This playful experience was built using Processing in Java, combining an endless runner game with words. Players control a character that runs continuously across the screen. The game only ends when the player succeeds.
This experience only locally runs.
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In the year 2046, a time with more advanced technologies, a capitalist-controlled Metaverse becomes the primary workplace. What is hidden inside the sugar-coated metaverse workplace is the labor exploitation that no one can escape from. People have to work day and night like hamsters on a perpetual wheel to sustain themselves.
As work takes over life, social relationships of people are built more based on virtual identities, and their real-world identities gradually diminish. As a result, death is no longer the end of biological life, but rather the moment when a person's real-world identity is entirely replaced by their virtual identities.
Through scanning the digital screen that randomly displays a portrait of the deceased from by 100 AI-generated human faces with their mobile device, viewers will be able to enter a memorial hall in augmented reality. This AR experience was built in Unity.
This 1 min 44 sec short video expands in a non-linear narrative.
Today, people are saving more information than ever. Devices offer way more storage than before, and cloud services make it easy to save everything. But the more saved, the more need to manage. Despite having tons of productivity tools around us — from calendars to to-do lists to voice memos — many people still report feeling overwhelmed. This is because many of those tools still require decision-making on things like labeling, structuring, and prioritizing, which actually drains energy and leads to cognitive fatigue.
The landscape analysis focused on widely used tools, such as Apple Notes, Google Calendar, and third-party apps, such as Todoist, Sunsama, and Structured. While each app offers useful features, they also present limitations that Cactus aims to improve on.
Simple and built-in — but lacks structure
Works basically as a digital version of a traditional paper notebook. Easy for information to become scattered and difficult to retrieve.
Great for scheduling, not for general info
Requires manual adaptation for unstructured tasks
Smart capture, priority levels — but has overwhelming UI
The mobile app feels overly simplified, while the desktop version can feel overly complex. The calendar view, though informative, can lead to visual overload due to the high density of interface elements.
Ritual-based and timeline-based interfaces — but require too much manual input
And too many unnecessary decisions, such as selecting color for each task. While color selection offers personalization, it often feels more aesthetic than practical, providing limited functional benefit and leading to more visual clutter.
To better understand user needs, informal user interviews were conducted with family members and friends.
Too much manual input
Current tools interfaces are too complex
Hard to find things, don’t remember label
Most open to AI but want control and clarity
Input preferences: voice, text, or visual
Based on the findings from competitor analysis and user studies, four primary user personas were developed to reflect these identified pain points people experience with current tools
Needs help remembering life’s little moments
Wants structure, but no time for it
Always on the move — needs fast, hands-free support.
Struggles to know where to start
The app allows storing and retrieving anytime anywhere through conversations
The app automatically categorizes, prioritizes, and organizes tasks behind the scenes, reducing theneed for manual input.
The visual design is intentionally calm and minimal, avoiding overwhelm and keeping the interface quiet and focused.
The color palette is soft and neutral, inspired by cactus in natural environments. Functional colors are used just to highlight the tasks based on its level.
iOS Native Apple system font / San Francisco
The Cactus logo was designed to reflect both the personality and the function of the app.
All the icons are 24px height and width and 2px stroke weight with theme variants in "Light” and “Dark” and state variants in “Selected” and “Default.”
