NEAR-INFINITE COMBINATIONS... ENDLESS, ADORABLE FUN.
Peridot marked Niantic's first original property in a decade, and as the first fully AR game to use generative AI, the new title didn't lack tech — or cuteness.
In-game, virtual pets ("Peridots," or "Dots" for short) react to things they find in the real world. As a flagship augmented reality title for Niantic, we set out to showcase the title's lore and tech in fun, easy-to-understand ways that underscored what made the title so unique — and connected to fans in their real world, too.
Over time, the game transitioned from a single mobile experience to an ongoing hub of innovation, with dots leading Niantic's charge into new wearables, game technologies, and touchpoints.
Each of these brand touchpoints — like every Dot, itself — boasts unique DNA, leading to endless (adorable) permeteations. Whether supporting Niantic with a full social calendar, launch key art, or hero videos, our strategy remained focused on a few core tenets:
- 1) Support and nurture franchise expansion, growing Peridot from game to experiential suite
- 2) Develop a brand voice that channels Dots’ friendliness while remaining credible
- 3) Establish Peridot as a must-play for digital collectors and AR enthusiasts
NEWSFEED-ING THE DOTS
While Dots don't speak, we knew they would need to on social. Our first job: set up the voice and visual ID that would drive interest and bring a global community of Dot caretakers together.
SOCIAL VOICE + IDENTITY
Establishing the brand's tone on social was key. Working with Niantic, we developed Peridot's visual toolkit for social — a living, breathing system that was flexible enough to handle the brand's ever-expanding social needs, and scalable enough to grow with its ever-expanding roster of Dots.
SOCIAL CONTENT
As an extension of Niantic's team, we set out to create content that drove delight on social — while driving fans in-game to interact with their Dots. Below, we've listed just a few examples from years' worth of content:
The Peridot Genome Project
At launch, we wanted to showcase the endless combinations that were possible within Peridot. The result: a comprehensive but simple-to-digest infographic that demonstrated Dots' DNA, breaking down all the combinations possibe.
Lore and Worldbuilding
Though Peridot was new, the origin of the species is ancient! We helped seed super-fans toward the Peridoctus — a secret, recently-uncovered document delving into their lore. From that point on, keen-eyed fans were seeded with breadcrumbs that eventized future lore drops.
Pop Culture Per-odies
Dots are silly — and our social feed embraced that. Ongoing pop culture parodies paid homage to global moments while showcasing Peridot as a fun brand that celebrated the things that excited its Dots' owners. From movie releases to album drops, we painstakingly rebuilt pop-culture's biggest moments in-game.
Social Holidays
That strategy of surprise-and-delight extended to the celebration of social holidays. From major ones like Halloween to "National Best Friend Day," Peridot made sure to tap into trends and drive engagemnet in its own, unique voice.
Live Ops Support
Supporting in-game content drops was critical. Our visual toolkit allowed us to nimbly provide posts to support live-ops, eventizing through unique, informative posts that could be customized based on the offer, item, season, or Dot, itself.
New In-Game Releases
In addition to ongoing events, Peridot regularly released in-game items and cosmetic updates. Our posts helped celebrate and showcase these additions in unique and fun ways.
Partnerships
To promote Make Green Tuesdays Move and Peridot's Snap Spectacles platform extension, we tailored social posts to drive fans to the activations, fusing together Make Green Tuesdays Move brand with Peridot's fun, whimsical voice, and driving buzz and trial for the Peridot experience on Snap Spectacles.
The Webby Awards
We are proud to have supported Peridot as it continues to garner acclaim, including winning multiple People's Voice Webby Awards across various AI and Gaming categories: Experimental & Innovation , Media & Entertainment, and Technical Achievement.