a narrative-driven animal RPG that allows rainforest animals to sabotage workers’ equipment, kick the corporation out, and stop the deforestation once and for all!
Role
UX Designer
Graphic Designer
Illustrator
Animation Designer
Skills
Game Design
UX/UI Design
Visual Design
Illustration
Animation
Tools
Photoshop
Illustrator
Adobe Animation
Figma
Timeline
Mar 2024 - Jun 2024
HIGHLIGHT
ABOUT THIS GAME
Take on the roles of rainforest animals like Monty the tamarin and Jamie the macaw in Rainforest Guardians, an animal RPG that blends the mischievous charm of Untitled Goose Game with the narrative depth of Life is Strange. Use Monty to drive bulldozers and sabotage workers' equipment, or have Jamie disrupt their plans in chaotic, creative ways. Your mission? Harness each animal’s unique talents to kick the corporation out of your precious rainforest and stop deforestation once and for all. Each decision leads to different endings, influencing the fate of your beloved rainforest.
CONTEXT
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
In the course Game Design for Social Good, I collaborated with a team of five to create Rainforest Guardians, a video game aimed at raising awareness about environmental issues through interactive storytelling.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEM
The Peruvian Amazon faces severe threats from human-driven deforestation—caused by logging, gold mining, soy farming, and especially illegal cocoa production, which alone has caused over $111 million in environmental damage. These activities destroy biodiversity, displace wildlife, and disrupt ecosystems critical to the planet’s health.
With Rainforest Guardians, we set out to transform this crisis into an opportunity for education through play. Our goal was to inform players about the impact of deforestation and evoke empathy for the animals who call the rainforest home—all while making it fun, chaotic, and meaningful.
NARRATIVE
Your home, a lively, vibrant forest in Peruvian Amazonia, full of wonderful lives of creatures, faces the threat of destruction. Chainsaws roar in the distance, bulldozers stand by to tear down trees, and workers march in, ready to devastate everything in their path. What would you do? In our new game, Rainforest Guardians, you, take a stand!
In a rainforest located in Peruvian Amazonia, animals live in harmony around the sacred Kapok tree, a massive and ancient symbol of life in the rainforest.
WHAT IS INVOLVEMINT
Jamie, a vibrant Macaw, is peacefully sleeping in the tree when the sudden roar of a chainsaw shatters the tranquility.
WHAT IS INVOLVEMINT
Jamie peeks out to see workers attempting to cut down the Kapok tree. Their chainsaw breaks, but undeterred, they prepare a new one, discussing how they will destroy the forest to create plantations for their cocoa corporation.
Jamie is angry, and he knows it’s time for the rainforest animals to fight back and kick the corporation out of his precious home.
DESIGN GOALS
GAME PILLARS
Annoying the workers in the rainforest to get them to leave
Exploring different areas of the forest and playing different characters to learn about the biodiversity of the Amazon rainforest
Learning about the deforestation and harmful practices in the Amazon rainforest
TARGET AUDIENCE
Rainforest Guardians is designed for young teens to adults (ages 13+) who enjoy games that combine narrative depth with playful interaction. The game especially appeals to players who are drawn to story-driven experiences, quirky gameplay mechanics, and games with a meaningful cause.
THE EXPERIENCE
We aimed to create a game that’s both fun and meaningful—one that blends mischievous gameplay with an emotional narrative about deforestation. Our goal was for players to connect with the animals, enjoy the chaos, and walk away with a deeper understanding of the Amazon’s fragility.
GAME MECHANICS
Choice-Based Narrative
In Rainforest Guardians, the narrative drives the entire level. Each level has multiple narrative paths and endings. Depending on the player’s choices, they could obtain different endings, or make the game easier or harder for themselves.
Quick Time Events (QTEs)
After each choice the player makes, a quick-time event or minigame relevant to the situation will begin. These can range in difficulty and length based on the player’s choices, and all depend on the player pressing a button on their keyboard in a specific manner
Boss Fight
After the player has locked into a narrative path and ending, a boss fight will commence. These boss fights will have 2-3 stages, and will require the animals to work together to defeat the boss. They will have to dodge the boss’ attacks, and use contextual clues through the narrative to defeat the boss.
But what if...
you aren’t satisfied with that ending? What if you’re really mad, and just so angry about how people destroy the Amazon Rainforest for profit? Let’s try something more malicious..
VISUAL & ILLUSTRATION DESIGN
OVERALL VISUAL
Rainforest Guardians uses a 2.5D low-poly visual style that blends hand-drawn charm with digital depth. I used Adobe Illustrator to create over 15 custom illustrations of animals and plants, focusing on bold colors, simple shapes, and clear silhouettes to enhance readability and personality during gameplay.
Character Design
Each animal was thoughtfully designed to reflect both its real-life species and gameplay role:
Jamie the Scarlet Macaw – bright, energetic, and fast; designed for aerial antics
Monty the Golden Lion Tamarin – agile and clever; perfect for sabotage
Andy the Andean Bear – strong and slow-moving; ideal for boss fights and brute force
Environmental Art
The rainforest environment was built using 2.5D layered compositions with a low-poly look and stylized textures. Natural elements like vines, trees, and underbrush contrast with industrial machines and deforestation scars—visually reinforcing the core conflict. Each level visually evolves depending on player choices, subtly shifting tone and color to reflect ecological outcomes.
PLAYTESTING + ITERATION
PLAYTESTING
To refine Rainforest Guardians, we conducted early-stage playtesting using a paper-prototype-on-iPad format, allowing participants to physically interact with assets and test narrative ideas. This hands-on approach gave us rich qualitative insights into how players interpreted mechanics, characters, and goals.
What we tested:
→ How intuitive it felt to interact with assets and characters?
→ Whether the goals and gameplay loop were clear?
→ How players responded emotionally and cognitively to social good themes?
FINDINGS
Players Needed Clearer Guidance
Both testers struggled with understanding objectives and how to navigate or interact with characters. This revealed a need for better onboarding and clearer instructions.
Interactions Lacked Structure and Feedback
Testers wanted more logic behind item use and stronger reactions from the environment and NPCs, highlighting the need for more responsive and intuitive game mechanics.
The Social Impact Message Wasn't Coming Through
Players pointed to a disconnect between gameplay and purpose, suggesting the need for more embedded storytelling and visual cues around deforestation.
WHAT WE CHANGED
→ Added onboarding elements to help players understand controls and iiiiiiiobjectives from the start
→ Clarified item behaviors and made interactions more reactive and iiiiiiidynamic
→ Introduced stronger environmental storytelling around the Kapok Tree iiiiiiiand social good themes
→ Balanced player freedom with structured goals, ensuring intuitive iiiiiiidiscovery without overwhelming choice
Take Aways
WHAT I LEARNED
Rainforest Guardians was a deeply rewarding project that pushed me to grow across multiple dimensions of design—from crafting engaging mechanics to building a visually immersive world with a message that matters.
Above all, I learned that designing for play and designing for change are not mutually exclusive—when every element works together, games can entertain and inspire.