Client: Google – Area 120 Incubator
Role: Lead UX Designer & Brand Architect
Skills: UX, UI, Branding, Game Design, Growth Strategy
Platform: Web, Mobile, Android Auto, 3rd-Party Sites
Year: 2019–2023

Intro

GameSnacks is a Google-backed HTML5 gaming platform designed to deliver bite-sized, low-friction games to users globally. Originally conceived in Area 120, Google’s in-house incubator, the platform has grown to serve millions of users across 7+ Google products and over 50 external sites. I led UX design, branding, onboarding, and built the product from inception to validation, as we grew — and helped transform GameSnacks from a scrappy prototype into it was acquired by Google Ads.

Problem

While exploring games in Area 120, Google’s internal incubator, we stumbled onto a big insight: people everywhere — especially in emerging markets — loved playing games, but most in those markets were challenged by large downloads often unusable on low-end phones or weak connections. We realized there was a huge gap for something simple: a platform built for speed, accessibility, and global reach — where anyone, anywhere, could jump into a game as easy as pulling up a webpage.

Our challenge:

The experience needed to be seamless and snackable - reduce friction
Build a brand that felt fun, light, and modern.
We needed a platform that could be integrated anywhere

What I did

From nearly its inception in Area 120, Google’s Internal product incubator, I was the sole UX Designer for GameSnacks responsible for ensuring an optimal user experience and building the brand across all surfaces.

I lead UX design, rapid testing, and iteration of our UI across web and mobile platforms. Additionally, I provide UI/UX guidance for our custom HTML5 games and contribute to strategic innovations, including the development of our game creation tool aimed at driving growth. I have also facilitated onboarding onto seven Google products—Play, Chrome, GPay, Discover, Assistant—and integrated with over 50 external partner sites and applications.
I led the naming and brand development of GameSnacks that resulted in our acquisition by the Ads org and is now a legit Google brand poised to be the next big thing.
I led and managed the production of GameSnacks Originals, exclusive, high-quality HTML5 games that out preformed our other games in all engagement metrics. Some favorites were (and still are): HexaDungeon, Stack Bounce, and Ship Merge. Play one now :)
From the outset, my primary goal was to focus on impactful growth strategies, including accelerating player onboarding, increasing session durations, and encouraging social invitations. The key performance indicators we prioritized were traffic, session time, and Lifetime Value (LTV).

Name and brand

As a nod back to my design studio experience with product building, branding, and art direction, I lead the naming and re-branding of what became GameSnacks. Our goal was to emphasize the fun of playing our games in quick bursts – or snacks as we began to call them. Therefore we mashed up “games” and “snacks” and landed on GameSnacks. And it stuck. With the help of an outside design firm we explored conceptual sketches to arrive at this logomark.

UI and UX

I created flows for onboarding, prototypes, and create a design system for our brand. I built out features for growth and discovery optimized for quick play. For example is, a player’s top goal is to play high-quality games so I removed extra clicks to get into the best games. Another is I added a “Keep playing” section at the top of the page to back into games they loved playing. Removing speedbumps and friction increased engagement and growth.

As the games were essentially web pages, downloads were not needed. To lower the barriers further the games didn’t require log in. I provided platform materials to assist with each integration. Each integration was unique and required materials to ensure that the experience went smoothly.

A/B Testing

I have extensive experience with A/B testing and use it regularly to optimize and refine designs. I always begin by setting an objective and a hypothesis before choosing my variables. These are most often elements such as layout, color schemes, and CTAs. In this A/B test, we were learning what the right CTA and content worked best for a module in the Android Discover feed.

Scoring with users

As a way to create delight and build engagement, I designed a results page that visualized the game results that putting users avatars on a winners podium - the winner would bounce in celebration. From here, you could chat or share with friends that could then join the game.

My contributions helped boost session time, replay rate, and accessibility—making lightweight games more engaging and discoverable for millions.

Integrations

I partnered with UX teams across Google to implement our games on other Google products such as Google Chrome, GPay, Google Meet, Discover, and the Play Games Store. I created misc marketing materials such as a 1-Pager to assist in new partnerships, and created an a template for Ads in our games. Interestingly, Android Auto offered our games while your car - while it was in Park of course.

Making custom games

I managed a team of game designers, video editors, while providing UX guidance, and doing art direction for 50+ exclusive GameSnacks Originals. Our GameSnacks Originals 25% better than our licensed games based on session time.

To do this, I hired 2 full-time game designers, I assembled a team of video editors working in their 20% hour projects, and I worked directly with game developers around the world to make our own exclusive games.

Some of my favorite Originals are: Merge Pirates, HexaDungeon, Pocket Champions, Element Blocks, Cards of the Undead, and Stack Bounce. I invite you to play a game now.

Growth with game parties

As a way to spur growth, I designed a simple way to invite friends to play the same game at the same time – in person or wherever they may be. By keeping the flow simple by via sharing a link via text, we put the focus on game play and saw genuine excitement. We called it a "Game Party".

Celebrate our wins

In Google’s Area 120 we had a gong to celebrate our wins. And for our quarterly reviews we celebrated with extra fun when we met our metrics. :)