Design a game that makes STEM fun and accessible, helping preteen girls and non-binary individuals stay engaged in science, technology, engineering, and math as they grow.
I created an engaging, inclusive board game designed to keep preteen girls and non-binary individuals excited about STEM. By combining hands-on learning with creative character-building, the game encourages curiosity and confidence and encourages individuals to tell their own stories at a critical age.
The biggest challenge was striking the right balance between education and entertainment. The game needed to be more than just informative—it had to be immersive, rewarding, and something kids would genuinely want to play.
A problem statement defines the core challenge a design aims to solve, guiding the direction of the solution.
In this case, young women and non-binary individuals often drift away from STEM as they grow older. To keep them engaged, they need to see themselves in these fields—through inspiring role models and a strong support network. Alora fosters this connection, helping them build confidence and a lifelong passion for STEM.
Our research set the foundation for a clear, strategic direction. Using Figma’s FigJam, we explored board gaming trends, art styles, and user engagement to identify what would make Alora stand out. This process not only shaped our design choices but also helped us play to our strengths, allowing us to divide tasks efficiently and work more effectively as a team.
This project required us to create two distinct brands—one for the board game and one for the parent company behind it. That’s how Lab Rat Games was born. I took on the task of designing the parent company’s logo, iterating through multiple versions to refine its clarity and impact.
Our biggest challenge? The first logo lost readability at smaller sizes, with text and fine details becoming difficult to distinguish. Through refinements, we ensured the final design remained bold, recognizable, and effective across all applications.
The final design system provided a structured, cohesive foundation for both Lab Rat Games and Alora. I defined a flexible color palette using a system of primitive and token variables, ensuring consistency across digital applications. This approach extended to spacing, corner radius, and margin parameters, creating a seamless visual language.
To bring the brand to life, Daisy, our art director and illustrator, provided hand-drawn assets, which I digitized in Illustrator, exported as SVGs, and integrated into Figma as components and decorative elements.
Given more time, I’d expand the design system further to account for every possible UI element—buttons, text fields, screens, and more—ensuring it could fully support developers in building cohesive apps, websites, and emails.
To keep our design focused on real users, we created two key personas: Ms. Rodriguez, the teacher, and Alex, the student. They represented the educators and kids we were designing for, helping us tailor the experience to their needs. These personas guided our decisions, ensuring the final product was both engaging for students and practical for teachers.
This project was a blast—and a huge leap forward in my design skills. For the first time, I took full ownership of maintaining a design system while diving headfirst into Figma variables. I started the project thinking I’d mostly use color and number variables, but everything changed when I discovered the power of string variables.
That “aha” moment opened up a whole new world of prototyping possibilities. String variables allowed me to create dynamic, interactive experiences that felt alive and responsive to user input. It was like unlocking a new level in my design toolkit. I could now build prototypes where decisions on one screen influenced outcomes on another, all without cluttering the project with endless screens.
This project wasn’t just about having fun—it was about pushing my limits, embracing new tools, and delivering a polished, professional result. It proved that even familiar tools like Figma have hidden depths, and I’m excited to keep exploring them.
This project was a game-changer for me. While I was already comfortable with Figma, maintaining a design system and exploring variables took my skills to the next level. I started thinking I’d only use color and number variables, but diving into string variables completely transformed how I approached prototyping. It unlocked dynamic, interactive possibilities I hadn’t imagined before—and made the entire process not just productive, but incredibly fun.
