PLAYERS
Design a new progression layer that adds long-term strategic depth without overwhelming early players. The system needed to unlock early, feel safe and understandable at first use, and scale into deep optimization for advanced players.
The goal was to introduce a sustainable new economy layer with predictable monthly monetization, including a reliable store cadence for items tied to progression. The experience had to support multiple items per character, cross-character inventory management, and long-term decision-making without breaking player trust.
UX
The objective was to make an extremely complex system feel readable, reversible, and intentional, so players could experiment freely, recover from mistakes, and invest with confidence over time.
I approached Glyphs and Relics as a long-term systems UX problem. The focus was on player mental models, distinguishing reversible versus irreversible actions, and structuring upgrade thresholds so experimentation felt safe instead of punishing.
In parallel, I aligned closely with game design, engineering, and Live Ops on rules, UI states, and a predictable monthly store cadence, ensuring the system supported sustainable engagement and long-term scale.
My research combined internal interviews, UX teardown, and competitive analysis with flow definitions, to understand where depth often breaks clarity. Players were eager for deeper customization, but early systems risked overwhelming them or encouraging poor optimization. The challenge was designing depth that unfolded gradually without sacrificing confidence at first use.
Audience:
Three core player motivations shaped the system.
Optimizers focused on efficiency and long-term gains.
Collectors cared about completion and ownership.
Lore Enthusiasts looked for meaning and hero identity.
The system needed to support fast, confident decisions for all three while allowing depth and personality to emerge over time.
Comp Analysis
I reviewed progression systems across Dislyte, Marvel Snap, Summoners War, Raid, and Galaxy of Heroes to understand how other games communicate rarity, structure upgrades, and guide player investment. These comparisons informed our approach to stat readability, upgrade thresholds, and reveal moments, helping balance early clarity with long-term depth.
Player Actions
Before designing screens, I mapped every meaningful action players could take within the Glyphs and Relics system. This included unlocking the feature, equipping and upgrading Glyphs, managing sets, rerolling stats, favoriting items, dismantling, and handling edge cases like partial upgrades and pending changes.
Laying these actions out end to end revealed where players needed guardrails, where clarity was critical, and where complexity could safely emerge over time. This map became the foundation for the system’s logic, ensuring the UI supported real player behavior instead of forcing players to adapt to the interface.
Player Paths
Once all player actions were mapped, I grouped them into core paths that define how players repeatedly engage with the system. These paths guided where the UX needed to feel safe, legible, and efficient as complexity increased.
Information Architecture
I built an information architecture map to translate the full set of player actions into a clear, scalable structure. It defines how players move across screens and states, from inspecting and equipping to upgrading, rerolling, and dismantling.
The IA became the working blueprint for the team, aligning UX, UI, economy, and engineering on navigation, data flow, and screen transitions. It also ensures new Glyph sets and Relic tiers can be added over time without disrupting the core experience.
Wireframes
I created high-fidelity wireframes that defined every major state of the Glyphs and Relics experience. These layouts mapped the full flow for equipping, upgrading, comparing, rerolling, and dismantling, and became the final UI.
Despite the depth of the system, the screens kept complexity readable and approachable, ensuring players could experiment, optimize, and invest with confidence.
Motion Targets
I helped define the motion targets that shape how upgrades, stat reveals, rerolls, and set activations feel across the system. Each animation was designed to reinforce clarity first and excitement second.
Working closely with our UX Director and an external motion vendor through bi-weekly reviews, I guided pacing, feedback timing, and visual intensity so players always understand what changed and why it matters. Even in a system this deep, motion supports decision making instead of distracting from it.
Glyphs and Relics introduced a new progression layer that unlocks early, teaches itself gradually, and scales into one of the deepest optimization systems in the game. The experience was designed to make complex decisions feel understandable, reversible, and rewarding at every stage.
Unlock and Access
The system is introduced before it becomes usable, giving players time to understand its structure. Relic slots preview future possibilities through clear slot shapes, and an in-context tooltip explains when and how the system unlocks. By the time players gain access, the UI already feels familiar.
Meaningful Customization
Glyphs attach to specific Relic slots, enabling intentional builds through stat combinations and set bonuses. Players can tailor heroes for different modes and strategies, rewarding experimentation while preserving clear rules and constraints.
Upgrade and Reveal
Upgrades follow predictable thresholds. Primary stats scale clearly, and secondary stats reveal at defined moments. Every screen shows what will change, why it changes, and what it costs. Rerolls and dismantles offer controlled risk, keeping experimentation safe.
Streamlined Management
Inventory, comparison views, and confirm/revert flows were designed to support managing multiple characters and loadouts at once. Clear stat deltas, slot indicators, and set visuals help players make fast decisions. Revert ensures mistakes are never permanent.
Predictable Store Cadence
A structured monthly store cadence was designed alongside the system, giving players reliable access to upgrade materials and Glyph variants. This supported long-term planning for players and predictable forecasting for Live Ops.
Stronger Mid-Game Engagement
Glyphs and Relics gave players a compelling reason to return daily. The upgrade loop, stat reveals, and set bonuses created a steady rhythm of investment that extended the lifespan of mid-game heroes.
Clear, Confident Decision-Making
Stat deltas, slot shapes, reveal thresholds, and Revert/Confirm flows removed ambiguity from deep upgrades. Players could experiment, adjust, and commit without fear of irreversible mistakes.
More Expressive Builds
Custom Glyph combinations gave players real ownership over their heroes. Builds became more flexible and strategic, supporting both PvE and PvP playstyles without forcing a single optimal path.
A Scalable Live-Ops Foundation
The system introduced a new economy layer and a predictable store cadence, giving design, economy, and Live Ops a durable framework for adding new sets, rarities, and progression beats without reworking the core loop.
Glyphs and Relics transformed a deeply complex upgrade system into one players can understand, trust, and enjoy. By grounding the experience in clear actions, predictable feedback, and visible consequences, the system delivers real depth without overwhelming players.
The result is a progression layer that scales across player maturity, supports live-ops expansion, and gives players genuine ownership over how their heroes grow. For a system this deep, the biggest win was making every decision feel safe, intentional, and worth investing in.