UI+UX Design
X-Online Magazine
Background
X-Magazine was launched in 2018 as the digital evolution of Raymond, RAY’s award-winning customer magazine. With the merger of RAY, Veikkaus, and Fintoto, the publication was rebranded as X and became part of the Veikkaus ecosystem, available online at veikkaus.fi/x.
The editorial team, consisting of an in-house editor-in-chief, an agency art director, freelance journalists, and photographers, was highly ambitious to create the best possible magazine. Their approach was to deliver engaging, high-quality content without shortcuts, bringing the storytelling and design standards of premium publications into the gaming world.
Challenge
Unlike its predecessor, X-Magazine was not a standalone print or digital publication—it needed to be integrated into the Veikkaus website. This created a unique design challenge:
Brand Consistency – The magazine had to align with Veikkaus’ corporate identity and web guidelines.
Creative Freedom – To maintain the premium magazine feel, we needed to push the limits of the existing design language without breaking brand cohesion.
Target Audience Appeal – The primary audience was young adults, many of whom played poker or other money games. The design needed to resonate with their interests, incorporating visual references from Las Vegas, high-end casino culture, and prestigious publications like Variety and The New Yorker.
My Role & Approach
As Lead UI/UX Designer, I was responsible for ensuring that the user experience, interface design, and visual identity balanced:
Usability – Creating an intuitive, easy-to-navigate structure while ensuring content accessibility.
Brand Alignment – Adhering to Veikkaus’ guidelines while allowing room for creative expression.
Visual Identity – Infusing high-end editorial aesthetics inspired by classic magazines, Las Vegas themes, and premium design.
Outcome
A premium, visually engaging digital magazine seamlessly integrated into the Veikkaus platform.
A balance between brand consistency and creative expression, maintaining editorial integrity while respecting corporate guidelines.
A compelling experience for the target audience, leveraging references from high-end gaming culture, poker, and luxury media.
The redesign positioned X-Magazine as a sophisticated, high-quality publication, elevating the digital magazine experience while staying true to its legacy of excellence
The magazine is structured into six main sections to create a diverse and engaging reading experience. The homepage serves as a gateway to the content, while the five category pages—Hiki (Sweat), Sielu (Soul), Ihme (Wonder), Aika (Time), and Riski (Risk)—offer distinct editorial themes. Each section is curated to align with the magazine’s blend of gaming culture, lifestyle, and in-depth storytelling.
User Research & content strategy for Veikkaus.fi
As part of the X-Magazine project, I also contributed to a broader initiative: the development of a new content strategy for Veikkaus.fi. This effort aimed to refine how Veikkaus engages with its audience through digital content, ensuring relevance, appeal, and long-term impact.
User Research: Understanding the Audience
To guide the content strategy, we conducted several customer interviews and a survey to gain deeper insights into what Veikkaus’ audience values in editorial content.
Interviews
We spoke with a diverse group of users, including both casual players and dedicated poker enthusiasts, to understand:
Their content consumption habits (what they read, where, and why).
Their interest in gaming-related stories (strategy, entertainment, industry news, etc.).
The tone and style that resonated with them (informative, journalistic, playful, etc.).
Survey
We distributed a larger survey to quantify insights and validate key themes that emerged from the interviews. We explored:
Topics of interest (casino culture, poker strategy, behind-the-scenes gaming stories, responsible gaming).
Preferred formats (long-form articles, short-form news, video content, interactive features).
Expectations for digital content (frequency, depth, and integration with Veikkaus services).
How the Learnings Shaped X-Magazine
The research directly influenced the content direction, structure, and design choices for X-Magazine:
Editorial focus: We refined the magazine’s content mix to align with audience preferences—balancing in-depth feature stories, casino culture insights, and lighter entertainment pieces.
Tone & style: Users expressed a preference for high-quality storytelling and visually rich experiences.
User experience: Readers wanted seamless navigation and engaging visuals.
Integration with Veikkaus.fi: Interviews revealed that while readers did not explicitly request the magazine to mirror the Veikkaus mother brand visually, they did expect it to be easily accessible and integrated within the same platform.
Social media: we discovered that social media plays a crucial role in driving traffic to the magazine, with high-quality articles acting as effective entry points (sisäänheitto) to engage users and bring them into the ecosystem. This insight reinforced the need for strong, shareable content
Outcome
The combination of research-driven insights and creative execution resulted in a more targeted, engaging, and visually striking digital magazine. The work done with the content strategy team not only shaped X-Magazine but also contributed to the long-term direction of Veikkaus' editorial and content efforts.