Developing the design of our mascot, Me, was a long and challenging journey that spanned 2-3 months. From struggling to convey our vision to illustrators to leveraging AI and animation technology, the process became a creative adventure of its own.
If you prefer video format of storytelling, check out the video:
Struggling with Illustrators
Our initial approach was to work with professional illustrators to bring the concept to life. We reached out to about seven illustrators, providing them with detailed explanations and a wireframe reference to guide their designs:
However, the results were far from what we envisioned. The mascot design either leaned too heavily into cartoonish and childish styles:
Or presented overly literal interpretations of the concepts behind Me—such as the tree concept:
Among the options, the simplest versions came the closest. They managed to partially capture the contemplative and transcendent vibe we were striving for:
And we even considered stopping at one of them. Especially since it could be drawn in vector graphics making it much easier to animate. But we were cautious the overall home screen would look too dull with nothing catching the eye. And then there was our idea with wallpaper customization, for which we needed a mascot that stood out, serving as the centerpiece of any wallpaper universe.
Turning to AI: The Game-Changer
Frustrated by the lack of alignment with illustrators, I decided to experiment with AI tools like DALL-E. And it turns out AI understands me much better than people 🙂
DALL-E generated numerous incredible versions of the mascot design and the wallpapers, giving me a burst of inspiration and creativity.
At the same time it was incredibly difficult to choose the best version. What I can say for sure is that AI definitely complemented the concept. Just check out some of the coolest designs it came up with:
However, there was one major drawback with the imagery DALL-E created: they couldn’t be directly transformed into vector graphics, which are essential for animation. This is when Sasha Buratynskyi stepped in, recalling his artistic skills to recreate the chosen mascot design in vector form.
By simplifying the AI-generated image, Sasha made it possible to animate Me while retaining its essence.
Rive Animation
For animation, we chose Rive technology. With the help of Dmytro Ruban our Me was brought to life (it is literally breathing if you take a closer look!), but only in 2D for now – to animate in 3D it needs to be redrawn. So, if any of you reading this article is inspired by tTravel and would like to make a 3D version of Me, contact us by sending email to info@ttravel.me
Interaction with Me. Hints.
From the very beginning, we knew we wanted our Me to interact with users, to be their travel companion, guide and assistant. The question was how exactly it should communicate. Should we give it hands or face? Should it have any emotions depending on users’ actions?
At some point I came up with the idea of central cube animation – turning into different emojis or icons:
Ultimately we came up with a circle monitor and Yin and yang sign (check the article about Me’s concept and hidden senses) replaced by other icons from time to time, giving Me a more technological vibe, but still there’s part of me that has warm feelings about that versions with central cube’s animations 🙂
Plans for the Future:
Me’s evolution is far from over. Here’s what we’re working on next:
- AI-Powered Features: Me will act as your personal travel assistant, like a travel-focused Siri or Chat GPT. We’re planning significant expansions of Me’s interaction with users, of course backed by AI. It will search for travel information like weather conditions, hotels, car rental, flight info etc. Also, it will provide inspirational tips and help with itinerary building.
- 3D Animation: A fully animated 3D version of Me is in our sights, and we’re eager to collaborate with talented artists to make it happen.
- Customizable Skins: We’re planning to introduce multiple skins for Me, allowing premium users to choose their mascot’s look.
- Gamified Progression: Inspired by Journey, we aim to incorporate gamification, where Me’s appearance evolves based on users’ achievements in the app.
By: Artem Shambalov
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