Leaderboard
Challenge
My List
Feed
Discovery
Escapade at a Glance
THE PROBLEM
People dream of adventures but struggle to act on them due to:
Decision paralysis from too many options
Lack of accountability and motivation
Difficulty coordinating with friends
THE SOLUTION
Escapade combines three elements missing from existing bucket list apps:
🔍 Curated discovery (reduces overwhelm)
👥 Friend challenges (creates accountability)
🎮 Gamification (sustains motivation)
MY CONTRIBUTIONS
Led end-to-end design: research, persona development, wireframing
Designed 5 core screens with 15+ wireframe variations
Collaborated with 3 developers to balance ambition with constraints
Defined key interaction patterns and information architecture
WHY IT WON
Judges recognized:
Intuitive, accessible UI design
Innovative "Challenge a Friend" engagement model
Successfully transformed bucket lists into community-powered journeys
Design process
Double Diamond
We followed the Double Diamond framework to structure our 24-hour sprint:
Research & Discovery
Understanding the Problem: Why We Don’t Act on Adventure
We began by exploring why people often dream of adventure but rarely pursue it. Secondary research revealed some common patterns:
Routine Traps Us
Most people default to habit and struggle to find novelty
OnePoll, 2016
Post-Pandemic Stagnation
Many reported fewer opportunities for exploration and social spontaneity
Pew Research, 2020
💡 THE INSIGHT:
These patterns pointed to a clear need: tools that help people break routine AND stay accountable to their adventure goals.
Research Constraints
(24-Hour Hackathon)
With limited time, we conducted structured internal team discussions (n=4) to quickly validate these patterns. While not a substitute for extensive user research, these discussions confirmed our hypothesis: people need both inspiration AND accountability to turn bucket list dreams into reality.
With more time, we would:
Conduct external user interviews (n=8-10) and usability testing
Survey 100+ users to quantify pain points statistically
Based on our research insights and team discussions, we created Emily to represent our core user: ambitious professionals who crave adventure but struggle with decision paralysis and lack of follow-through. Emily became our north star throughout the design process—every decision was filtered through her needs.
Competitive Analysis: What's Missing from Current Solutions
To validate our approach, we analyzed 3 leading bucket list apps:
💡 KEY OPPORTUNITY:
No existing app combines curated discovery with social accountability. Escapade bridges this gap by turning personal growth into a social, gamified adventure.
From Insights to Action
Based on our research, we narrowed our product goals to three core principles:
Motivate
Build momentum through gamification.
🎮
Connect
Foster accountability through community.
👥
Guide
Reduce friction with curated suggestions.
🧭
Develop: Ideation & Wireframing
Design Explorations
To address Emily's core needs—finding inspiration without overwhelm and staying accountable to her goals—we explored multiple approaches for each key screen through rapid wireframing and team critique.
DISCOVERY: Helping Emily Find Her Next Adventure
"I want to try new things, but I don't know where to start. Scrolling endless lists makes me more overwhelmed, not inspired."
🎯 Solution:
⚠️ What didn't work in alternatives:
✗ assumes Emily knows what she wants—doesn't help her discover
✗ browsing 100+ tiles creates new overwhelm without guidance
Team Discussion Insight:
"We realized Emily's behavior isn't linear—sometimes she's purposeful ('I want to learn Spanish'), other times she's exploring ('What sounds fun?'). The interface needed to flex between both modes, not force one approach."
💡 WHY THIS WON:
This hybrid approach addresses both Emily's decisive moments AND her exploratory moods. The search function respects her time when she's busy; the tiles inspire her when she's curious—flexibility without forcing a single approach.
CHALLENGE: Making It Easy for Emily to Commit
"My friends suggest things all the time, but I feel awkward declining. I need a quick, low-pressure way to say yes or no without overthinking it."
🎯 Solution:
⚠️ What didn't work in alternatives:
✗ seeing all challenges at once creates decision fatigue and paralysis
✗ conversational format feels forceful when directly inviting a single user
Team Discussion Insight:
"We debated whether swipe interactions might feel too casual for meaningful commitments. But we realized the goal IS to lower the barrier—we want Emily to say yes more often, and that starts with removing friction and social anxiety."
💡 WHY THIS WON:
Emily can swipe or tap buttons based on her preference. Unlike list views (decision paralysis) or messaging format (feels forceful), this single-card approach keeps responses quick and casual.
ADDITIONAL EXPLORATIONS
We applied the same three-variation approach across all core screens, using team critique to identify the strongest features before synthesis.
Key Pattern Discovered:
Emily needs both control and connection. Across all screens, the winning designs balanced personal agency (search, checklists, profile) with social context (friend activity, challenges, rankings). Solutions that forced her to choose one or the other failed—she needs both autonomy and community to stay engaged.
Deliver: Final design
The Winning Hand: Our Final Design
After iterating on wireframes and incorporating team feedback, we created high-fidelity designs that brought Escapade to life.
my list
Personalized header with profile creates emotional ownership
Welcome message transforms checklist into adventure hub
Progress indicators build momentum and celebrate wins
Swipe or tap interactions accommodate different preferences
Single card view prevents overwhelm—one decision at a time
Casual interaction reduces social pressure and guilt
challenge
Discovery
Search + category tiles provide flexibility for any mood
Personality-based labels ("Chill," "Extreme") feel more relatable
Visual imagery triggers curiosity and reduces decision paralysis
Top 3 friends displayed with large profile pictures and colored rings
Table format (Rank | Name | Score) keeps rankings 4-10 inclusive
Weekly/All Time toggle offers flexible comparison timeframes
Friend-only rankings reduce performance anxiety
leaderboard
feed
Familiar vertical scroll leverages learned social media behavior
Friend accomplishments inspire action through community
Visual content makes achievements tangible and shareable
👆 Try the interactive Figma prototype — Experience Emily's complete journey from discovery to goal completion
This 24-hour sprint taught me to prioritize ruthlessly—we focused on one core innovation (swipe challenges) rather than trying to solve everything. Next steps: user testing, accessibility audit, and edge case design.
Shoutout to my brilliant teammates—your creativity, commitment, and coding magic brought this vision to life in just 24 hours. Couldn’t have asked for a better crew.
