Bungie S23 Congratulatory Card
When?
Fall 2023
The Background:
Whenever a new season of Destiny 2 launches, Bungie sends a congratulatory card and commemorative patch to every employee who worked on the project. The intention of both the design of the card and its copy is to 1) acknowledge how special the features of the new installment are, 2) recognize the amount of work that goes into its production, and 3) give employees something special to share on social media, if they so choose.
The Challenge:
About a month or so into my contract with Bungie, I was tasked with writing the copy for the Destiny 2 Season 23 congratulatory card. This was my first time writing for the game development team.
Though straightforward, the project required a large amount of research — I’m not a gamer myself, so reading up on any and all briefs for Season 23 was a must. It also required a taste for larger studio sentiment to ensure the card used proper voice and tone.
The Solution:
I successfully wrote the Season 23 card, which was then sent to every Destiny 2 team member who worked on Season 23. Reviewers included Bungie’s larger editorial team as well as Destiny 2 leadership, both of which had minimal edits and, luckily, plenty of positive feedback.
Here’s a final mockup of what employees received:
Bungie 2023 Holiday Card
When?
Fall 2023
The Background:
Each holiday season, the office of the CEO at Bungie sends every member of the studio a holiday card. The artwork featured on these cards is always designed to commemorate or reminisce on a meaningful event that happened during the year — whether that be to Bungie specifically, the gaming community in general, or the world at large.
The Challenge:
The 2023 Bungie Holiday Card was a particularly important one. The visual design on the front of the card featured two key Destiny characters: Commander Zavala and Cayde 6. Commander Zavala was previously voiced by actor Lance Reddick, who sadly passed away on March 17 of 2023. Cayde is a favorite of many Destiny 2 fans and, at the time, was slated to return in the next installment of the game: The Final Shape.
We were briefed that this image was developed to commemorate both Lance’s memory as well as the bright future of Bungie. So, when brainstorming copy, I needed to figure out how to combine these two complex emotions into a single succinct description (while also ensuring that it was appropriate for the holiday season).
The Solution:
After a lot of brainstorming, I landed on a few options for copy. The writing shown below on the inside of the card is the option that was ultimately selected by leadership. It effectively used Bungie’s signature whimsical voice to salute Lance’s impact, while also ending 2023 on a hopeful and upbeat note.
