Fairway Solitaire brand

Fairway Solitaire is a popular free-to-play game (200K players daily) available on iOS by Big Fish Games.

Re-branding & app migration, 2015

When I started at Big Fish, Fairway was in need of a serious facelift. With no game updates scheduled for months, I worked on the external brand and slowly tweaked the fonts & colors in the internal games messages so long-time players wouldn’t be caught off-guard.

In order to handle new types of updates, Fairway had to move all their users to download, install, and play in an entirely new app. To ease the transition, I used graphics that would feel updated, but still very familiar. I created a new icon, a set of timely pop-ups to lead players through the process, and the marketing graphics for the App Store, Big Fish website, and external ads. The campaign was extremely successful in relocating players.

Just after the release of Fairway 3.0, the team’s artists had finished a stellar set of golf-themed backgrounds, so I took the new art as an opportunity to re-brand. I focused on relaxation, one of Fairway’s pillars, and worked to create a brand that was clearly solitaire, but with a relaxing & picturesque twist. The final design mirrors the first screen from the game, ensuring that players will have a seamless experience from discovery to playing.

App Store marketing, 2015

Many games have app screens littered with marketing lingo and unrealistic, but highly animated expectations. I wanted to make it easy for players to decipher how Fairway works, so I created an honest set of marketing assets that felt true-to-the-game. I emphasized relaxing, picturesque landscapes and cards combos that would create long solitaire runs.