Overview

data_companion.exe is an interactive personality quiz that matches users with fictional digital beings based on their answers. Set within the fictional Digital Companion Lab, players answer ten questions about their digital habits, values, and personality. Each choice builds a profile across six traits: social, technical, active, nature, security, and mischief. At the end, the system generates one of six unique data companions: pixel art creatures that "live" in different corners of the digital world, from messaging apps to security tools, each with distinct personalities, habitats, and quirks.

While not exactly a game, the quiz follows a game-like retro-futuristic interface design. It's less about accuracy and more about creating a fun experience and imagining what it might be like to share your digital life with something made of code. data_companion.exe is very loosely inspired by Digimon and Mega Man Battle Network.

Mechanics

data_companion.exe is structured around a linear flow designed to feel like booting up old software:

• Introduction Sequence: After a brief video credit, the player is greeted by a title screen and welcome message that introduces the six possible companions through their pixel art sprites, building anticipation before the quiz begins.
• Question Flow: Ten multiple-choice questions appear one at a time, each offering four answers displayed as interactive 3D-style buttons. Players navigate using arrow keys or click directly, with each choice adjusting hidden personality scores that determine the final result.
• Companion Reveal: The results screen displays the matched companion with animated pixel art, a randomly selected name, a personality breakdown, short descriptive lore, and a list of traits. A single button allows players to restart and discover other companions.

Design

data_companion.exe adopts a retro-digital aesthetic inspired by early DOS interfaces, late-90s personality quizzes, and virtual pet culture. The visual language combines:

• Pixel Art Companions: Six hand-drawn 32×32 pixel sprites — a fox, cat, dog, rabbit, dragon, and crow — each with distinct colour palettes and design motifs that reflect their personalities and digital habitats.
• Grid Backgrounds: A subtly tiled grid pattern evokes old CRT monitors and terminal windows, grounding the experience in a nostalgic computing context.
• 3D Button Design: Answer choices are styled as pushable buttons with shadow, edge, and surface layers that react to hover and click, adding tactile dimensionality to an otherwise flat interface.
• Neon Typography: The title screen features glowing cyan text with multiple shadow layers, reminiscent of neon signage filtered through low-resolution displays.
• Justified Text Layouts: Companion descriptions use justified alignment to mimic old software readmes and help files, reinforcing the "archived documentation" aesthetic.

The colour palette is deliberately desaturated, favouring muted cyans, dark purples, and cool greys to evoke the glow of a screen in a dark room. All UI elements were designed to feel like functional software rather than decorative game assets. Sound effects include menu navigation beeps and a typewriter-style reveal sound, recorded and processed to feel lo-fi and mechanical. The game was built as a single-file HTML experience using vanilla JavaScript, CSS, and the Jersey 10 font for its monospaced, retro-digital character.

Roles

data_companion.exe was created as a solo project, with all development roles handled by me:

• Game Creator & Designer: Conceived the personality quiz structure, designed the six companion archetypes with distinct personalities and digital habitats, and outlined the question/scoring system to balance player expression with meaningful variety.
• Art Director & Illustrator: Illustrated all six companion sprites as 32×32 pixel art in Aseprite, with unique colour palettes and visual motifs. Designed the UI aesthetic including 3D button style, grid backgrounds, neon title effects, and layout compositions.
• Programmer: Coded the entire experience in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, implementing screen transitions, keyboard/mouse navigation, dynamic question flow, personality scoring algorithms, randomised companion naming, and responsive button interactions.
• Writer: Wrote all companion lore, personality descriptions, trait labels, and quiz questions. Developed the fictional framing of the "Digital Companion Lab" and crafted each companion's voice and backstory.
• Sound Designer: Sourced and integrated UI sound effects (menu navigation, selection, typing) to reinforce the retro software aesthetic.
• UX Designer: Structured the information hierarchy across results screens, balancing personality stats, companion visuals, descriptive text, and navigation prompts to create a clear and readable reveal moment.
• Game Tester: Personally tested question flow, companion distribution, UI responsiveness, and emotional pacing to ensure each playthrough felt complete and satisfying.

If you want to learn more about data_companion.exe, please visit its illustration page.