoo
Reusable Unreal material system with parameters for texture placement, opacity, and view-angle response.
Material Graph Gary Boodhoo
Camera Vector describes the viewer’s direction relative to the surface. PixelNormalWS describes which way each pixel faces. The material measures their alignment to control opacity for the shoegazing reveal.
Design System Gary Boodhoo
Camera Vector describes the viewer’s direction relative to the surface. PixelNormalWS describes which way each pixel faces. The material measures their alignment to control opacity for the shoegazing reveal.
Design System Gary Boodhoo
Camera Vector describes the viewer’s direction relative to the surface. PixelNormalWS describes which way each pixel faces. The material measures their alignment to control opacity for the shoegazing reveal.
Design System Gary Boodhoo
Camera Vector describes the viewer’s direction relative to the surface. PixelNormalWS describes which way each pixel faces. The material measures their alignment to control opacity for the shoegazing reveal.
Design System Gary Boodhoo
I used a nonlinear response curve to tune the reveal’s responsiveness, controlling how smoothly information transitioned in and out of view.
Diagram Gary Boodhoo
I used a nonlinear response curve to tune the reveal’s responsiveness, controlling how smoothly information transitioned in and out of view.
Diagram Gary Boodhoo
I used a nonlinear response curve to tune the reveal’s responsiveness, controlling how smoothly information transitioned in and out of view.
Diagram Gary Boodhoo
I used a nonlinear response curve to tune the reveal’s responsiveness, controlling how smoothly information transitioned in and out of view.
Diagram Gary Boodhoo
Results
The prototype made third-person augmented reality tangible for the creative team. It showed how a public notice could unfold into a private view of the world, turning camera posture into part of the interaction language.
The larger insight was that the environment itself could host tiered information outside the HUD.
The prototype made third-person augmented reality tangible for the creative team. It showed how a public notice could unfold into a private view of the world, turning camera posture into part of the interaction language.
The larger insight was that the environment itself could host tiered information outside the HUD.
Matt Firor
Studio Director, ZeniMax Online Studios
Gary is an immensely talented designer UX / UI designer that I have had the privilege to work with over many years, including foundational work on the User Experience for Elder Scrolls Online, as well as other games in development and our web portal at ZeniMax Online Studios. He is professional, on-time and a joy to work with. Highly recommended.
Product Type
Videogame
Developer
Platforms
Platforms
Lifecycle
Incubation 2020–2021
Key Skills & Tools
Figma, Unreal Engine, Illustrator, PowerPoint
My Workgroup
My Workgroup
Game Director Ben Jones Art Director Jared Carr Production Director Greg Donovan Game Design David Mendelsohn UX/UI Design Gary Boodhoo, Ruwan Fernando, Keyan Mynhardt, Anton Li Narrative Design Wynn McLaughlin Production Max Krembs, Amelia Wales
