Developments in social and new media have created a world in which we’re all
more connected. Visual communicators have been at the forefront of exploring
what this new world has to offer by developing tools that inform, persuade or help us interact.
For every mainstream Facebook or Flickr there are dozens of smaller companies testing out
new ways to engage an audience online, provide services or simply entertain, for example
Futurefarmers: http://futurefarmers.com/
Since 1995 a group of diverse practitioners including visual communicators and scientists have
explored work relevant to the time and place surrounding us, some of which has involved
online experiments such as Communiculture (www. communiculture.org/) which explores
ways in which participants, via their online avatar, can express opinions or pose questions other
people can respond to. They Rule(www.theyrule.net/) offers an interactive research tool to
explore the connection between multinational companies and their board members.
Explore a range of websites or other forms of new media (games, video, other interactive
media, etc.) and identify examples of what you would consider cutting edge or inventive forms
of visual communication. You could conduct your search in terms of the aesthetics used,
the functionality of the site, or simply the ideas being explored. Pick examples that you find
intriguing, exciting or novel and reflect on what makes them interesting to you. Think back
to Project 1 and see if these examples still conform to messages that persuade, inform, or
entertain.
What really captured my attention were interactive websites where the user is not passive but is participating in the web experience.
Here is a short list of webpages with various purposes.
makemepulse – global interactive production studio
The interactive studio makemepulse is known for its outstanding and highly creative solutions in the digital industry. Their client list speaks volumes about the quality of their work and includes names like Ubisoft, Google, Netflix, and UNICEF, among others.
The project we were particularly impressed with is Nomadic Tribe, developed as a tribute to one of the best comic book artists of all time, Jean Giraud a.k.a. Moebius. To bring Moebius’s masterful style to life, makemepulse used a cell shading technique that’s popular in many video games based on comic books and anime. Nomadic Tribe is a tale about a tribe that every year (on New Year’s Eve to be precise) moves from one island to the next.
This playable interactive adventure has four chapters that bring you closer to understanding how these people live. The narrator’s soothing voice tells you the story of the tribe, while meditative background music further immerses you into the poetic narrative. The attention to detail of the makemepulse studio is impressive. They even had the original soundtrack made specifically for this project by the amazing Press Play On Tape studio.
The scenes are majestic and beautifully illustrated. The use of numerous animation techniques is evident with each mouse scroll and drag. At one point, you help the flowers grow. Then, you watch the birds carry several members of the tribe on their wings. The birds begin to fly faster just from you holding your mouse.
Besides Moebius and the evident comic book influences, the project also carries the air of Studio Ghibli’s and Hayao Miyazaki’s animated movies.
The Nomadic Tribe project is an astonishing work of art and thanks to its interactivity you can experience the scenic utopian world where humans and nature are one.
i-Spy is a game created for Television New Zealand’s Heihei children’s gaming app. You can explore five environments, all located in New Zealand, including the Waipoua Forest, Canterbury on a field day, the bohemian Cuba Street in Wellington, the Āpure Moana marine reserve, and the city of Rotorua, known for its geothermal attractions. The artist T Wei created intricate, colourful illustrations of each of these locations.
The game comes in two modes – Challenge and Free Play. If you select the former, you’ll have limited time to locate characters and various creatures on the super-detailed illustration of the location you selected. The Free Play mode has no time limitations whatsoever. All you need to play the game is your mouse. The characters and creatures you’re supposed to spot in the crowd are highlighted in the upper left corner. The i-Spy game also contains educational content. No matter which of the five scenarios you choose, when you decide to leave the game, fun facts about New Zealand will show up on the screen. Paired with the cheerful music playing in the background, this interactive content is something children will surely enjoy.
The Rick and Morty website features episodes from the latest season of this popular animated TV show, a fan art gallery, shop, and links to the Rick and Morty games and books. Besides this main content, every section contains recognizable items from the animated series as well as some hidden gems. For instance, there’s Rick’s interdimensional portal gun. When used, it briefly transports you to other worlds. This interactive project is filled to the brim with cool and quirky illustrations and animation effects that capture your attention from the get-go. These game-like touches make it way more amusing for the user and are something that all Rick and Morty fans will surely appreciate.
https://www.borraginol.com/town/
Borraginol Town is a site that introduces you to the Japanese pharmaceutical company Borraginol. This is an incredibly detailed project, with lovely animations. The way that the company is presented to visitors is impressive – it’s depicted as a city with numerous inhabitants roaming its streets, with lots of buildings and various elements that symbolize Borraginol’s history and achievements. Pretty much every object is clickable, which is how you can discover everything you’d like to know about the brand. You feel like you’re playing a game in which you get to explore the city of Borraginol and see what its inhabitants have been up to. Information is not presented to you in an in-your-face way. You’re welcome to discover everything on your own, by clicking your way through the site.
Zizo uses the cell shading technique of modern games to the max. This Japanese digital company has created a tranquil, stunning interactive website that takes you on an adventure to introduce you to the company’s values, history, etc. The illustrations look charming and are complemented with serene music and the sounds of birds chirping. The website is based on scroll-triggered navigation, meaning all you have to do is use the mouse scroll and let Zizo take you on a charming adventure through the serene Japanese landscape with cherry blossom trees in full bloom. Along the way, you’ll discover interesting details about Zizo, such as how they got their name, what they do, their values, and more.
https://routefifty.caffeina.com/
Route Fifty is a game that celebrates the 50th anniversary of the first landing on the Moon. Using arrow keys, you’re put in control of Apollo 11. Your goal is to keep the ship in orbit for as long as possible, dodging obstacles and bombs along the way. While on this quest, you can also see some fun facts about the Apollo landing as well as real time statistics of other users playing the game at the same time as you.
https://noel.heschung.com/en/chapitre/les-debuts-de-l-aventure/
Atelier Heschung shares its story with users in an interactive way. You can’t discover anything about the brand without actively participating on their website. There’s not much you need to do – just press the ’’Space“ or ’’Right Arrow“ keys when indicated so the character you’re in control of can make progress on a three-section journey. It all starts with Heschung’s humble beginnings and the story of how they first got into the shoe business. Then, they progressed to making ski shoes for the French national ski team. The third part tells you where the brand currently stands. This website is minimalistic and clean, with simple illustrations used throughout. The only colours are black and white. The way the story slowly unfolds and the fact that its progress depends on the user’s actions is clever, as it emphasizes the importance of interactivity and makes the whole site all the more engaging.
https://www.prometheusfuels.com/mission
Prometheus Fuels invites readers to dive into an interactive story to learn how their company is creating fuel from the air. It’s basically part website, part video game. When users hover over the background, the car moves as if by game controller. If they hold the spacebar, they’ll see and hear the car accelerate. As the user scrolls and the car accelerates, bits of the story will be revealed.
Baidu.com is the world’s most popular website that is not based in the United States. Baidu can be described as the “Chinese Google”. It generates an average of around 5.9 billion visits per month. The search engine website has been online since 2000. Although the founder of Baidu, Robin Li, had actually already invented the concept of a link-analysing search engine as early as 1996 and therefore even before Google went online. In fact, Google’s search engine is partly based on Li’s concept. Li gave the internet his own version in 2000 and Baidu has dominated the Chinese search engine market ever since.
The Nike Reactor allows you to build personalized Nike React footwear and try it on for size via the interactive website.
When you land on the Nike React Homepage, you’re greeted with an animated figure running across the screen, sporting Nike React sneakers, shape-shifting between a body made of feathers and bubbles. From there, you can create your own Nike React experience, choosing your pillow shape (as light as flamingos or soap bubbles, or as responsive as basket balls or space hoppers), running style (Sunday special, Serotonin seeker, Zen master etc.), and sneaker colour (pink matcha, red lava, fusion black). Click to see the animated figure sporting your personalized Nike React experience on-screen.
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