A Video Game Without A Screen
The heart of Redboy and the Adventure Crew begins with a tension familiar to so many parents and designers: screen-time. Children are drawn toward unfiltered videos and endlessly looping mobile games, craving stimulation but often receiving it in ways that dull creativity and keep them indoors. They are too young for most video games, yet yearn for the spark and challenge those experiences promise. Between overstimulation and under-engagement lies a delicate grey space — one that felt worth exploring with care.
In the earliest stages, the central question became almost poetic: what if a video game could exist without a screen? Could the rhythm of play, the sense of progression, and the joy of discovery be carried through touch, story, and imagination instead of pixels? This problem guided countless sketches, prototypes, and tests — seeking to design not just a toy, but a new form of interactive storytelling. The goal was never to deny kids stimulation, but to offer it in a healthier, more wondrous way: a tactile adventure that feels alive in their hands while freeing their eyes.
The solution was to translate the grammar of video games into physical interactions. Instead of pixels and polygons, Redboy and the Adventure Crew uses textile mats as levels and RFID figurines as avatars, creating a system where story progression feels as natural as moving a character across a screen—except everything happens in your hands.
The breakthrough came from reframing the controller itself. Rather than buttons and joysticks, kids use attachable figurines that snap onto a central device. Each character has a unique identity stored in its RFID chip, turning the simple act of "logging in" into something tactile and meaningful. The controller becomes a vessel—whoever you attach becomes who you are in the story.
At its heart, Redboy and the Adventure Crew reimagines the idea of a “video game” without a screen. The game unfolds across textile mats that act as interactive play surfaces, each one designed like a living level or environment. Players move electronic RFID figurines across these mats, triggering events and challenges much like entering new areas in a digital game. The tactile surface and figurines become the language of progression, transforming the familiar grammar of video games into something physical, immediate, and tangible.
Gameplay Systems
How it works:
Click a character onto the controller to "log in"
Slide across the mat to explore environments (like walking through a game world)
Tap embedded RFID zones to trigger story events, dialogue, and mini-games
Swap characters to unlock different interactions and branching paths
This system creates progression without screens. The mat remembers what's been discovered through onboard memory. Characters react differently based on who you're playing as and what you've already found. NPCs remember you. The world feels persistent and alive—all without a single pixel.
The design challenge wasn't just technical—it was psychological. Video games feel good because they give instant feedback, clear goals, and a sense of forward momentum. To replicate that without a screen meant designing for:
Audio feedback: Voice clips, sound effects, and musical cues replace visual prompts
RGB lighting: The controller "reacts" to actions with color changes, confirming interactions
Physical discovery: Hidden RFID zones reward exploration, mimicking the joy of finding secrets in digital games
Collaborative memory: Because data writes back to the mat, different characters experience the world uniquely—creating replayability through perspective
Through months of prototyping and iteration at Emily Carr University, I refined how kids naturally interact with toys versus how they engage with games. The result isn't a hybrid—it's a new category entirely: a video game that exists entirely in the physical world, designed to spark imagination while delivering the structured progression kids crave from digital play.
Gameplay Hardware
An immediate question ask when confronting this kind of design style… what does a controller for a screen free video game look like? The controller — a staple of video games — remains part of the experience, but here it takes on a new form. Instead of buttons and joysticks, kids use attachable figurines as their tools, swapping characters in and out to activate abilities, solve puzzles, and carry the narrative forward. This mechanic bridges the gap between toys and games, giving kids the thrill of interactivity without relying on screens. In doing so, Redboy introduces a new way of thinking about play: one where imagination, story, and touch all merge into a cohesive system that is as stimulating as a digital game, but far healthier and more creative.
Interaction Loop
The play experience begins with a simple gesture: clicking a character onto the controller. This action “logs in” the figurine, assigning its unique identity to the session. From there, kids can slide the controller across the textile mat as though they are “walking” through the world, or pick it up and tap it onto specific embedded RFID zones. These zones act like interactable objects in a digital game, triggering voice clips, story moments, or mini-games. Outside of zones, the controller’s bumpers provide playful audio feedback, keeping toy-like free play alive even when the story isn’t advancing.
The controller itself anchors the feedback loop. Built-in storage keeps track of progress, while RGB lighting and audio responses from both main characters and NPCs confirm every action. Rather than dividing play into levels, the game “progresses” organically as story elements are uncovered across the mat. The physical movements—sliding, tapping, swapping figurines—mirror digital logic: walking, interacting, and choosing a character, but reimagined through touch and sound.
Collaboration is woven in through shared memory. Because the controller writes data back into the mat, each character can experience the world differently, creating unique branching interactions. One child’s actions leave traces that another can discover later, reinforcing the sense of a living, persistent game world. Even beyond the included figurines, kids can fold in their own toys alongside the bumper mechanics, blending structured gameplay with open-ended imaginative play.
Game World Design
Redboy and the Adventure Crew creates a world that is both imaginative and functional, blending narrative adventure with a clear, tactile design system. The game world is not only a stage for storytelling but also a tool for communication, ensuring that kids can explore freely while always understanding how to play.
The world is adventurous at its core, offering a mix of playful wonder and moments of mystery. Players travel across mats filled with diverse environments, from the harrowing Dark Forest to the windswept cliffs of Bighorn Bluffs. Narrative progression unfolds through four hidden treasure chests, each unlocking a major story beat. The final chest ties off the central arc, then shifts the game into free-play mode, where dialogue continues to evolve and the world feels persistent. Exploration is structured to make use of the entire mat: kids are encouraged to backtrack, revisit zones, and uncover new layers of play. NPCs remember where players have been, characters unlock different responses, and every return visit feels like a new discovery.
Visual Design Strategy
Because the game is screen-free, its visual direction carries the responsibility of clarity. The mat is made from a soft, mousepad-like textile—durable enough for floor play yet comfortable enough for the tabletop. Interactable zones are marked with bold borders and distinct shapes, clearly separating them from the illustrated background. This ensures kids can easily spot story triggers and interactive elements. The Adventure Crew figurines follow the same principle: each character has a strong silhouette and unique color palette that communicates their personality and role at a glance. Together, the environments and characters form a cohesive design language where atmosphere, storytelling, and functionality blend seamlessly.
Feedback & Iteration
Redboy and the Adventure Crew was shaped by watching how kids actually played with early prototypes. In testing sessions, children instinctively bumped and bashed the figures together, treating them like action figures rather than game pieces. Rather than resist this behavior, I designed around it: the controller was outfitted with tactile bumper buttons on its sides, allowing off-mat play to trigger character interactions and playful audio clips.
This decision reinforced a core insight: kids don't separate toys from games. They want structured challenges and freeform imagination in the same experience. By honoring both impulses, the design created space for narrative progression and open-ended play.
What changed through iteration:
Form factor: Early prototypes explored modular, attachable mats, but this created barriers—kids couldn't experience the full story without all pieces. The final design uses a single unified mat to preserve narrative flow and reduce setup friction.
Feedback systems: Initial versions relied too heavily on visual cues. After testing, I added layered audio and haptic responses to ensure interactions felt confirmed even when kids weren't looking at the controller.
Character diversity: Playtests revealed kids wanted variety in how characters moved and sounded. I expanded the voice acting and gave each figurine distinct audio personalities to make swapping feel meaningful.
Reflection
This project taught me that the best designs meet users where they are rather than forcing them to adapt. Kids don't need to be taught how to play—they need systems that recognize and amplify how they already want to engage. That philosophy shaped every decision in Redboy, from the tactile controller to the persistent story world, and it's a principle I carry into every project.
