Riot Games – Iconography Design System

Pengu

Dan

Tacibear

Poro

Client Project

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Riot Games – Iconography Design System
Monotype hired MKN Design to assist in leading Riot Games’ development of a custom, scalable iconography system. We oversaw iterative design, cross-team collaboration, and standards development, culminating in the delivery of an iconography library, which supports the brand’s growing product ecosystem and strengthens its visual language. Over the project’s six-month period, I co-led the effort as the icon systems specialist. My role focused on guiding, developing, and establishing standards that shaped a comprehensive toolkit of pixel-perfect icons, capturing the bold and playful spirit of Riot Games.

The goal of this project was to create a cohesive iconography system of 350+ icons that scaled seamlessly across three sizes—16, 24, and 32 pixels—while staying true to Riot Games’ brand. The system was designed to be bespoke, scalable, and unified—enhancing the user experience, reinforcing the brand’s visual language, and ensuring consistency across all Riot products.

The process involved research, iterative design, and collaboration across Riot and Monotype teams to ensure each icon met functional and aesthetic requirements. Every icon was carefully crafted to be pixel-perfect, visually cohesive, and easily recognizable at multiple sizes. This iconography system not only provides a sustainable foundation for developing future icons that align with Riot’s brand but also streamlines workflow, supports cross-product consistency, and strengthens the overall player experience.

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Learn more about the process of developing and crafting this extensive iconography set.

“MKN Design played a key role in developing a strategic and refined iconography library for Riot Games. Their leadership and guidance across both Monotype and Riot Games ensured seamless collaboration, aligning the visual identity with brand goals through a thoughtful and systematic approach. They demonstrated the ability to solve complex design challenges while maintaining keen attention to detail, making a significant impact on the project’s success. Reliable, communicative, and consistently exceeding expectations.”

Robert Ignasiak
Product & Interaction Lead, Riot Games

 

  • Riot Games via Monotype
    Video Game Software & Entertainment

  • + Client Liaison
    + Co-Leadership
    + Creative Strategy
    + Design Direction
    + Illustration
    + Qualitative Research
    + System Guidelines

  • MKN Design Team:
    + Michael Nÿkamp, Co-lead & Design Director

    Monotype Stakeholders:
    + Terrance Weinzierl, Co-lead & Creative Director
    + Jordan Bell, Type Designer

    Riot Games Stakeholders:
    + Robert Ignasiak, Product & Interaction Lead
    + Sascha King, Design Direction & Product Ecosystems
    + Junho Kim, Director, Visual Design Art

Action Surge!

Product

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Action Surge!
I’m not done yet! Not familiar with this term? Well, let me enlighten you. It’s a D&D reference where a fighter pushes themselves beyond their limits to do twice as much in one turn… because clearly, we needed even more ways to drag out combat ; )

Action Surge typeface is Kaneda Gothic designed by Ryoichi Tsunekawa from Dharma Type.

 

  • Action Surge graphic tee is available for purchase on Cotton Bureau. Check out more graphic tees on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.

Googly Eyed Philosophers

Product

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Googly Eyed Philosophers
Some design fun with old lithographs, goggly eyes, and 3 philosophers.

Some quotes from Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates.

“When men speak ill of thee, live so as nobody may believe them.” – Plato
“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” – Aristotle
“All I Know Is That I Know Nothing.” – Socrates

 

  • Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates graphic tees are available for purchase on Cotton Bureau. Check out more graphic tees on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.

Holmes Sardines

Creative Musing

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Holmes Sardines
This internal project reflects my appreciation for vintage packaging and its rich history. I’m inspired by the hand craftsmanship of early packaging design, which beautifully captures the essence of its era. Through recreation, my aim is to preserve and honor its historical significance.

Sardine fisheries and their canning factories were prominent along the U.S. East and West Coasts from the 1870s until their decline in the mid-20th century, serving as vital industries for coastal communities. These operations not only supported local economies but also played a significant role in shaping the cultural and industrial landscape of the time. The Stinson Sardine Cannery in Prospect Harbor, Maine, was the last operating sardine cannery in the United States, closing its doors in April 2010, marking the end of an era for a once-thriving industry.

 

Tank of Hearts

Creative Musing

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Tank of Hearts
Decommission hate. Deploy love.

 

Yes She Can!

Creative Musing

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Yes She Can!
For Freedom.

 

Pixel Playoffs

Article

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Pixel Playoffs
I had a fantastic time at Atomic Object for Tech Week GR last night! Comfort & Adam (comfortandadam.com) and I took part in a live head-to-head art competition, based on word prompts from the audience. The prompt we were given was: “The future is a tentacled optimistic Cheez-it.” From there we each created separate illustrations, working independently without seeing the other team’s artwork, all within three half-hour rounds.

Huge thanks to Kimberly Crawford and Brittany Hunter from Atomic Object for organizing such an awesome event for the community!

 

No King

Creative Musing

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No King
Earthly power, at last, doth yield to death.

 

Multiplayer Tetris & Game Over

Product

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Multiplayer Tetris & Game Over
Created these for the love of 1980’s arcade graphics. Tetris was created by Soviet software engineer Alexey Pajitnov in 1984 and was released in the United States by Atari Games in 1988.

 

  • Multiplayer Tetris & Game Over graphic tees are available for purchase on Cotton Bureau. Check out more graphic tees on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.

Strategy Requires Creativity

Article

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Strategy Requires Creativity
I remember when all creative concepts were hand-drawn. I honed this skill during my college years studying illustration and design, and continue to use it to this day. Nowadays, most clients don't see my sketches, as presenting 'polished' work has become the norm. Nevertheless, my sketches are what made the project.

For me, sketching is essential for visual problem solving and connecting ideas. It continues to help me to create strong visual concepts not only requiring a skilled hand and a good eye, but also empathetic, critical, and conceptual thinking.

If you're seeking human insight, creativity, and thoughtfulness, I can help your brand craft strategic, compelling and unique solutions based on your business objectives, your brand, and your consumers.

 

Orb

Product

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Orb
Creating a celestial feeling through experimentation with shapes, blurs, and textures.

 

  • Orb graphic tee is available for purchase on Cotton Bureau. Check out more graphic tees on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.

Anatomy of Twitter

Product

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Anatomy of Twitter
I pulled this illustration from my archives (originally created in 2010). When Twitter existed before becoming 'X', the internet dubbed my illustration "The Anatomy of a Tweet." My original aim was to depict the thinking (brain) and feeling (heart) of users, highlighting the struggle to balance logic and emotion tweets.

 

  • Anatomy of Twitter graphic tee is available for purchase on Cotton Bureau. Check out more graphic tees on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.

Zero/One & Ninety-Nine

Creative Musing + Product

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Zero/One & Ninety-Nine
These numbers were my favorites growing up. Zero/One (or 10) is from the Dodge Charger that Bo and Luke drove on, Dukes of Hazzard. Ninety-nine of course came from my favorite hockey player, Wayne Gretzky who played for the Edmonton Oilers from 1979–1988.

 

  • Zero/One & Ninety-Nine graphic tees shown in this post are available for purchase on Cotton Bureau. Check out more graphic tees on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.

  • The numbers featured on these tee graphics come from a display typeface I designed. It’s available for purchase, view Sum here.

Super Phat

Product

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Super Phat
A design exploration to find a typeface that embodies “Super Phat”. I believe I choose right. The typeface I used is Sutturah designed by Octavio Pardo from Rosetta Type Foundry.

 

Hen & Egg

Creative Musing

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Hen & Egg
Plutarch posed the question as a philosophical matter in his essay "The Symposiacs", written in the 1st century, "Which came first: the hen (chicken) or the egg?"

 

Mellow Yellow

Product

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Mellow Yellow
Inspiration for this type treatment from the song Mellow Yellow by Donovan. The typeface is Lust Script designed by Neil Summerour from Positype.

 

Earth Killer

Product

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Earth Killer
The oil and manufacturing industries are significant contributors to environmental pollution, earning them the label "Earth Killer." These industries release vast amounts of greenhouse gases, toxic chemicals, and particulate matter into the atmosphere, leading to severe air and water pollution.

 

Out of Order

Product

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Out of Order
This country, known to the world as a shining light of democracy, is quickly becoming very polarized in every aspect of our lives, from divisions in politics, policies and greed.

 

  • Out of Order graphic tee is available for purchase. Check out more graphic tees on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.