Draft 1
I thought it would be fun to put Knightro in the game, with other Florida mascots acting as ghosts. My colleague created the Pac-Man map and power-ups. I wanted the mural to feel as if the viewer was looking directly at the Pac-Man machine, and maybe even feel intrigued to interact with the giant illustrated buttons on the wall. Variations were added to show how different assets could be incorporated around the main piece.
Draft 2
The client was happy with the characters and wanted more emphasis on them. He mentioned the Pac-Man opening screen as a reference. He also requested a blue background instead of black. I proceed to alter it accordingly but struggled to find the correct Pac-Man font. Because of this, I made my own font to reflect the Pac-Man style while keeping the name legible.
Draft 3
The client was satisfied with the look but preferred the black background. It was then that I was asked to incorporate the Coca-Cola brand into the mural as well. I used the Coke logos as power-ups in the background. In the final product (shown in the final image), the heads were flipped to lead the eye toward the arcade door, and shadows were added to the characters to create depth. Coca-Cola's marketing team then added their assets to finalize the piece.
Conclusion
This was definitely a one-of-a-kind opportunity that I am very grateful for. Collaborating with UCF Student Government, Student Union leadership as well as an external marketing team was a lot to handle, but I learned a lot about communication and compromise. Satisfying three different parties was quite the task, but I am very happy with the result.
