Proteus
A concept for a handheld retro gaming console that can be customized. After following the retro gaming console industry for a while, I've been amazed by the wide and diverse set of options out there. These come in different shapes and sizes which have slightly different button configurations and joystick options depending on the preferences of the unique subset of users that console is aimed at. Rather than picking a console based on these preferences, what if you could customize the console to what you like instead? I recognized that this could be the key to capturing a wider demographic with just one device.
Hardware, Software
Nov 4, 2024
The name comes from the greek god of shapeshifting. A little pretentious, but also kinda cool.
With this project, I wanted to stress test the limits of how well I could visualize a product purely through Figma, material textures jpgs, effects, and blend modes. The result, is that everything you see here hardware wise, was able to be iterated on very quickly as it's all just layers and effects. The limitations of this being that I'm confined to orthographic, face on views.
I wanted to design a variety of components that could be swapped out at the users will. Different joysticks, and d-pad buttons could be swapped out on the fly to allow more user customization.
I also took a moment to illustrate the controllers/consoles that the device would mainly aim to emulate. These are fairly easy for todays handheld technology and emulators to render, and each also hold a special place in my heart as devices that I know all too well from my childhood.
Those illustrations were incorporated into a UI that feels modern and paired back, allowing the consoles and games center stage.
