DEN OF WOLVES
XERO

SUMMARY

Concept, Direction and Design for an evolving immersive web experience to engage the community in an ongoing virtual infiltration of the mega-city Midway, setting the stage for Den of Wolves during its development, and serving as a narrative-rich companion site post-launch.

TYPE

Interactive Campaign
WebGL Experience
Community Activation
Cross-platform

INFO

Client: 10 Chambers / Tencent
Studio: Orsak Verkan
Year: 2024

WHAT I DID

Creative direction
Concept Development
Experience direction
Narrative + Experience Design
Visual development
Art direction

AWARDS

European Design Awards
FWA Top 100
FWA site of the day
Awwwards site of the day.

CASE STUDY

CHALLENGE

10 Chambers asked me to create an immersive web experience that would keep fans engaged while Den of Wolves was still in development. The brief: build something that sparks community, drives newsletter signups and Steam wishlists, and stays true to the game’s co-op DNA.

MY ROLE

I pitched an experimental, cryptic experience where fans would “hack” into the game’s world to uncover lore. Together with Thomas Oger, I designed XERO as a collaborative ARG-inspired infiltration tool that felt alive inside the Den of Wolves universe.

I shaped the core concept, directed the experience, and set the art direction—working with designer Paul Witherden and WebGL developer Einar Öberg to create the interactive map, retro-terminal UI, and glitched decryption effects. The result was equal parts hacker fantasy and demoscene nostalgia, with ASCII art, PETSCII sets, and raw interface design that felt like it came from a lone wolf in 2097.

Features included:

  • A bare-bones landing page with a cryptic CTA leading to the hidden XERO system
  • A fictional hacker tool rooted in the Den of Wolves narrative
  • An interactive district map with nodes to explore, unlock, and decrypt
  • Puzzles and activations built for solo or 2–4 player co-op
  • Large-scale community events requiring up to 1024 concurrent players
RESULT

The first fans dove in headfirst, collaborating across Discord and Reddit, trading wild theories, and solving puzzles together. Even in its early “0.003 alpha” state, reception was overwhelmingly positive. XERO now continues to evolve alongside the game’s development, giving the community a living companion world.

At The Game Awards, we scaled the spectacle: 160 streamers had their feeds “breached” live on OBS, directing audiences straight into the XERO site just as the Den of Wolves reveal happened on stage. That moment sealed the experience as more than a website—it became part of the launch event itself.

Play VideoPlay Video

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CONCEPT AND PROCESS
  • Discarded more conventional “community hub” ideas in favor of a cryptic infiltration tool.
  • Core principle: mirror the co-op nature of Den of Wolves through collaborative puzzle-solving.
  • The site evolves alongside game development, unlocking new content and puzzles over time.
  • Built to spark speculation and lore-hunting on Discord, Reddit, and forums.
DESIGN & ART DIRECTION
  • Retro terminal style inspired by real exploit tools and demoscene aesthetics.
  • Minimal type palette, PETSCII character sets, and punchy neon colors.
  • ASCII art and text-based lore integrated into the UI.
  • Designed “ugly-not-ugly” glitches and decryption effects for authenticity.
  • Collaborated with Paul Witherden (UI design) and Einar Öberg (WebGL interactions).
FEATURES & COMMUNITY EVENTS
  • Nodes on the district map unlocked lore, art, and game world assets.
  • Mini-games for single players and 2–4 player co-op decryption challenges.
  • Large-scale events designed to require up to 1024 concurrent users.
  • Stream integration at The Game Awards: 160 creators had their OBS feeds breached simultaneously, pushing traffic directly into the XERO system.
  • First waves of fans dove deep, generating theories and fan-lore before the game even launched.
DEMO OF THE XERO EXPERIENCE
WEBGL DECRYPTION DESIGN
EXPERIENCE LOOP
STREAMER HACK DURING GAME AWARDS
Play Video
HAVE A LOOK FOR YOURSELF
WRAP UP

This project was pure joy. The kind where you pitch something half-mad, expect a polite “no,” and instead get a green light. The fans jumped headfirst, and we’re still evolving XERO, still breaking it, and still loving the chaos.