Alex the
archaeologist
The Roman Baths
Alex the Archaeologist is an interactive app that turns Key Stage 2 students into young archaeologists during their visit to the Roman Baths. Using image recognition and augmented reality, the app helps children uncover real artefacts and learn about Roman architecture through hands-on exploration.
The challenge
The Roman Baths, one of Britain’s most famous historical landmarks, needed an educational, on-site digital experience to bring their new learning centre to life. It had to be engaging for KS2 students, easy to use in a busy museum setting, and help children understand how ancient buildings were constructed.
My Role:
Lead UI/UX designer (UI / UX / Art direction / Animation / User Research)
Product:
Visitor Attraction App
Produced at:
Aer Studios
Target Audience:
KS2 schoolchildren (ages 6–11)
The Solution
I led the creative direction, interaction design and overall user experience for a tablet-based app that sends students on an interactive museum quest. Using image recognition, children search for Roman artefacts like columns and cornices. Each find reveals a 360° AR model with playful facts, and a final mini-game lets them reconstruct their own Roman building based on what they’ve learned.
Designing the app
The app was designed specifically for tablets. I started with low-fidelity wireframes, which we printed for paper prototype testing.
Based on user feedback, I then developed high-fidelity designs, incorporating branding, illustrations, and a polished UI.
Developing & animating Alex
I collaborated with a freelance illustrator to design Alex, the app’s guide. Through A/B testing and focus groups, we refined Alex’s appearance and personality to ensure it resonated with our target audience.
After finalising the design, I brought Alex to life using the Spine animation software to rig Alex to a skeleton and created animations for a range of interactions, such as idle states, onboarding, fail states, and payoffs.
Usability testing
I conducted several rounds of on-site usability testing at the Roman Baths during the construction of the new learning centre.
Early tests with paper prototypes helped us to refine the activity to fit within the target 10-12 minute duration. When testing revealed that the experience was too long, I streamlined the gameplay by reducing the number of screens and artefacts.
During the Beta phase, we tested the app using iPads on 14 children. We closely observed their interactions, focusing on ease of use.
A key insight from this testing was that children needed both hands to hold the iPad while walking, making some buttons hard to reach. I iterated the design by repositioning buttons to the screen edges for easier access.
The results
Alex the Archaeologist app now forms an integral part of the new Investigation Zone at the Roman Baths and is experienced by over 12,000 school children a year.
