Noah Yamen

This Borderlands themed marriage proposal was a fun project to put together. In this overview, I'll outline the technical aspects that were involved to put this together. Overall this project was an idea I had put together and implemented in under 30 hours; from conception to execution.

The entire premise for using Borderlands (a video game series developed by 2K) was because the couple in question were both huge fans of the borderlands game, and had spend a couple of years playing and bonding over it together. So it became a cornerstone to their relationship in a sense.

The idea was to provide an interactive experience that created a sort of live-action adaptation of the game. To accomplish this, there were a number of things to create:

• An iPhone app to manage missions and track progress
• An iPhone case that depicted the "Echo" device used in the game
• A 3D modeled/printed "Shield Generator" depicted from the game
• A 3D modeled/printed "Loot Crate" to house the engagement ring, depicted from the game

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"Echo" iPhone App

The "Echo" iPhone app was an essential piece of the plan because it contained all of the "missions" involved that lead up to the final proposal. The app itself was primarily build with just HTML5, CSS, and Javascript. The development side of it was quite simple. What took the most time was all of the design and source material involved to piece it together.

The entirety of the interface is designed using the actual Borderlands style/design guidelines. This means that it's pixel-perfect to the game. All of the colors, fonts, and even the sound bites come directly from the game itself.

Interacting with the app works identically to the game as well; just like in the game you when you receive a mission alert you have the option to "accept", "complete" it, and finally "turn in" to receive your reward for completing.

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"Echo" iPhone Case

To compliment the "Echo" iPhone app, I also designed and ordered an iPhone case that looks like the handheld "Echo" device from the game. This was very straight forward as it was a simple task in Photoshop, and then ordering the case through an online vendor.

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"Shield Generator" 3D model and print

Accompanying the missions that you'd follow in the "Echo" iPhone app are a couple items of paraphernalia that fit with the theme. In this case; I designed my own "shield generator" that you'd find in the game. First modeled and designed in Cinema 4D, then printed using my 3D printer, I fined tuned the print to have a smooth finish and painted directly on it. I tied the whole thing together by running wiring through the inside of the "shield generator", hooked up to a simple switch, that simply turns an LED light on underneath the translucent center plastic.

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"Loot Crate" 3D model and print

The final piece of the puzzle included having something clever to house the ring inside. Here I remade what's called a "loot crate" from the game. In the game these crates would hold specialty items. So in the case of this proposal it seemed appropriate that the ring would be found in it.

I modeled the crate in Cinema 4D to look exactly like the crate from the game. And like the "shield generator" I then perfected the print by sanding it, priming, and painting.