SpookFit
A Halloween survival game where the only way to escape the killer chasing you is to actually run.
Designed solo in a 30-day design sprint, SpookFit turns a 30-day fitness challenge into a horror narrative: your pace controls your escape, and your friends are counting on you to make it to the gate.
View Prototype ↗Escape the Killer, One Run at a Time
A solo entry into the 30-day UX Design Challenge, built to solve a problem every fitness app shares: people quit within days, and streak counters don't stop them.
Boost physical activity and engagement with a mobile app that fuses an eerie Halloween theme with a 30-day survival challenge.
Motivate users to complete a month-long challenge where they outmaneuver a relentless killer through real-world runs, clever pacing, and clue collection.
Ideation & concept sketching, user surveys, competitive SWOT analysis, persona development, high-fidelity UI in Figma (AI-assisted), prototype & pitch video.
Most people abandon fitness apps within the first few days. A streak counter or step total isn't urgent enough to survive a bad week. The app needed a reason to open it that felt like it mattered today, not eventually.
Users who form workout groups to motivate each other often end up worse off: when one member disappears, the rest feel drained instead of supported. Social pressure needed a design that didn't collapse the moment someone else flaked.
Where It Started
Pages from the original notebook, before a single screen was drawn. Click any page to zoom in.
From Sketch to Screen
The same idea, five steps from a notebook page to a shipped interaction.
Five Questions, One Real Insight
A short survey aimed at one thing: why do people quit fitness apps, and what actually keeps them coming back?
- 01 On average, how long do you spend on your phone?
- 02 Which application do you use more? Why?
- 03 Have you ever used a fitness app? Why, and for how long?
- 04 Talk about one of your goals that you've achieved.
- 05 Why are you interested in a 30-day fitness program?
Why people quit
- Prioritizing job-related tasks
- Perfectionism
- Lack of emergency reasons to keep going
- Laziness
- Wasting time on social media
- Neglect
- Wrong expectations going in
Most people lose track after just a few days and keep postponing their fitness goals. The drop-off isn't a lack of intent. It's a lack of urgency.
People who form accountability groups to stay motivated often end up feeling drained, not encouraged. When teammates don't show up, the group's motivation collapses with them.
Designing for Olivia
The person behind every decision in this case study.
- GenderFemale
- Age31
- StatusSingle
- EducationBachelor's degree
- OccupationCivil Engineer
- LocationChicago
"I'm all about enjoying my workouts without the weight loss pressure, while staying true to my plan to reach my goals."
Olivia works long, unpredictable hours as a civil engineer, which makes it hard to stick to a routine. She's determined to prioritize her well-being anyway, and she likes connecting with others, giving and receiving support, all while working out on her own terms.
- Weight loss
- Consistent fitness
- "Me" time while staying connected to others
- Exciting, personalized, moderate-intensity workouts
- Exercising solo while sharing achievements with friends
- Activity tracking and progress awareness
- Loses motivation mid-month
- Some days feels too tired to work out
- Afraid to start, since she's never finished a plan before
Olivia's 30 Days, One Session at a Time
Built from her persona and the research findings above, mapped onto a single day inside the challenge.
Four SWOT Teardowns
Three fitness apps and one non-fitness runner game, analyzed for what to borrow and what to fix.
What Makes It Engaging
Gamification research that set the ground rules before a single screen was drawn.
Four Weeks, Solo
From Login to the Gate Opening
The full path a player takes through a single workout. The same loop repeats daily for 30 days.
A rough sitemap breaking down what a first session needed to include, before the mechanics were fully designed.
The full decision tree once the chase mechanic was locked in: duration, location, avatar, allies, and the run itself.
In short: log in, choose a duration and location, build an avatar, see who's counting on you, then open the gate and run. Speed and incline respond to the killer's proximity in real time. Clearing the distance opens the gate and the streak carries into tomorrow.
Inside SpookFit
High-fidelity screens from the Figma prototype, grouped by where they sit in the flow.
The Prototype, Running
Captured straight from the Figma prototype.
