Pigging

When working on oil pipes, machines are used to clean, check for dents and fissures. These machines are called ‘pigs’ due to the sound they make when travelling through pipes. With the help from a rotating screen, the client wanted a game that allowed users to understand the importance of ‘Pigging’ (the act of using pigs).

We wanted to show the importance of pigs when it comes to maintaining the complex pipping system in Kuwait. We decided to go for a top down view of the pipes with a parallax.

The user had to pick up the most dirt/cracks/dents while avoiding dead ends. To do so, they had to navigate the pig by tilting the screen, figuring out the optimum path.

I illustrated a maze of pipes on separate layers to create a parallax effect when navigating through. As we wanted the users to feel like they were the technician/engineers navigating the pigs, I gave the onboarding screens and UI a ‘tech-y’ feel.

The game was introduced with a quick tutorial explaining how to tilt the screen to move the pig up or down.

Once a prototype was delivered by the programmers we got to test the rotating arm to check if the movement synced with the physical device. We also were able to test with the target audience to analyse any elements that weren’t intuitive or clear.

Pigging was my very first exhibit I worked on for NewAngle. I finished the product in 2015 and the museum has since opened to the public and the exhibit is still providing fun and education to this day!