Amazon Glow
Bridging the distance between kids and loved ones through play
At GBH Kids, I had the rare opportunity to work for Amazon on a new, cutting-edge technology designed with families in mind. The Amazon Glow was a one-of-a-kind device geared towards connecting children and remote caregivers through play experiences. The Glow included a video-calling device with a camera and touch screen, and it paired with a play mat on which high-quality projections displayed multiplayer games, interactive stories, digital art tools, and more. The technology allowed kids and distant caregivers to connect through video chat while simultaneously competing or collaborate together in a shared gaming environment.
This was one of the most interesting and challenging projects of my career. I was designing content to be used on brand new, not-yet-released hardware, with multiple displays that needed to feel connected to one another. I also needed to craft a multiplayer experience that felt fun and engaging for two wildly different age demographics, all while managing a relationship with the global team working at Amazon. Below are just a few of the several games I worked on as the lead GBH designer.
Cake Monsters
Cake Monsters is a two-player game where a child and caregiver work together in a bakery to serve quirky-looking cakes to hungry monsters. Kids are exposed to a light math curriculum through these fast-paced shape-matching challenges. Each player controls a conveyor belt and must launch the correct cake halves and toppings to successfully complete each monster’s order.
On this game, I had end-to-end design involvement, establishing the game flow and wireframes, identifying the look and feel of the visuals, designing art assets like backgrounds and UI, and creating many of the animations you see below.
ABC Bubbles
This literacy game helps younger children practice letter recognition through a fast-paced, arcade-style game mechanic. Kids and caregivers go head-to-head, trying to rack up the most points by popping as many correct bubbles as they can before time runs out.
On this game, I created the game flow and wireframes, as well as developed many of the visuals and animations you see below.
Word Smoothies
Word Smoothies helps older children practice spelling and vocabulary in a fun and fruity collaborative game mechanic. Kids and caregivers must work together to build the correct words using clues and their own sets of fruit-themed letter tiles.
I held a supervisory role on this game - establishing the overall UX, flow and art direction before collaborating closely with a junior designer who developed the adorable art assets and animations seen below.
