Background
This project was a character-themed collectible set based on the Mass Effect IP. It was designed to bring the character to life through several physical components and create a complete collectible experience. The set included a wooden display box, a resin sculpture, a metal necklace, and a themed letter. Different materials and manufacturing processes had to be brought together while keeping the overall look and quality consistent.
The set was developed around the Mass Effect character Tali’Zorah. The goal was to turn the original IP design into a product that could actually be manufactured at scale, combining woodworking, resin casting, metal accessories, and other production processes into one finished collectible set.
Challenge
The main challenges were around the surface finish of the wooden box and the structure of the sculpture.
The wooden box had several visual requirements. The client wanted it to look metallic even though the actual material was wood, so the surface finish had to create a convincing metal-like appearance.
Color consistency after laser engraving was another major issue. Because wood naturally contains moisture, the heat from laser engraving burns the surface and makes the engraved areas much darker, sometimes almost black, while the untouched areas keep the original wood color. This meant there was already a clear color difference before painting. The final finish had to hide this difference while still creating the metallic appearance the client wanted.
The client also did not want the engraved areas to look completely flat. They wanted more texture and depth. Since the engraving pattern and laser path had already been defined, we had to find a way to create the required texture within the existing design, while also controlling the density and direction of the pattern.
The sculpture had a different challenge: cost. Producing the whole sculpture as one piece would have made manufacturing much more expensive. We needed to find a structure that could reduce production cost without losing the detail and overall collectible quality of the sculpture.
What I did
I started by looking at the coating material itself and worked with the factory to test and adjust different aluminum silver pigments. After several rounds of testing, we found a formula that gave the surface the metallic appearance we wanted and added it to the coating process.
The aluminum pigment also had enough coverage to hide the dark areas created by laser engraving. At the same time, the metal particles created natural, uneven reflections across the surface. This not only solved the color difference between the engraved and non-engraved areas, but also gave the wooden box an aged-metal look. The final sample actually looked better than we originally expected.
For the texture inside the engraved areas, I contacted the laser equipment manufacturer and asked them to help modify the engraving program. We added several different filling patterns within the existing laser path and tested how each one looked. This allowed us to create the line and grain effect the client wanted while keeping the original design unchanged.
For the sculpture, I worked with the engineering team to break the original structure into several separately producible parts. We then tested the manufacturability of each part and the stability of the final assembly. The point was not simply to split the sculpture into pieces, but to make sure those pieces could be put back together securely without noticeably affecting the original appearance or details. Through this structural and assembly testing, we found a production method that reduced cost while keeping the final result intact.
Outcome
The final result was quite different from most similar products on the market at the time. Although the main material was wood, the surface treatment gave it a convincing metal-like appearance. It moved away from the look of a traditional wooden box and allowed the client to achieve a much more premium finish at a relatively low manufacturing cost.
The product was also very competitive in price and sold quickly after launch. The result gave the client enough confidence to continue developing another two or three products using a similar approach.
