My Role
- Concept development & pitch
- Character design & pixel illustration
- Visual identity system
- UI direction for the landing experience
- Asset rollout across marketing channels
From Campaign to Platform
The campaign’s strong traction led us to evolve it into a dedicated vertical site:
educative.io/learn-to-code
The 8-bit language became the foundation for the site’s UX, illustration system, and iconography, guiding the brand’s voice, motion graphics, and course previews across the funnel.
Design Direction
To tap into nostalgia and gamify learning, I developed a full 8-bit visual language, from pixel-perfect characters to retro interface cues. The look was bold, playful, and rooted in the aesthetics of early gaming yet tailored for the modern developer.
Key design goals:
- Visually distinct from other verticals on the site
- Signal fun + learning without dumbing down the content
The Challenge
Educative.io wanted to re-engage beginner learners with a more relatable, gamified entry into programming. The goal: break the intimidation barrier and make the journey into coding feel fun, guided, and approachable.
But how do you teach foundational concepts without it feeling like... school?
The Idea
I pitched the idea of "Code Champions", a cast of pixel-art characters, each one embodying a core domain of beginner programming:
- Debuggin’ Dana: Debugging + Problem Solving
- Bashmaster Ben: Command Line + Automation
- Algorithm Ace: Data Structures + Algorithms
- Fullstack Fiona: Frontend + Backend Development
These characters weren’t just illustrations, they were intended as guides, each unlocking a learning path and celebrating student progress.
Educative Learn to Code
Pixel Art - Visual Language Design
Overview
What started as a quirky character campaign to engage beginner programmers soon evolved into a defining visual direction for Educative.io’s Learn to Code vertical. I designed a set of 8-bit personas, each representing a key programming skill—that went on to inspire an entire microsite experience.
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My Role
- Concept development & pitch
- Character design & pixel illustration
- Visual identity system
- UI direction for the landing experience
- Asset rollout across marketing channels
From Campaign to Platform
The campaign’s strong traction led us to evolve it into a dedicated vertical site:
educative.io/learn-to-code
The 8-bit language became the foundation for the site’s UX, illustration system, and iconography, guiding the brand’s voice, motion graphics, and course previews across the funnel.
Design Direction
To tap into nostalgia and gamify learning, I developed a full 8-bit visual language, from pixel-perfect characters to retro interface cues. The look was bold, playful, and rooted in the aesthetics of early gaming yet tailored for the modern developer.
Key design goals:
- Visually distinct from other verticals on the site
- Signal fun + learning without dumbing down the content
The Challenge
Educative.io wanted to re-engage beginner learners with a more relatable, gamified entry into programming. The goal: break the intimidation barrier and make the journey into coding feel fun, guided, and approachable.
But how do you teach foundational concepts without it feeling like... school?
The Idea
I pitched the idea of "Code Champions", a cast of pixel-art characters, each one embodying a core domain of beginner programming:
- Debuggin’ Dana: Debugging + Problem Solving
- Bashmaster Ben: Command Line + Automation
- Algorithm Ace: Data Structures + Algorithms
- Fullstack Fiona: Frontend + Backend Development
These characters weren’t just illustrations, they were intended as guides, each unlocking a learning path and celebrating student progress.
Educative Learn to Code
Pixel Art - Visual Language Design
Overview
What started as a quirky character campaign to engage beginner programmers soon evolved into a defining visual direction for Educative.io’s Learn to Code vertical. I designed a set of 8-bit personas, each representing a key programming skill—that went on to inspire an entire microsite experience.
Next
Previous
My Role
- Concept development & pitch
- Character design & pixel illustration
- Visual identity system
- UI direction for the landing experience
- Asset rollout across marketing channels
From Campaign to Platform
The campaign’s strong traction led us to evolve it into a dedicated vertical site:
educative.io/learn-to-code
The 8-bit language became the foundation for the site’s UX, illustration system, and iconography, guiding the brand’s voice, motion graphics, and course previews across the funnel.
Design Direction
To tap into nostalgia and gamify learning, I developed a full 8-bit visual language, from pixel-perfect characters to retro interface cues. The look was bold, playful, and rooted in the aesthetics of early gaming yet tailored for the modern developer.
Key design goals:
- Visually distinct from other verticals on the site
- Signal fun + learning without dumbing down the content
The Challenge
Educative.io wanted to re-engage beginner learners with a more relatable, gamified entry into programming. The goal: break the intimidation barrier and make the journey into coding feel fun, guided, and approachable.
But how do you teach foundational concepts without it feeling like... school?
The Idea
I pitched the idea of "Code Champions", a cast of pixel-art characters, each one embodying a core domain of beginner programming:
- Debuggin’ Dana: Debugging + Problem Solving
- Bashmaster Ben: Command Line + Automation
- Algorithm Ace: Data Structures + Algorithms
- Fullstack Fiona: Frontend + Backend Development
These characters weren’t just illustrations, they were intended as guides, each unlocking a learning path and celebrating student progress.
Overview
What started as a quirky character campaign to engage beginner programmers soon evolved into a defining visual direction for Educative.io’s Learn to Code vertical. I designed a set of 8-bit personas, each representing a key programming skill—that went on to inspire an entire microsite experience.
Educative Learn to Code
Pixel Art · Visual Language Design
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