Unity 
Niantic Lightship An educational AR mobile app designed to encourage outdoor exploration and conservation awareness in children. Guided by a virtual Teddy Roosevelt, users discover animals like beavers, bumblebees, ocelots, foxes, and woodpeckers through fast-paced AR minigames. Completing games unlocks collectible conservation badges, gamifying learning and fostering a sense of environmental stewardship.
Overview
The app opens with Teddy Roosevelt introducing players to conservation and inviting them on an AR adventure. Players start with one unlocked animal and gradually unlock more by completing minigames. Each game is designed to be approachable, fun, and movement-based — encouraging kids to explore their surroundings indoors or outdoors.
Examples of the AR minigames include:
- Beaver: Patch leaking dams by tapping fast.
- Bumblebee: Match flowers by type, with bees following taps.
- Arctic Fox: Tap voles to help the fox leap and catch prey.
- Ocelot: Spot and tap the ocelot as it moves between bushes.
- Woodpecker: Tap repeatedly to peck trees before the bird moves.
Completing minigames awards collectible badges with fun facts about each animal, viewable in a dedicated badge collection screen.
My Contributions
- Implemented dynamic AR content placement logic for minigames
- Worked with project team to create a consistent tap based game design language
- Designed the reusable architecture each minigame was built upon
- Developed VFX for scanning and AR placement, including vegetation overlays tied to environment scanning.
- Contributed to UI polish and responsive design.
Technical Highlights & Challenges
One of the early challenges was scope creep. We needed five unique animal minigames, but full bespoke implementations would have been unmanageable with the project timeline. I worked with the team to create a shared “tap-to-play” design language and code architecture that supported variation in gameplay while keeping the core logic reusable.
Another technical hurdle was making AR placement fun and educational. Instead of a standard flat reticle, I implemented VFX that vegetation and other decorations unique to each animal in the user’s real-world space as they scanned. After enough space is scanned, the minigame is dynamically placed in front of the user, reusing the logic I wrote for Dinotracker AR.
I discussed many of these highlights in detail during this online webinar with Niantic:
- Successfully engaged kids in conservation-themed AR play.
- Informal testing with parents and children showed high replayability and excitement.
- Client praised both the educational impact and the polish of the final app.
Reflection
This project was a unique opportunity to lean into game design rather than AR utilities and ad campaigns. I’m proud of how the gameplay, animations, and reward systems came together to feel fun and rewarding while still serving educational goals.
The biggest takeaway: clear scope-setting early (choosing tap-to-play as the universal mechanic) kept the project focused and polished while still allowing creative expression.
If revisited, I’d expand the number of minigames, refine visuals and VFX, and build on the badge system for even deeper engagement.
Related Projects
Unity Niantic Lightship An educational AR mobile app designed to encourage outdoor exploration and conservation awareness in children. Guided by a virtual Teddy Roosevelt, users discover animals like beavers, bumblebees, ocelots, foxes, and woodpeckers through fast-paced AR minigames. Completing games unlocks collectible conservation badges, gamifying learning and fostering a sense of environmental stewardship.
Overview
The app opens with Teddy Roosevelt introducing players to conservation and inviting them on an AR adventure. Players start with one unlocked animal and gradually unlock more by completing minigames. Each game is designed to be approachable, fun, and movement-based — encouraging kids to explore their surroundings indoors or outdoors.
Examples of the AR minigames include:
- Beaver: Patch leaking dams by tapping fast.
- Bumblebee: Match flowers by type, with bees following taps.
- Arctic Fox: Tap voles to help the fox leap and catch prey.
- Ocelot: Spot and tap the ocelot as it moves between bushes.
- Woodpecker: Tap repeatedly to peck trees before the bird moves.
Completing minigames awards collectible badges with fun facts about each animal, viewable in a dedicated badge collection screen.
My Contributions
- Implemented dynamic AR content placement logic for minigames
- Worked with project team to create a consistent tap based game design language
- Designed the reusable architecture each minigame was built upon
- Developed VFX for scanning and AR placement, including vegetation overlays tied to environment scanning.
- Contributed to UI polish and responsive design.
Technical Highlights & Challenges
One of the early challenges was scope creep. We needed five unique animal minigames, but full bespoke implementations would have been unmanageable with the project timeline. I worked with the team to create a shared “tap-to-play” design language and code architecture that supported variation in gameplay while keeping the core logic reusable.
Another technical hurdle was making AR placement fun and educational. Instead of a standard flat reticle, I implemented VFX that vegetation and other decorations unique to each animal in the user’s real-world space as they scanned. After enough space is scanned, the minigame is dynamically placed in front of the user, reusing the logic I wrote for Dinotracker AR.
I discussed many of these highlights in detail during this online webinar with Niantic:
- Successfully engaged kids in conservation-themed AR play.
- Informal testing with parents and children showed high replayability and excitement.
- Client praised both the educational impact and the polish of the final app.
Reflection
This project was a unique opportunity to lean into game design rather than AR utilities and ad campaigns. I’m proud of how the gameplay, animations, and reward systems came together to feel fun and rewarding while still serving educational goals.
The biggest takeaway: clear scope-setting early (choosing tap-to-play as the universal mechanic) kept the project focused and polished while still allowing creative expression.
If revisited, I’d expand the number of minigames, refine visuals and VFX, and build on the badge system for even deeper engagement.