King’s Passage Arcade Game
X Studios • Royal Caribbean • Interactive • Art Direction
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Disguised as a weathered retro arcade cabinet tucked into a corner of the ship, King's Passage is a custom-built 8-bit game with a secret. Play it well enough and the cabinet unlocks a hidden door to an exclusive area of the ship. The whole thing, game, cabinet, and door mechanism, was designed and built in-house. The goal was to make something that felt authentically retro, genuinely fun to play, and completely surprising when the door swung open.
ROLE
Art Director
Designer
CONTRIBUTIONS
Led visual direction and gameplay design for the full interactive experience
Defined the 8-bit aesthetic, character and environment art, and overall game feel
Designed gameplay systems and progression pacing to ensure guests could realistically complete the challenge
Oversaw integration of the game, cabinet, and door-unlock mechanism into a single cohesive attraction
IMPACT
A piece of environmental storytelling that doubles as a functional game and a physical secret
Rare project where concept, craft, and execution all landed exactly as intended