Glitch
Unleash the extra in you
Merging physical and digital entertainment.
Insight: Youth entertainment is dominated by digital.
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The over-saturation of online gaming has left kids uninspired, disconnected, and couch-bound. With adrenaline thrills confined to consoles and screens, young people are spending the majority of their time withdrawn and sedentary. True play calls for the social interaction and physicality that they crave.
Idea: Create a new kind of entertainment destination from the ground up.
When fun moves beyond digital, those with extra energy and creativity can enliven a dynamic sense of play, unlocking what makes them truly stand out in the world.
AKQA has teamed up with Dubai’s investment giant Al Ghurair Group to create the brand for a new kind of active game park experience that merges physical and digital entertainment. Named to be a cheeky disruptor of the status quo, Glitch is redefining what recreation can be for the weary digital natives of Generation Alpha.
From a sci-fi arcade to a freestyle football arena and Dubai's first-ever indoor roller glider, Glitch's offerings are going beyond the ordinary, setting a new standard for hybrid entertainment in a region ready to embrace the extraordinary.
An inclusive world of active play, powered by everyone’s unique spark.
Glitch has been brought to life as the city’s new game park, a place where young people can freely define themselves in a space where everyone belongs.
Visual Identity: Energetic optimism that fuels the imagination.
From the creation of the name to the making of a brand multiverse, each facet of the Glitch identity has been crafted to spur on youth to unleash their active imaginations and break away from passive gaming.
Cheeky has a face.
The Glitch Head deliberately uses ones and zeroes as a nod (and a wink) to the semi-digital space that Glitch inhabits—an instant icon.
Unleashing extraordinary verbs.
The tone and language are a playground where readers escape the treadmill of average grammar. Glitch puts the 'action' in 'call to action' by turning exciting nouns into verbs. These metaphorical layers of messaging become imaginative invitations to let loose, transform, and play.
Building adventures, not attractions.
Whether it's a reference to science's most famous glitch (an apple falling on Isaac Newton's head) or a fictitious backstory about why Olympic bowling isn't a thing (but obviously should be), Glitch's rides are humorously storied with riffs on popular culture and internet lingo. Using these thought-portals, the rides transform from mere attractions into otherworldly adventures.
Glitch is more than a place that gamifies physical play. It’s a malfunction in everyday boredom, a call to free oneself from dull routines, and an opportunity to reboot and to unleash the ultimate extra in you.
Credits
Agency
AKQA
Location
Dubai
Creative Direction
Taraka 'TK' Tennakoon
Collaborators
Simon Reid - Executive Creative Director, Valerie Sandoval - Art Director, Diego Santamaria - Art Director, Teena Mathew - Designer, Savio Dias - Motion Designer, Leo Tapang - 3D & Motion Designer, Sahil Assadi & Tobbit Vu - Digital CX, Amit Hasija, Cynthia Chabu, Johnwalf Brigoli- Production, Vylan Dalmaida & Chirag Khushalani - Strategy
Results & Impact
An active rebellion for hybrid entertainment in a region yet to discover the power of extra.
With a distinctly daring brand identity and an exuberant social presence, Glitch sets itself apart from an overcrowded regional market. So far, the brand has hit a high score, with organic reach surpassing the category by 5 times the average, and organic engagement doubling past the biggest players in the FEC space.
AKQA
The project was featured on AKQA.com.