SeaWorld Abu Dhabi

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SeaWorld Abu Dhabi

UI/UX

As part of this project from 2019 - 2023, I credit this project with driving my focus toward UI/UX design and spring boarding my role from Graphic Design to UI/UX. This extensive project cemented my proficiency with Adobe XD, as it led me to become the UI lead within the company. I was the sole creator of the 15+ UI/UX prototypes that were created for the various sections of the project (one of which contained over 100 individual screen designs). I also produced many supporting illustrations, animation and designs, some of which I consider my most substantial work to date.

This project spanned one of the largest-scale teams that my previous employer had compiled for project work. I am so proud to be integral to its journey to become a globally-recognised attraction when it launched in the UAE.

Complete Design

As lead UI designer for this project, I produced a lot of the content personally while working in-tandem with another designer, who was tasked with replicating my illustrative style previously outlined earlier in the project, on the large catalogue of designs we needed to complete together. Concept Art assets and in particular digital painted works were supplied in-house from excellent Concept artists for us to utilise, and sometimes I would produce these personally if needed.

These items served as peripheral design work that would eventually integrate and become UI assets to a the Theme Park game UI project.

I am incredibly proud of the work produced for these items, as were our clients, who liked the designs so much they immediately outlined plans to produce physical pins based on these designs.

These items served as peripheral design work that would eventually integrate and become UI assets to a the Theme Park game UI project.

I am incredibly proud of the work produced for these items, as were our clients, who liked the designs so much they immediately outlined plans to produce physical pins based on these designs.

Extensive UI Prototyping

The P.O.R.T. (Points of Research Technology) Kiosks that were dotted around the park were to act as the hub for all of the park’s general needs, as well as serving as the interaction points for player’s profiles in the park’s games. There were several requirements I had to factor into the design of the P.O.R.T. UI, namely ADA access for wheelchair users, and children, who wouldn’t be tall enough to interact with the top third of the screens, meaning all my interaction had to be based around the bottom area of these 55” kiosk screens.

14 Gameplay UI Prototypes

On-top of the designs of the general use P.O.R.T. UI design, I also created 14 UI prototypes for the park’s many interactive games. Built primarily in Unity and implemented from my prototypes via dedicated dev teams. The games varied in style, however I needed to maintain a uniformity to my designs, which would span many different screen sizes and orientations from landscape tablets, to portrait P.O.R.T. screen sizes (4k on 55” touchscreen monitors). I relished the challenge of also integrating these designs into the theming of each of the parks realms, which threw up some great challenges. One example being the 16-bit themed radio-frequency equipment for the “Sounds of the Sea Lions” game, where users would adjust the dials to the correct frequencies and pick up various signals hidden within.

Realm Medals & Achievement Badges

A large element to my work on SWAD was the creation of hundreds of Badges and Medals, that would be awarded to the players in-game, as accomplishment and progression trophies for their playthrough of the parkwide game. The Realm medals shown here, I am particularly proud of as they were very extensively illustrated, drawn freehand using Adobe Illustrator; they were very popular with the client, who loved them so much they wanted to turn them from the initial digital-only designs and manufacture them into physical badges to sell in the in-park stores.