RED is an award-winning, interactive advertising agency headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It’s squarely focused on creating functional interactive tools and immersive online experiences, continuously pushing the boundaries of how users interact with the Web. I’ve often become genuinely bored of surfing bog standard html coded sites, so when I came across RED’s homepage I naturally had a ball. This agency has managed to transform their website into an illustrious portfolio showcasing their ability.

Functionality

Upon arrival at ff0000.com (the colour red in HTML lingo) you are presented with a purely black background that serves to emphasize the centre of the page where the company info is displayed. After a moment’s loading time an assortment of 19th century Victorian themed avatars load up. You’ll quickly notice your own avatar’s presence and discover how easy it is to move (and fly) around. These figurines are part of the living chat room - you can select from a variety of very odd characters that range from a skeletal horse to a cheetah in a tuxedo. A short tutorial will clue you up on the rules of the site and on how to make proper use of the commands available. A good punch up, however, is always appreciated, as our own Craig Raw recently demonstrated in a closely fought battle with Andrew Bayley. In terms of actual information relating to the company an assortment of tabs to the right offer easy access to the portfolio page, the mission statement, contact details and much more. In my book the site presents a perfect blend of easy-to-use, engrossing functionality and beautiful design.

Design

The design of the website is, simply put, stunning. The colours work well together and are relaxing on the eye. I like the fact that, when a character obscures the writing, one can simply move him around to get a better view without having to scroll across the page.

In the words of one of our resident design pros Peter Lehto:

“Red Interactive have used 3D and Flash together in a visually very pleasing way. They’ve used multiple 3D elements in layers to give the website a 3D dimensional feel. The UI has been very well designed around a grunge / turn of the century theme and it feels like Jack the Ripper is going to jump out of the screen at any moment.

All and all this website is amazing, this is the first time I have seen an agency website act like a social portal, that the user can interact with other people around the world that are viewing the web site.”

But wait, there’s more:

If you set your computer’s calendar to either October or December you can gain a sneak peak of the site in an entirely different wardrobe, being based on Halloween or Christmas respectively. Clearly some serious effort has been put into building this site which consists entirely of Flash. In my opinion RED have exceeded mere success with their interactive portfolio and have changed my outlook on what an agency can achieve in the process. Check out this site to see some of the quirky and peculiar characters you’ll meet in your journey across the RED universe: http://redizens.com/

Easter Eggs

There are secret characters enabled by codes you type into the chat box. As soon as you push enter your character will change. If your character disappears, it will return within a few seconds as the new character. Have fun.

• nay nay give me some hay = Ed (Horse)
• dead men tell no tales = Nub (Pirate)
• jiminy cricket! = Hopper (Cricket)
• the last straw = Camel Joe (Camel Man)
• surley you jest = Jester (Jester)
• rumpelstiltskin is my name = Uncle Sam
• may i please have some blueberry pie? = Gordon (Overweight man)
• i shot a man in reno = Jailbird
• i dreamt i was a butterfly = Sun
• happy halloween = Skeleton
• smell my feet = Skeleton in miltary uniform and with a gun
• nay nay I never got any hay = Horse skeleton
• the funk of forty thousand years = Skeleton in a suit
• baby got back = Man giving a fat man with a sword a piggy back
• yee haw! = Old cowboy with dual-wielded pistols. You can shoot at range with these!
• the cat’s pajamas = Smartly dressed woman- hit people with your necklace!
• long live the king = King- poke people with your sceptre!
• in my knickers = Elk in clothes!
• when the cat is away mice will play = Lionheaded man with a tail!
• just a spoonful of sugar = Creepy lady with no head (this just scrolls through the standard characters for me- does it work for you?)
• when pigs fly = Man riding a fat pig- jump up in the air with “home”!

Remember that you can punch people with CTRL + SHIFT, do a move available only to your character by pushing “Home” (e.g. the “trick or treat” ghost disappears) or move closer or further away from the screen with “Page Up” and “Page Down”. Obviously you move around with the arrow keys.

Also check out:

• 10 Design Blogs You Should be Reading
• Website Usability: Show Me the Usability
• A Few Simple Steps Every Designer Should Consider