Thoughts on Brands - Overwatch Edition
I'm working on my portfolio to build more freelance clientele, and that means I'm doing my best to begin blogging again. And with that, I'd like to share my thoughts on some fictional brands. I'll be starting somewhere near and dear to my heart. The Overwatch Universe. Throughout this process, I'll be referencing other real-life brands to determine if the in-universe brand works well within its competitive space. And given how Overwatch exists around 60 years in the future, I'll do my best to look into the future and see how that affects each brand's placement. And with that, let's begin!
MEKA
MEKA stands for the Mobile Exo-Force of the Korean Army, and it's the unit of which D.Va is a member. Upon first glance, I thought its design was far too gamer-centric and not nearly military-feeling enough. Military organizations should have some pomp and circumstance in a logo. This feels less like a military organization and more like a second-fiddle Chinese gaming mouse manufacturer. Then I took a closer look at some existing military logos.
US Air Force Logo
Kosovo Security Force Logo
For my money, those look a lot more video-gamey than I would have imagined. So perhaps, in 60 years, military logos will relinquish some of their old-fashioned seal-like pomp and circumstance and adopt a look more consistent with... well.. a Call of Duty emblem. I still don't love the MEKA logo, but perhaps its placement in this future isn't as far-fetched as I thought.
Old Glenwales
I'm honestly pretty sure this literally exists to be a visual gag on Numbani. The first time you visit the map, you see the poster with the Omnic drinking from a glass, you chuckle, and you move on. It was probably created with the amount of effort such a visual gag deserves. So I feel like I'm being a real Internet Mean Person by laying into this one a little.
This bottle wouldn't be caught dead on a shelf, at least not today. Say what you will about Scotch, but its visual style is steeped in tradition. Take for instance this ad for a bottle of Glenfiddich 18.
There's such an elegant abundance of different typefaces, colors, materials, and treatments here. It does a great job of playing to the tradition of brown-long-bottle-with-brown-label-on-it, but the custom logotype, understated extended serif, and exquisite print finish evince a real craft. That craft is lacking in the Old Glenwales logo treatment. The entire ad (bottle included) uses the same generic Microsoft Word serif font. And that, in and of itself, is perhaps a fitting punishment. I know it doesn't need to be said, but I'm not a fan of this one.
Lucheng Interstellar
Lucheng Interstellar is a leading space exploration company from China, situated in Overwatch's infamous Lijiang Tower, and behind the Horizon Lunar Colony.
I love this one. Between the dead simple vector illustration, the combination of Chinese and English characters, and the subtle nod to NASA's "meatball" logo, this does a great job of looking like a space exploration venture. I don't always love a lot of Chinese design. There's some great Chinese graphic/visual design, and then there's some really terrible stuff. This looks like it could be created by a Chinese company (it has that je ne sais quoi practicality that Chinese visual work just seems to have), and more importantly, it's good.
The beloved NASA meatball logo.
In Conclusion
I hope you've enjoyed this little delve into the fictional in-universe branding of the Overwatch universe. If you guys like this sort of thing (or if I find more brands I want to comment on), I'll be doing future installments. Thanks for reading!