Avatar Activity

This case study has been anonymized to protect proprietary information. Original production screens and visual assets cannot be shared. Any UI shown here has been recreated for demonstration purposes and does not represent the final shipped product.

01

The Challenge

Avatar Activity was one of the platform's highest-engagement experiences. As part of a major product evolution, the challenge was to modernize the experience without losing what children already loved about it.

The opportunity went beyond a visual redesign. We wanted to strengthen children's connection with the experience through personalization, creativity, and self-expression, while building a foundation that could scale into future product experiences.

02

My Role

As Product Owner & Game Designer, I led the feature from early discovery and product definition through design, research, iteration, development, and release—translating stakeholder goals into a scalable experience for young users.

03

From Research to MVP

Before defining the new experience, I conducted a broad exploration of avatar and character customization systems across mobile and web products, educational games, AAA games, and reward-driven experiences.

Rather than looking for a solution to replicate, the goal was to understand how different products approached navigation, customization, self-expression, progression, and rewards—and identify patterns that could be adapted for a much younger audience.

Defining the Core Experience

The exploration helped clarify the experience we wanted to create: a simple, repeatable loop where children could explore options, customize their avatar, immediately see the result, receive a reward, and return to continue experimenting.

Scoping the MVP

The broader product vision included multiple avatar slots, a persistent avatar identity, expanded customization and reward systems, and opportunities for the avatar to appear across future experiences.

For the MVP, we prioritized one active avatar, the core customization categories, kid-friendly navigation, the initial asset set, and integration with the platform's existing reward system.

This allowed us to preserve the strongest elements of personalization and self-expression while keeping the first release focused and achievable.

04

Designing the Core Experience

With the MVP defined, the next challenge was translating the product direction into an interaction model that worked for very young children.

Although the platform served a broader age range, the experience was intentionally optimized for younger users. This meant designing around developing motor skills, limited reading ability, short attention spans, and the need for immediate visual feedback.

Initial Interaction Model

The early customization direction centered the avatar as the primary point of focus, with visual categories for features such as skin tone, hair, clothing, shoes, and accessories.

The first interaction model explored vertical browsing to move through available customization options.

Reconstructed wireframe illustrating the initial vertical interaction model. Original production UI and assets are not shown.

05

Research Changed the Design

Research was embedded into the design process before release. For major interaction decisions, I partnered with the Research team to define hypotheses, align on what we wanted to learn, and observe moderated playtests with children.

A Critical Interaction Finding

During playtests, we observed that younger children—particularly ages 2–4—had difficulty discovering and navigating content through vertical scrolling.

Rather than treating this as a usability issue to address after launch, we used the finding to reconsider the interaction model before release.

The Design Decision

I redesigned the experience around horizontal navigation, making customization options more immediately visible and reducing reliance on vertical scrolling.

The revised interaction better aligned with the behaviors observed during research and became the direction we moved forward with.

Reconstructed wireframe illustrating the iterated horizontal customization model. Original production UI and assets are not shown.

06

From Product Definition to Feature Release

Bringing the experience to life required close coordination across Product, Research, Engineering, Art, Technical Art, Curriculum, and QA.

After the MVP direction was established, the feature moved into PI Planning and a multi-sprint development process. I translated the product direction into feature requirements and design work, while collaborating with partner teams to keep experience design, visual development, technical implementation, and research aligned.

Working Iteratively

The work progressed through two-week Agile sprints, with regular demos providing opportunities to align stakeholders, surface implementation constraints, and make targeted adjustments without losing sight of the release plan.

Research and design iteration continued alongside production, allowing the team to respond to usability findings while Engineering, Art, and Technical Art advanced the feature toward release.

07

Designing for Continued Engagement

Personalization was designed as part of a broader engagement system rather than an isolated activity.

Children could earn tickets through learning experiences and use the existing reward system to access additional customization options.

This connected progress elsewhere in the product with a meaningful form of self-expression.

Connecting Progress with Self-Expression

The goal was to create a reinforcing relationship between participation, rewards, and personalization: children could play and explore, earn tickets, customize their avatar, and see that identity reflected back in the experience.

By connecting rewards with something personally meaningful, customization provided another reason to return and continue exploring.

08

Outcome & Reflection

Reflection

This project reinforced that designing for children requires more than simplifying an interface. It requires understanding how developing motor skills, cognitive abilities, attention, and learned interaction patterns shape the way young users experience digital products.

Leading the feature from discovery through release also strengthened my approach to product design: explore broadly, define the right problem, reduce the vision to a focused MVP, validate assumptions early, and use research to guide decisions throughout delivery.