Product Description: Recipe Riddle is a daily interactive game inviting players to engage in a culinary challenge that combines the joy of cooking with the thrill of puzzle-solving. Participants are tasked with selecting the correct mix of ingredients from a virtual pantry (word list) to recreate the NYT Cooking’s Recipe of the Day. The game features a blend of essential and optional ingredients, requiring players to use visual clues from dish images and culinary knowledge to assemble the perfect recipe.

Product Goal: The primary goal would be to drive subscriptions to The New York Times' Games and Cooking bundles, increase brand awareness of the Cooking section, and enhance the reach and engagement of the Cooking’s content. The game aims to cultivate a daily habit among users, mirroring the engagement seen with other NYT Games, and to create a fun, interactive way to explore culinary arts.

Game Landing Page: The landing page serves as the players' introduction to "Recipe Riddle" designed to entice and inform. It sets the tone for the game, outlines what players can expect, and includes a clear call to action to start playing.

Main Game Screen: This is the heart of "Recipe Riddle" where the gameplay unfolds. The pantry selection, dish image, and ingredient submission interface were designed for ease of use and engaging interaction.

Instructions Screen: Detailed instructions guide the players on how to play the game, offering tips for success and explaining the rules around guesses and scoring. The layout and presentation of this information were carefully considered to be both informative and digestible, helping players in quickly grasping the game mechanics.

Key Metrics

• Subscription Growth: Increase in subscriptions to the Games and Cooking bundles.

• Daily Active Users: Number of unique players engaging with the game daily.

• Player Progression: Tracking the advancement of players through the game's levels, from Apprentice Cook to Professional Chef Supreme, to gauge engagement and learning.

Design Process

Design System Analysis: Before diving into the design, I analyzed The New York Times Games' existing design system. This included studying their use of components, fonts, color palettes, and the overall aesthetic to ensure that "Recipe Riddle" could seamlessly integrate with the NYT Games ecosystem.

User Journey: Alongside the design system analysis, I mapped out the user journey within NYT Games. This involved identifying key touchpoints, transitions from the landing page to game engagement, and how users navigate between different games and sections.

Branding and Visual Identity: I developed a distinctive branding for "Recipe Riddle" that aligns with the NYT's sophisticated yet accessible aesthetic. The creation of a unique logo, color scheme, and following the typography was driven by the theme of culinary challenges, aiming to capture the essence of the game while resonating with the established NYT brand identity.

Disclaimer: The "Recipe Riddle" game concept outlined in this portfolio is a personal project inspired by the engaging mechanics of games developed by The New York Times. This project has not been commissioned, endorsed, or associated with The New York Times Company in any capacity. It serves as a speculative product design exercise to demonstrate my capabilities and is intended purely for illustrative purposes. All rights related to the game design, concept, and associated materials belong solely to me (don’t steal please 😛). This project has not been presented to The New York Times Company, nor is there any ongoing partnership or development related to this concept with them.