Lerna.gg

Lerna.gg is a social game tracking platform that helps players log, rate, and share their gaming journeys. The project called for a brand identity and landing page that could stand out in a space dominated by utilitarian databases and wiki-style trackers. I designed a visual system that feels alive and community-driven, something that captures the excitement of discovering your next favorite game through the people you trust, not an algorithm.

The creative direction started with the question: what does it feel like to talk about games with friends? That conversational, slightly competitive, always enthusiastic energy became the brand's foundation. I explored typographic directions that balanced editorial sharpness with playful warmth, landing on a system that uses bold display type for impact and clean supporting text for legibility. The color palette draws from screen glow and late-night gaming sessions, rich, saturated tones against deep backgrounds.

The brand and landing page needed to ship alongside the platform's public beta. I worked in two-week sprints, the first focused on brand exploration and lockup, the second on translating the identity into a responsive landing page. The tight window meant making confident decisions early and iterating within the chosen direction rather than exploring multiple paths. Every element on the page had to earn its place and serve the goal of converting visitors into beta sign-ups.

Gaming platforms often fall into two visual camps: hyper-corporate storefronts or chaotic community forums. Lerna needed to land somewhere in between, polished enough to feel trustworthy, but warm enough to feel like a place you'd want to hang out. The challenge was maintaining that balance across every touchpoint, from the logo down to button microcopy. I leaned heavily on typography and spacing as the primary tools for conveying quality, rather than relying on effects or illustration.

Lerna reinforced that brand identity work is most effective when it's inseparable from product thinking. The landing page wasn't just a marketing surface, it was the first interaction users had with the platform's personality. Every visual choice needed to preview what the actual product experience would feel like. I learned to treat the landing page as a product prototype in disguise, where the brand earns trust by demonstrating the same care and attention the platform itself would deliver.