Seagate - Build Your Beast

Background & Brief

Seagate are looking to spearhead and develop a gaming configurator (Build your Beast) with their ecosystem of partners in the gaming industry AMD, MOBO: MSI, Nvidia, AIO: Corsair, Corsair and Razer.

This gaming configurator will allow users to input the game they want to play and the system will suggest the ideal configuration of hardware from all ecosystem partners.

Seagate are looking to spearhead and develop a gaming configurator (Build your Beast) with their ecosystem of partners in the gaming industry AMD, MOBO: MSI, Nvidia, AIO: Corsair, Corsair and Razer.

This gaming configurator will allow users to input the game they want to play and the system will suggest the ideal configuration of hardware from all ecosystem partners.

Project Contribution

Concept development - Steve Ives

Creative direction & Art direction - Steve Ives

Design & Artworking - Steve Ives

Storyboarding - Steve Ives

Video production creative lead - Steve Ives

Making the jump is easy with Build Your Beast – it requires no technical knowledge, and no wrestling with jargon or complicated navigation. Gamers simply choose a trending game then Seagate and partners do the rest. Bringing together the ultimate components best suited for the game they want to play without any fuss. Allowing them to reach their full gaming potential.

The project is in two waves. Wave 1 is to excite ecosystem partners via a presentation containing a campaign plan, creative visuals and a teaser trailer.

Wave 2 is to create a campaign/look and feel based on partner feedback, that primarily reflects the Seagate brand and how it ties in the ecosystem family.

Wave 1

Concept Moodboard

Concept 1

Your future PC is a beacon of power, potential, knowledge and boundless possibilities. Our creative vision of that PC, indicative of the iconic monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey, stands tall in an infinite array of worlds, ready to experience gaming like you never have before. It's a beacon of light that guides you through the build of you PC that will set you free to become the ultimate gamer you were born to be.

Concept 2

With Seagate you can build a beast of a PC that is so powerful, so future proof and so reliable, that it will show you gaming like you've never experienced before. Primal power, and an instinct for action and excitement, breath taking memories await. With Seagate and partners, you'll see the future of gaming.

Lockup design

Initial website design

Ecosystem partner presentation

Teaser storyboard

Teaser trailer

Wave 2

Now with ecosystem partner buy in, it’s time to ‘level-up’ and truly explore how Build Your Beast can come to life for our target audience through the development of narrative and conceptual ideation.

Conceptual ideation

Concept 1 - Unlock the power of gaming

Overview

Drawing from mythological and fantasy gaming genres, this concept is all about making the gamer buy into the fact this is an exclusive process. A magical, mystical, exclusive creation that unlocks access to the best PC for them. And offers the ultimate power to play their favourite game in the best way possible.

The story

A futuristic temple with ancient cues. Geometrical glowing tablets or obelisks hover in a circle around the temple. There is wisdom and energy here. Each obelisk shines subtly in different colours representing the different component partners. The obelisks levitate and move towards the temple, like pieces of a puzzle they fit together perfectly to create a whole. The click, whirr and clunk of a long-forgotten mechanism as the puzzle unlocks. The temple begins to tremble. The completed puzzle unlocks, suddenly, a band of light surges upwards, scorching into the sky and at its top appears a giant rotating PC towercase. The temple roof opens, it begins to crumble, it falls at the feet of the beam of light and the unleashed towercase. This ultimate creation is a beast of a PC.

The end result

The beast as a powerful shining towercase represents the gamer’s ascension making the highest levels of gaming possible. They have unlocked access not only to an ideal gaming experience, but also the gaming potential of themselves and their newly transformed gaming machine. They have embraced the wisdom of Seagate and their partners, providing them with the confidence that they’re making the right decision in building the chosen specification of a PC - and exciting them that they’re part of something special.

As the consumer selects their game, the temple begins to unlock, colours and light unleash through the temple.

The temple opens up like a puzzle, revealing the ultimate beast of a PC tower in all its glory.

Concept 2 - The hero

Overview

Power up, suit up, prepare for battle – and become the gaming hero you always wanted to be, equipped with everything you need to compete in your chosen game. Drawing on a number of gaming genres to engage the gamer first-hand by creating them as a beast. Adding components until they become the ultimate gaming warrior.

The story

The gamer feels empowered as they see myriads of parts that can equip them and turn them into a fearsome beast of gaming. Each element of their weapons and armour is represented by an individual component coming together to create an Ironman-style super gamer. One by one the branded components bolt onto and enhance their suit to create the ultimate warrior (and the ultimate gaming PC). Each component can represent our partners (e.g., motherboard for chest armour, CPU and GPU for helmet/eyes etc). Once complete the gamer has become the gaming beast, as we see a magnificent creation ready for anything their favourite game can throw at them. The augmented gamer rises, spins, gleams in the light as a portal opens and they enter their chosen game like they have never experienced before.

The end result

By arming the gamer and their PC, Seagate and its partners provide every component needed to create the ultimate gaming experience. The gamer is, in effect, the beast. Seagate has empowered the beast within to connect with their beast of a PC. Ready to join their friends. To defeat their enemies. And to win.

The transformation is complete, and the gamer is ready to compete and win in their chosen game.

A portal opens up, their chosen gaming world is waiting for them to enter and begin their exciting new gaming experience.

Chosen concept - The beasts' domain

Overview

In this concept we draw on fantasy and sc-fi genre games to create a beautiful metropolis made up of circuitry and components. A city built by Seagate and their partners. The gamer enters the city where each district represents a different partner, zipping through the skyscrapers and mechanical canyons until they reach the centre. Where a PC tower, the largest construction in the city, is presided over by an enormous beast.

The story

A futuristic city from afar against a black backdrop. A glowing metropolis teeming with light. We descend into the city, at speed and in flight. We make out separate districts, each belonging to a different partner.
We weave between skyscrapers, each partner illuminated on either side of the street as we fly fast into the centre of the city where we

see a dominating tower looming. A huge skyscraper resembling a PC towercase. It’s imposing, vast, but not as vast as the beast sitting proudly on top of it.
We zoom towards this beast, faster and faster, as it opens its giant jaws to unleash a boneshaking roar into the camera. As the beast roars, a vibrant plume of orange fire swirls outwards towards the camera and transitions into the Build Your Beast lockup.

The end result

Here’s a city that contains everything the gamer needs.
A city created as a result of collaboration between all of these partners. The gamer is seeing the association of world leading suppliers coming together to create the ultimate the PC tailored for their chosen game. And understands that the power of this beast will allow them to enjoy their ultimate gaming experience.

As we fly through the city, we see Seagate and partner branding, and footage of games illuminated on the sides of the buildings in a ‘Bladerunner’ style.

At the centre of the city lies a huge skyscraper style PC rig, protected by a powerful beast roaring at the camera.

Concept art development

To develop the concept art core creative, I combined Seagate's existing guardian dragon to align with existing brand assets, and worked with a 3D artist to recreate the cityscape. It was then possible to set the 3D landscape behind each guardian dragon still, and ultimately compose a set of four master creatives to be used throughout the campaign.

Final retouched concept art