SEVEN PORTS
One online trading game, five different worlds wrapped around the same gameplay engine. The design challenge was making sure the themes never broke the gameplay.
Systems Design | Interaction Architecture | Product Experimentation
TL;DR
WHAT
A modern reimagining of the classic Taipan trading game, designed as a skinnable, systems-driven experience for contemporary platforms.
WHY
I wanted to revisit a long-standing idea and explore how in-game debt, trading decisions, and time pressure interact, and how UI clarity shapes player decisions.
STATUS
Early concept exploration with rapid prototyping.
FOCUS
Rapidly iterating interconnected game systems and UI themes while testing how far the experience could be modernized without losing the identity of the original game.
WEBSITE
Sevenports.io
Deeper Dive: How I Approached This Work
This project wasn’t about nostalgia or a visual refresh.
It was about revisiting a well-known game system and asking what still holds up, what needs clarity, and what breaks when brought forward to modern expectations.
I focused on:
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Understanding the core economic pressures that made the original compelling
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Clarifying interconnected systems like debt, trading, time, and risk
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Exploring how UI skins and themes could change presentation without changing the mechanics
Vibe coding and AI-assisted UX tools were used to iterate quickly on rules, interfaces, and feedback loops, allowing ideas to be tested and discarded without overcommitting early.
Constraints:
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Preserving the identity of the original game while modernizing interaction patterns
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Preventing complexity from overwhelming readability and player decision-making
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Designing systems that remain understandable and engaging over long play sessions
The throughline was balance.
Deciding what to modernize, what to leave untouched, and where clarity mattered more than added depth.
This project explores how a systems-heavy game can evolve through iteration, judgment, and restraint, without losing the tension that makes each decision meaningful.
HERE THERE BE DRAGONS
COMING SOON! Project artifacts and decisions
