Thematic Fan Festival for Gamers
The festival's concept is designed specifically with the Dark Souls fanbase in mind, drawing inspiration from the community-run online event, Return to Lordran. Every year, players return to the game for a new playthrough to engage in co-op gameplay. The festival was designed as a physical extension of that camaraderie, giving the fanbase a dedicated space to meet in person and celebrate their shared love of the franchise, much like a traditional fan convention.
A digital promo for Return to Lordran created by a member in r/darksouls subreddit.
Technical Considerations
Logistics & Localization: A three-day event hosted at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The branding system employs a bilingual design framework (English and Spanish) to reflect the local demographics of the host city for accessibility.
IP Separation & Community Identity: While celebrating the game, the festival's primary core is its community. To distinguish the event from the stark, grim tone of the official Dark Souls IP, the visual identity establishes a playful and inviting atmosphere centered around the game's core community concept of "jolly cooperation."
Visual Aesthetic: Bold and playful designs featuring a warm colour palette and high-contrast silhouettes of recognizable in-game motifs.
Copywriting & Verbal Tone: The verbal identity is a deliberate mix of archaic phrasing that mirrors the game's official world-building, the structured constraints of the in-game player messaging system, and a sprinkle of recognizable community lingo.
Immersive Experience: The entire design system is focused around the player's perspective. By translating gameplay mechanics and community references into tangible, physical details, the space encourages a role-playing atmosphere. The audience aren't treated as spectators, but as the main characters of the festival, mirroring how players experience the game itself.
Badge Design
The ID ticket badges for each day of the festival features one of the three iconic cover art knights from the Dark Souls trilogy, paired with the respective titles players earn in-game: the 'Chosen Undead' for Day I, the 'Bearer of the Curse' for Day II, and the 'Ashen One' for Day III. The special pass design combines all three knights alongside the ultimate 'Lord of Cinder' title, earned upon beating the game. To deepen the immersion, the back of the badge is styled after in-game player stat menu, inviting attendees into a more immersive role-playing experience.
In-game UI character stat menu.
Program Guide
The festival program guide is shaped like a sword, tying into the world of the game and inviting attendees into a playful role-playing experience for greater immersion and engagement. Everything, from the icons and language choice to the renamed locations on the LA Convention Center map and the scheduled events, is a nod to the game and its fan community.
Wayfinding
The festival entrance serves as a physical manifestation of the game’s atmosphere, brought to life to create an immersive environmental experience for attendees. At the festival entrance, a dramatic stone archway paired with a prominent bonfire in the background ground as a reference to the game's world-building. This is designed to make visitors feel as if they are about to step directly into another world.
The wayfinding signage is designed to reference various elements from the game, including weapons, items, locations, and lore. These designs feature the same festival map icons to ensure clear, cohesive navigation across the physical space.
Merch
Apparel and desk pad designs.
A promo banner for the Steam Community Page, a carousel post for Reddit, and a conceptual promo design based on the in-game messaging system to reach the gaming target demographic.
