discord·Feb 18, 2026Original article

Your Discord Checkpoint is Rolling Out! Celebrate What You Did in 2025 (opens in new tab)

Discord has introduced "Discord Checkpoint," the platform’s first comprehensive year-end recap designed to provide users with a personalized summary of their 2025 activity. By analyzing data such as message counts and voice call duration, the feature offers a nostalgic overview of a user's digital footprint and social interactions over the past year. This initiative marks a shift toward data-driven user engagement, rewarding active community members with exclusive digital collectibles based on their usage patterns. **Accessing the Activity Recap** * The feature is rolling out globally over several days and requires users to be on the latest version of the Discord application. * Desktop users can find their recap by clicking the flag icon located in the top-right corner of the interface. * Mobile users can access the experience via a Checkpoint banner located within the "You" tab at the bottom-right of the screen. * Visibility is contingent upon having "Use data to personalize my Discord experience" enabled in privacy settings and meeting a minimum activity threshold. **Key Metrics and Personal Statistics** * The recap calculates the total volume of messages sent and the cumulative time spent in voice channels throughout the year. * Users receive a breakdown of their most-frequented servers and their most-used emojis. * The system identifies a "top contact," highlighting the individual user with whom the account owner interacted the most. **Personalized Rewards and Social Integration** * Upon completion of the recap, users are assigned one of ten distinct "Checkpoint cards" that categorize their year. * Each card unlocks a corresponding Avatar Decoration that remains available to use until January 15, 2026. * The feature includes a direct sharing toggle that allows users to post a summary card into text channels, though the data remains private by default if the user chooses not to share. To ensure you can view your 2025 Checkpoint before it expires, confirm that your privacy settings allow for data personalization and that your client is fully updated. If the Checkpoint does not appear, you may need to increase your platform activity for future recaps or check the Help Center for specific troubleshooting regarding data permissions.

GamificationUser ExperienceDiscordData Visualization+3

toss·Nov 6, 2025Original article

Creating the worst experience at Toss (opens in new tab)

Toss designer Lee Hyeon-jeong argues that business goals and user experience are not mutually exclusive, even when integrating controversial elements like advertising. By identifying the intersection between monetization and usability, her team transformed intrusive ads into value-driven features that maintain user trust while driving significant revenue. The ultimate conclusion is that transparency and appropriate rewards can mitigate negative feedback and even increase user engagement. ### Reducing Friction through Predictability and Placement * Addressed "surprise" ads by introducing clear labeling, such as "Watch Ad" buttons or specifying ad durations (e.g., "30-second ad"), which reduced negative sentiment without decreasing revenue. * Discovered that when users are given a choice and clear expectations, their anxiety decreases and their willingness to engage with the content increases. * Eliminated "flow-breaking" ads that mimicked functional UI elements, such as banners placed inside transaction histories that users frequently mistook for personal bank records. * Established a design principle to place advertisements only in areas that do not interfere with information discovery or core user navigation tasks. ### Transforming Advertisements into User Benefits * Developed a dedicated B2B ad platform to scale the variety of available advertisements, ensuring that users receive ads relevant to their specific life stages, such as car insurance or new credit cards. * Shifted the internal perception of ads from "noise" to "benefits" by focusing on the right timing and high-quality matching between the advertiser and the user's needs. * Institutionalized regular "creative ideation sessions" to explore interactive formats, including advertisements that respond to phone movement (gyroscope), quizzes, and mini-games. * Leveraged long-term internal experiments to ensure that even if an idea cannot be implemented immediately, it remains in the team's "creative bank" for future product opportunities. ### Optimizing Value Exchange through Rewards * Conducted over a year of A/B testing on reward thresholds, comparing small cash amounts (1 KRW to 200 KRW), non-monetary items (gifticons), and high-stakes lottery-style prizes. * Analyzed the "labor intensity" of ads by adjusting lengths (10 to 30 seconds) to find the psychological tipping point where users felt the reward was worth their time. * Implemented a high-value lottery system within the Toss Pedometer service, which successfully transitioned a loss-making feature into a profitable revenue stream. * Maintained user activity and satisfaction levels despite the increased presence of ads by ensuring the "worst-case experience"—viewing ads for no gain—was entirely avoided. Product teams should stop viewing business requirements and UX as a zero-sum game. By focusing on user psychology—specifically transparency, non-disruption, and fair value exchange—it is possible to achieve aggressive business targets while maintaining a sustainable and trusted user environment.

GamificationUser ExperienceProduct DesignA B Testing+3

discord·Apr 20, 2025Original article

Make More Closet Space! Nitro Members Can Now Keep Avatar Decoration Quest Rewards for Longer (opens in new tab)

Discord is updating its Quest reward system to provide Nitro members with extended access to earned avatar decorations, which previously expired after a standard two-month window. While all users will continue to receive a minimum of two months of use for any claimed decoration, active Nitro subscribers can now keep many of these rewards for longer, with some even returning from previous Quests. This shift transforms temporary participation rewards into a more permanent benefit for the platform's premium subscriber base. ### Extended Availability for Nitro Subscribers * Most avatar decorations earned through Discord Quests will no longer strictly expire after 60 days for Nitro members. * The specific amount of extra time granted varies between different decorations, with many remaining available as long as a subscription is active. * All Quest participants, including non-subscribers, are still guaranteed the initial two-month period to use their rewards. ### Subscription Requirements and Eligibility * The extension perk is exclusive to full Nitro members; those on Nitro Basic or Nitro Classic plans do not qualify for the extended time. * Users who are not currently Nitro members can subscribe or upgrade their existing plan to immediately regain access to previously collected Quest decorations that have "expired." * Not every decoration is eligible for an extension, as Discord determines availability on an item-by-item basis. ### Management and Returning Content * Discord is retroactively returning several previously available Quest decorations to the collections of eligible users who earned them in the past. * Users can verify the status and expiration date of their items by navigating to Profile Settings > Change Decoration and reviewing the individual item descriptions. * The update is currently live, allowing eligible users to re-equip old rewards or view new expiration timelines immediately. To maximize your collection, check your Profile Settings to see which legacy decorations have returned to your inventory and ensure your Nitro subscription is active to prevent future rewards from expiring.

GamificationDiscordDiscord NitroAvatar Customization+2

figma·Apr 9, 2025·3 min readCurated summary

Finding a Forever Home for FigPals | Figma Blog

FigPals were temporary customizable companions in Figma files, designed to make long hours of creative work feel more playful and social. Inspired by nostalgic virtual pets and toy culture, they quickly became a hit, with users creating emotional connections to their pixel-based friends. Although FigPals will not remain permanently active, Figma is preserving them through sticker packs and other commemorative experiences. ## What FigPals Were - Users could create, customize, and name companions across Figma products. - More than 9,000 combinations were possible, including animals, food, colors, and accessories. - FigPals followed users’ cursors and interacted with other companions in the same file. - Users could pose them in a photobooth and save images as keepsakes. - Easter eggs included feeding pals layers and nodes and surprising them by detaching components. ## Nostalgia and the April Fun Day Launch - FigPals launched on April 1 as part of Figma’s annual April Fun Day tradition. - The concept drew on nostalgia for products such as Pet Rocks, Tamagotchis, Neopets, and Furby commercials. - Figma partnered with Night Shift to create a deliberately zany, vintage-style promotional video. - The goal was to make work feel less lonely and repetitive by giving designers playful companions. ## From Maker Week to FigPals - FigPals evolved from internal Maker Week experiments: - **Figmagotchi** featured Tamagotchi-inspired creatures fed with sticky notes. - **FigPets** introduced pixelated pets that moved around Figma toolbelts. - A small team across engineering, product, and design developed the limited-release version. - The project reflected Figma’s emphasis on experimentation, play, and building enjoyable web experiences. ## The FigPal Frenzy - Users saved more than 1.5 million FigPals within a week. - They fed their companions more than 250,000 times. - Five FigPals were saved as the only examples of their particular model, color, and accessory combination. - One user created and saved 210 pals, while the most popular design—a pink cat with a heart speech bubble—accounted for 13% of saved pals. - Community members became emotionally attached, with some modeling their FigPals after real pets. ## Preserving FigPals Through Stickers - A petition seeking to make FigPals permanent attracted more than 2,000 signatures. - Figma extended the feature by one additional week but ultimately chose not to keep the companions active indefinitely. - Instead, it released FigPal sticker packs so users could continue displaying them in Figma files. - Additional FigPal-related surprises were planned for attendees of Config. Figma’s response shows how a short-lived playful feature can create lasting community engagement. While the interactive FigPals have ended, sticker packs provide a simple way to preserve the experience and keep the characters present in users’ work.

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GamificationFigmaUser ExperienceFigjam+3

discord·Apr 7, 2025Original article

Wicked Saints Turns Players into IRL Superheroes with the Help of e.l.f. Beauty and Discord (opens in new tab)

Wicked Saints Studios has launched *World Reborn*, a pioneering interactive story game designed to translate digital achievements into tangible real-world social impact. Built by a team of peacebuilders and behavioral scientists, the platform leverages positive psychology to reveal players' character strengths through narrative gameplay and "Training Mods." The launch marks a new paradigm for brand-led missions where Gen Z players can improve their personal wellbeing while contributing to global social causes. **Behavioral Technology and Skill-Building** * The game is described as "Duolingo for saving humanity," using bite-sized interactive narratives to improve player wellbeing and relationships. * The platform employs behavioral technology to identify a player's natural "character strengths," encouraging them to apply these traits to day-to-day reality. * Mastery within the game is specifically designed to bridge the gap between digital entertainment and real-life skills, such as resilience and emotional regulation. * The project emerged from Niantic’s BDI incubator, utilizing the expertise of former senior engineers from *Pokémon GO*. **Brand-Led Social Impact Missions** * The platform features "Training Mods," which are real-world quests hosted by corporate and non-profit partners to tackle specific social issues. * Exclusive launch partner e.l.f. Beauty has developed quests focused on building confidence in young girls and supporting Elite Women Athletes, featuring insights from WNBA star Aerial Powers. * Discord serves as the exclusive communications partner, hosting Training Mods centered on teen mental health, authenticity, and the use of gaming for stress reduction. * The Starlight Children’s Foundation provides a mission where players send words of encouragement to hospitalized children, using the story of a transplant survivor to foster empathy and connection. **Connecting with Gen Z Through Authenticity** * The platform targets the 13–24 demographic, noting that 87% of Gen Z play games at least once a week. * By moving beyond traditional advertising, brands can connect with Gen Z through the social spaces and authentic interactions they already prioritize. * The game leverages the social infrastructure of Discord to help players form communities around their unique strengths and gameplay experiences. **The Multi-Disciplinary Development Team** * Wicked Saints is a Black female-led studio backed by major industry players including Riot Games and Reid Hoffman. * The leadership team combines an Emmy-award winning storyteller and international peacebuilder with a behavioral science researcher. * Creative talent for the project includes veterans from major franchises and productions such as *Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse*, *Love Death + Robots*, and *Marvel*. For organizations looking to engage younger demographics, *World Reborn* offers a scalable model for integrating corporate social responsibility directly into the gaming experience. The app is currently available on the Apple App Store for an initial eight-week limited run.

GamificationMobile GamingSocial GamingBehavioral Technology+3