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THISTLE'S CASTLE: CAPSTONE DESIGN PROJECT
TIME
ROLE
1 week, 06/2022
User Research / Interviews / Branding / Graphic design / Narrative Design
OVERVIEW
In June 2022 I attended a high-level design class focused on theme park design. Thistle’s Castle is the resulting capstone project, which was developed over the course of one week by a small multi-disciplinary team of 4, from mechanical engineering, maths, architecture, and game design.
I mainly focused on the research and narrative treatment of the project.
The experience was designed to meet the needs of a client located in a Chicago suburb with a budget of $150.000 who wanted to create a themed experience to attract more people who would spend in the area.
TALKING TO PARENTS ABOUT SAFETY AND THEIR CHILDREN'S PREFERENCES
Guerrilla research was the main method used considering the short time frame. I talked to parents at different playgrounds at Universal Studios (Florida), and recorded their opinions about specific issues: sitting areas, activities children like to do, and their children's ages.
After this in-person interaction I analyzed the reviews of playgrounds in the city of Chicago present on Google.
FOLLOWING DISNEY IMAGINEERS' DESIGN PROCESS
Part of the class consisted in studying the Disney Imagineers design process and techniques. As a result, we went through their suggested design phases as a group.
BLUE SKY
Explored different concepts and ideas in a free environment, taking notes of any possible idea stemming from the words "themed playground"
PREDEVELOPMENT
Formulated more specific ideas considering client requirements: budget, intended audience, accessibility concerns, location.
CONCEPTUAL ART
Realized evocative illustrations depicting specific elements of the playground to convey the theme (details, color choices, attractions), and to show the specific design decisions that would accommodate our audience
ANALYZING COMPETITORS: PLAYGROUNDS AND MEDIEVAL-ERA THEMED EXPERIENCES IN THE CHICAGO AREA
Having established our niche —medieval era— determined by the theme of our playground, I conducted a competitor analysis on two fronts: medieval era themed experiences, and most liked playground in the Chicago area.
In my report I highlighted the pain points of the competitions, which helped us formulate design decisions that would make the project stand out.
This analysis was conducted during the predevelopment phase of our design and guided us in our next steps.
SUPERVISORS AND DISABLED CHILDREN MUST BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT
The initial research along with the competitor analysis allowed us to identify three personas that represent what the client wants for the park (to attract people who will spend in the area), and what a playground has the potential to attract (children of all ages and their supervisors, which could be parents or grandparents).
These three profiles guided the conceptual art phase, allowing us to keep in mind the different necessities of our audience.
EACH OF OUR PERSONAS IS IN VERY DIFFERENT MENTAL STATES
Designing a themed experience requires a sharp focus on branding, theming, and immersive components. However, this experience was meant to be multigenerational, which proved hard to realize in a themed context.
As a group, we decided to create user journeys to visualize the physical and emotional needs of our audience. This empathetic connection was especially significant in creating an accessible spacial experience.
DEFINING THE DETAILS OF THE THEME AND CREATING AN ACCESSIBLE SPACE PLAN
One of the most time consuming parts of the design process was the narrative treatment. Developing these different components helped the group visualize the experience we were creating and understanding how to best communicate our design decisions to the client.
HIGH CONCEPT
Brand identity
CONCEPTUAL OVERVIEW
Theme
STORY TREATMENT
Experience flow
HIGH CONCEPT
"Thistle’s Castle Playground is a kiddiefication of a medieval castle, where everyone is welcome to come in and join the seasonal festival celebration that is being held."
CONCEPTUAL OVERVIEW
Thistle’s Castle Playground is a medieval castle wherein a seasonal festival is being held. By walking through the castle gates you will become a Medieval era villager and join the celebration. You will be surrounded by dragons, mysterious caves, and treasures to find. The castle walls will be your home for as long as you like, with ropes to intertwine, walls to climb, flags to raise, and gargoyles watching over you, and dragon’s steam to cool you down on hot days. The colors and sounds of the castle will create the celebratory atmosphere of the festival, while the castle itself will manifest the Medieval era theme. With an abundance of shaded spaces to sit by the castle walls and picnic tables to enjoy local food and drinks, Thistle’s Castle Playground is the perfect place to enjoy, explore, relax, and have fun.
STORY TREATMENT: A SELECTED EXTRACT
Thistle’s Castle Playground has the visual look of a medieval castle. The area is completely enclosed within a three-foot-high castle wall border, with a one way in - one way out system to ensure the highest level of safety for parents and kids alike. The entrance is a set of fake castle doors left open, through which the inside of the castle is visible.
The northern side of the park consists of different water-based elements. A big dragon occupies the majority of the space. The dragon is tall enough that kids can walk underneath its belly, where a splash pad is located. Under the dragon’s belly, misters let water fall and kids can play under it. The dragon’s mouth also lets out mist that creates a slightly foggy atmosphere. The back of the dragon faces a cave, located at the back left corner of the park —looking from the entrance. The cave’s atmosphere allows for exploration and mystery. Inside, there is a small stone bench, and a treasure chest that kids can play with and open. The cave is filled with mist and water drop sounds, as well as bits of fake glowing magma. A slide also leads inside the cave from the bridge above it.
The left hand side of the park is organized into multiple levels. A ramp located to the left of the entrance allows anyone to reach a higher level, from which the rest of the castle can be seen. This level consists of a rope-based side on which kids can walk, and a bridge that extends on the opposite side, stretching all the way to the back of the playground. The bridge has gargoyle heads located on both sides. The gargoyles’ eyes follow kids as they walk. From the end of the bridge kids will be able to see a small tower —though not being able to climb or get in it. The tower has two flags on the top. At the end of the bridge there is a mechanism kids can use to raise the flag.
Side by side with the bridge, is an area dedicated to the more physically adept children. A glider, monkey bars, climbable structures and more advanced rope-based activities are available, so that different ages’ needs can be accommodated. At the end of this area there is another option to raise the flag. While gliders, monkey bars, and steppers are off-the-rack attractions, the plan is to retheme all of them to match the rest of the park aesthetically.
PRESENTING OUR WORK TO THE PUBLIC
Finally, we were able to present our work at Illinois Institute of Technology's annual research event held on August 19, 2022.
