This wasn't just an ad; it was a live human experiment on a London billboard.

Dubbed "Survival of the Grittiest," I provided UX Design for this experiential campaign for Xbox, challenging eight fans to stand on tiny ledges and endure everything from arctic winds to sudden heatwaves.

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The UX of suffering

The challenge was to bridge a physical billboard endurance test with a global digital audience.

Through a real-time voting system integrated with a live Twitch stream, users unleashed actual blizzards and heatwaves on contestants, turning a brutal challenge into must-see entertainment.

The perfect storm, by design

Where digital votes met real-world weather.

I oversaw the end-to-end experience design for this award-winning campaign, serving as a key connection between the creative concepting team and the physical experience builders.

This project required a unique level of design governance – balancing an evolving digital narrative across three phases with the ambitious technical requirements of real-world software and hardware integration.

I architected flows and screens that evolved through three strategic phases: an initial puzzle-led recruitment drive, a high-intensity countdown phase, and a final, live event whereby the site transformed into an interactive broadcast platform, allowing a global audience to watch the live stream and vote in real-time to control the brutal weather conditions unleashed on the competitors.

“Just voted for a blizzard on #SurvivalBillboard and now they’re getting absolutely blasted. I love it.”

Results

A huge hit with the public and juries alike, the campaign picked a brace of awards and was subsequently voted Campaign’s Creative Experience of the Decade.

3.5m

views in 24hrs

1,000

weather votes every hour

56k

hours of streamed content watched

90+

awards

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5 Gold, 9 Silver and 6 Bronze

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2 Gold

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3 Gold, 4 Silver

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4 wins, including the Grand Prix

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2 Gold

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Grand LIA, 3 Gold, 4 Silver, 2 Bronze

Looking for a Senior/Lead to join your team?

I’m currently exploring new permanent opportunities where I can lead design-driven technical projects. If you think I’d be a good fit for your team, I’d love to hear from you.

Telephone

(+44) 07887 655 830