Keying 可滢 Guo

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Keying (Chloe) Guois an aspiring UX designer and NYU student studying Interactive Media Arts. She’s passionate about crafting intuitive and visually compelling user experiences, seamlessly blending art and technology to enhance usability and engagement.

A lover of all things UX/UI design, gamification, creative coding, and iced matcha lattes, Chloe also has a soft spot for Studio Ghibli films, electric guitars, and finding beauty in everyday patterns.

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  1. Stone Dry
  2. FlowMingle
  3. Sizzling House
  4. Digitama


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©2025 Keying Guo

Digitama

// APR 2024


Digitama is a gamified productivity app designed to motivate users to stay focused and achieve their goals by caring for a virtual pet inspired by Tamagotchi.

Through researching user habits and productivity challenges, I identified an opportunity to combine task management with playful elements to encourage sustained engagement. The app connects productivity with the growth and well-being of a customizable digital pet, rewarding users for completing tasks and maintaining focus.

I designed Digitama to make staying productive fun and rewarding, fostering a balance between work and play in a uniquely interactive way.

consumer product visual design 


 As a student balancing school, work, and personal goals…                   ✨ I often struggled with staying focused and managing my time effectively.
                                                  I needed something that made productivity feel less like a chore and more like an engaging experience.                                   That’s when I thought—what if being productive could feel as rewarding as caring for a virtual pet?

01. User Research 
key insightsMotivated by my own struggles with staying focused and managing time effectively, I explored how I could make productivity more engaging and rewarding. To better understand common productivity challenges, I interviewed 6 individuals, including students and young professionals, about their habits, pain points, and motivations for staying productive. These were the main interview insights:
                 

                Procrastination and difficulty starting tasks
Many participants mentioned struggling to get started on tasks, often feeling overwhelmed or unmotivated without a clear sense of progress or reward.

             
Balancing focus and relaxation
Several participants highlighted the need for balance, wanting a system that encouraged focused work while allowing time for breaks to prevent burnout.

Preference for personalization
Participants showed interest in being able to customize their experience, such as choosing goals or themes that aligned with their personal preferences and lifestyles.



Problem


Young professionals and students often struggle with staying focused and managing their time effectively, frequently feeling overwhelmed by traditional productivity tools that are rigid and task-oriented. Many users seek an engaging and personalized way to stay motivated and track progress without feeling burdened by their to-do lists.

How might we design a gamified platform that makes productivity enjoyable and rewarding, encouraging users to stay focused and achieve their goals while balancing work and relaxation?

02. Competitive Analysis



03. Prototype





User has the ability to choose and customize their digital pet for later use in the app.



By completing tasks and focusing, users are able to feed, play, or let their pet rest in order to keep them alive.



One of the main features is to add tasks to the todo list. There is an option to make the task a priority, which will then appear on the top in a brighter pink color above the other not prioritized tasks.




Another feature is the ability to add reminders within the built-in calendar, which will then send users a push notification.
                       

04. User Testing / Next Steps

I conducted usability testing with 4 users (2 students and 2 young professionals) to evaluate the effectiveness of Digitama's design and functionality.

Feedback highlighted the app’s engaging gamification elements, with users appreciating the emotional connection to their virtual pet and the motivational rewards system. However, users suggested more customization options for the pet and additional features to track long-term goals.

Based on the feedbacks, my next steps include:

  • Incorporate more customization features, such as personalizing the pet’s appearance and environment.
  • Develop a progress dashboard to help users visualize long-term achievements.
  • Optimize the user interface to improve onboarding and make task creation more intuitive.