We love seeing your ideas come to life in events, so why not share the love even more with Mini Design Contests? These competitions are a separate category from Grab Design Contests - check the FAQ for more information on those.
Items designed for Mini Design Contests are typically featured in Item Collections and other shop pages. Winners always receive the items they designed that made it into the game for free!
Here are some rules and guidelines to help clarify some of the most common questions we have about Grab Design Contests. Please note that this applies primarily to mini contests and some guidelines may differ for our grab contests.
Mini Design Contest rules:
All entries must be your original creation.
You may incorporate art assets from Highrise or other sources to help express your idea, however, you must significantly change or add to it in order to make it your own unique design. Entering images directly from other games, avatar creator apps, art sites, Instagram, etc. is not allowed.
Designs depicting copyrighted characters or other IPs will be disqualified.
Unless specifically stated as a collaboration, you may not enter artwork created by other members. Commissioned designs will be disqualified.
Mini Design Contests may call for entries to include anywhere from 1-10 unique items, depending on the contest. If a contest calls for a range of items, you can choose the number of items you’d like to submit, and you may also enter up to 2 separate, unique submissions. However, only one of your designs may become a finalist.
All avatar items must be clearly visible in your entry. Items that are unclear or obscured may be modified or left out of the final lineup.
Final entries must be submitted through the User Design Contest feature, available through a bot in the Welcome Plaza
All designs must follow the Highrise code of conduct and community guidelines. Offensive or exclusionary content won’t be considered - we want to highlight entries that reflect the values of our community
All submissions will be regarded as User-Generated Content as defined in the Pocket Worlds Terms of Service. By submitting a design, you acknowledge Highrise will own the rights to the finished items, and that your compensation will take the form of free items and/or gold.
Contest judging:
After the contest deadline has passed, Highrise staff will review all contest entries under the contest hashtag and select a number of finalists. Finalist selection is based on a combination of factors. This can include:
Visual appeal
Uniqueness of design
Interpretation of theme
Feasibility (Can Highrise actually make your items work in-game within our current technical constraints?)
Community interest
As of March 2021, judging takes into consideration an entry's popularity within the community, including number of likes and comments.
We don’t allow consecutive wins in any art design contest. If you have been selected as a winner in a Mini Design Contest, you are not eligible to be selected as a winner in the next Mini Design Contest.
Winners who enter the following contest under an alternate account will be disqualified.
Collaborations that include a finalist from the previous contest are only eligible for a shoutout spot.
Winners are announced 1-2 days after the contest deadline.
What's my prize for winning?
Bragging rights, of course! Just kidding, you get more than street cred for winning a Mini Contest.
Winning creators will receive a gold prize and the items inspired by their design.
Sometimes we’ll also highlight some designers as Runners-Up or Shoutouts who will receive a gold prize.
If you are part of a collaboration, we’ll divide the spoils equally amongst you and your partner.
I'm a winner of a mini design contest! What happens now?
Congrats! Now your design will be used by our Art Team as inspiration for real in-game items 😃
Once winners have been announced, please email us by going to Profile > Settings > FAQ > Contact Us in top-right corner > Community Requests. Open a new message and include HD images of your design and any close-ups or detail views, along with any additional notes or instructions for our staff artists.
For winning designs, include a full list of items. It helps us a lot when items are clearly labeled.
When your items release, you'll them along with your gold prize in form of gift boxes under the Gifts section of your Inbox. Enjoy!
Design Contest Do’s and Dont’s -
DO:
Make your entire design cohesive. It helps when everything in your design makes sense with the theme and fits together well. There are many ways to achieve this, such as using a particular color palette or specific design elements throughout the design, having a strong central concept/story/aesthetic/mood, etc. If something seems out of place, it might be better to change it or leave it out.
Create a variety of masculine, feminine, and gender-neutral items. We’re always looking to spice up our inventories with items inspired by diverse sources, so push your creativity!
Present your design clearly and neatly. To keep the contest hashtag free of clutter and easy to navigate, please post your entry as a multi-image post. The first image of your post must show your full design. Include close-ups and detail views in the rest of your post instead of making separate posts. If something is covered up in your design, include a detail view of it by itself so we can see the whole item.
Pay attention to how items usually work on the avatar. There are technical limitations that affect the way items layer and animate in our system. Designs that will not work well with our system will need to be modified or combined, which may affect your item count. Refer to the Current Avatar Item Layering Guide in the FAQ for more info.
Include a few different items!
Untag any old versions of your entry. We just want to see your most beautiful and polished final design on the contest hashtag page.
Be supportive of everyone participating! Be kind and thoughtful when giving or receiving feedback, and congratulate each others' successes.
DO NOT:
Use the UDC to submit posts that are NOT your final entry. Don't tag your sneak peeks, WIPs, close-ups, and other non-final entry posts with the contest hashtag. This clutters up the Browse page and makes it difficult for us to find your actual final entries. If you would like to show close-ups and detail shots, please include them as part of your main entry post.
Change or add to your design after the entry submission has closed. Any additional artwork submitted afterward will not be considered.
Encourage other people to repost your design to show support. This makes it harder to find your original post, as well as cluttering up the UDC Browse page.
Host giveaways in exchange for likes/comments/reposts on your entry. People should be voting on your entry because they enjoy your design, not because they might win something from you. Members who host giveaways in exchange for votes will be disqualified from the contest.
Remake existing items, especially ones that are valuable or high rarity.
Resubmit entries from past contests. Think of each contest as an opportunity to practice and improve your design skills. While resubmitted designs are allowed, these designs have a much lower chance of being selected.