DESCRIPTION:
LEGO® Friends Heartlake Friendship Zone is a fully immersive gaming experience designed for children aged 6 and above. Developed by Gameloft for Brands in partnership with the LEGO Group and Initiative Junior agency, the experience introduces a friendly gaming universe where children can explore, have fun, and build friendships online. The experience is available for free on computer and mobile: https://heartlakefriendshipzone.com
CONTEXT:
More than a decade on from the launch of LEGO Friends, the LEGO Group has re-imagined the LEGO Friends universe, with the introduction of new diverse characters, to enable more children to feel represented during play. This next generation is designed to celebrate diverse friendships in the modern world.
PROBLEM STATEMENT:
In an era where the emerging new generation goes beyond traditional games, cultivating friendships and interactions within a digital landscape, the challenge was to create an experience that embraces this reality: designing a space for children where digital friendships take root and thrive.
Working with Initiative Junior, we uncovered that 51% of kids preferred gaming to any kind of TV, and that they were not only gaming on the platforms – they were using them as “virtual playgrounds” to socialise with friends. We realised that in order for us to engage them we needed to be inherently more interactive like the games they love.
OBJECTIVES:
Create a playful and immersive gaming experience that allows children to navigate, interact, and build friendships online in a dynamic and welcoming world, with the introduction of a new generation of characters from LEGO Friends.
MECHANISMS:
An immersive gaming experience where young explorers have the power to create avatars in harmony with their unique identity and explore the enchanting universe of LEGO Friends.
Children have the opportunity to interact with each other and with the new LEGO Friends characters using emojis and predefined dialogues.
The adventure unfolds through quests and captivating mini-games that provide moments of pure joy, excitement, and friendship building.
EXECUTION:
Introduction of diverse LEGO Friends characters (Zac, Nova, Aliya, Leo, Liann, Olly, Paisley, and Autumn) within the platform to welcome and encourage players to engage.
Provision of 6,000 unique combinations for personal avatar creation, including 6 different skin tones, eye colours, hairstyles, facial expressions, and other personalisation options such as vitiligo.
Integration of various quests and mini-games encouraging growth of children’s friendship skillsets through gamification (Quest examples: Deliver a gift to a new neighbour, help find the lost puppies, help Paisley with her song lyrics).
Creation of an environment where children can express themselves freely and build friendships online. (We included anonymised usernames, allowing interaction with other users via pre-defined messages and emojis and we put guardrails in place so users could not physically block other players).
INNOVATIONS/ CREATIVE IDEA:
The creative idea behind the LEGO Friends Heartlake Friendship Zone lies in the design of a digital gaming experience where children's imagination knows no bounds.
In this playful and expansive world, children embark on a digital odyssey where friendship skills can grow, alongside meeting new friends and LEGO Friends characters. Users embark on a journey of self-expression and creativity, learning and practicing their social and friendship skills, laying the groundwork for real friendships.
RESULTS - FOR JUDGES' EYES ONLY (in Confidencial Information)
A year on from launch, the Heartlake Friendship Zone has welcomed 5+ million kids, positively engaging the kids gamer community and giving them a chance to play natively in a friendly gaming environment. 59% of kids wanted to know more about LEGO Friends, 28% loved interacting with other players and 50% intended to recommend the experience to their peer group, having played the gaming experience.
Play it for yourselves: https://heartlakefriendshipzone.com
