Pokemon Game Boy Illustration

Before and after image that shows the design process for the Pokemon Game Boy illustration by Matt Pike

The Story

This started when I was a UI Design Student with CareerFoundry, and we had to design a buy-and-sell app — my first attempt at UI Design.

Wireframes for a student design project done by Matt Pike while he was a User Interface Design Student at CareerFoundry in 2019
My first ever attempt at User Interface Design as a student with CareerFoundry in 2019

I've since learned that complex illustrations don't make good icons, but I did like them, so I used them in other projects.

Examples of icons that became illustrations from a student design project done by Matt Pike
From icons to illustrations — featuring the Fish Family and the Contractor Design Project

Fast forward a few years, and I suddenly have the urge to try Figma for vector art, and then I remembered the illustration for electronics in the images above: the Game Boy. At first, I was just going to update it a bit and make it look more realistic, but, as I worked on it, becoming increasingly convinced that I would never use Figma for this kind of work again, I was reminded of my first true love: The Pokemon Game Boy Color; and that's when I knew what I had to do.

Pokemon Game Boy Color illustration by Matt PikeOutlines for the Pokemon Game Boy Illustration by Matt Pike