AI-assisted campaign · Self-initiated concept

Lumi Harbor — Relight the Coast

Launch campaign for a cozy puzzle game. Concept, art direction and AI-assisted production by Nicole Trang.

Role
Concept, art direction, design
Type
Self-initiated concept
Formats
Key art, statics, 15s video, store assets
Key art 16:9: Pip on the cliff as the lighthouse switches on

The brief

Lumi Harbor is a cozy tile-puzzle game: every level you solve relights a lighthouse and brings a sleepy seaside town back to life. The launch needs to stand out in a feed full of loud, look-alike puzzle ads and reach adults 25–45 who play to unwind, not to compete.

Insight

People who play puzzle games at night aren't looking for a challenge. They want a small win that makes the day feel finished.

The idea

“One light at a time.”

Every ad ends with a light switching on. Pip, a small otter lighthouse keeper, turns each solved puzzle into a warm, satisfying moment of glow. The same character, the same light cue and the same calm voice run through every format, so the campaign feels like one world rather than a pile of variations.

Art direction

Visual world. Blue-hour coast, mist, wet stone, warm lantern light cutting through cool tones.

  • Night Navy
    #14213D
  • Harbor Teal
    #2A6F7F
  • Mist
    #DCE6EA
  • Lantern Amber
    #FFB547
  • Coral Roof
    #E86F51

Character. Pip — a small, round otter in a yellow raincoat, carrying a brass lantern. Soft 3D, tactile, storybook proportions.

Type. A rounded, friendly headline face with a clean sans for body copy.

The rule. Amber light is the only saturated warm colour on screen, so the “light on” moment always reads first.

Pip character sheet: turnaround + expressions
Pip's model sheet, locked before production and used as the reference for every scene.

Process

How I directed the AI.

  1. Explore. Generated style directions in Flux, Krea and Leonardo (storybook 3D, painterly, low-poly). Chose soft 3D because it reads clearly at thumbnail size and feels calm.
  2. Character lock. Built a character sheet for Pip, then used it as the reference for every scene in Nano Banana so the face, coat and lantern stay consistent across all formats.
  3. Craft. Composited, retouched and set type in Photoshop; Firefly Generative Fill to extend backgrounds to each ratio. The puzzle UI was designed by hand in Figma — AI never draws the interface or the logo.
  4. Motion. Animated key frames in Kling and Hailuo; edit, captions and resizing in CapCut and Premiere Pro.
  5. Sound. Voice-over in ElevenLabs, music bed in Suno.
  6. Concept & copy. ChatGPT and Claude to pressure-test hooks and tighten lines; the final words are mine.
Before: raw AI output
Raw generation.
After: composited, retouched, typeset
Final, after hand correction and type.

Static ads

Three hooks, each tested in 1:1, 4:5 and 9:16.

  • Satisfying. The last tile clicks in and the lighthouse switches on.
  • Before / after. “Dark harbor → Bright harbor. Your move.”
  • Story. “Pip can't light it alone.”
Ad 1 · 4:5
Ad 2 · 4:5
Ad 3 · 4:5

15s launch video

A three-second hook (the last tile, a click, a flash of amber), then the light travels from the board to the lighthouse and across the town. End line: “One light at a time.”

Deliverables

  • Key art (16:9) and store feature graphic (1024×500)
  • 3 static ads × 3 ratios (1:1, 4:5, 9:16), each testing a different hook
  • 15s launch video (9:16) with a 3-second hook
  • Store screenshot set (5 frames)

Brand control

Pip's model sheet, the palette and the “light on” cue were locked before any production. Every AI output was checked against the sheet; faces, hands and the lantern were corrected by hand where needed. Logo, UI and all text are designed, never generated.

Credits. Concept, art direction, design: Nicole Trang.
Tools. Flux, Krea, Leonardo, Nano Banana, Adobe Photoshop + Firefly, Figma, Kling, Hailuo, CapCut, Premiere Pro, ElevenLabs, Suno, ChatGPT, Claude.

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