Lean Board
2025 Advertising
Brand
Duolingo
Recognition
2025 - Clio Awards / Shortlist
2025 - New York Festivals / Finalist
2025 - Addy Awards NYU Metro / Silver x2
Role
Account Executive
Instructor
Sungkwon Ha
Problem
In global gaming, voice chat often fails due to language barriers, disrupting gameplay.
Insight
Overwatch maps feature numerous settings and billboards inspired by different countries.
Idea
Use in-game billboards within Overwatch maps to teach key gaming terms in various languages.
Overwatch is one of the most played games in the world.
However, because
it relies heavily on teamwork,
language barriers become a problem.
How can the world’s #1 language learning app,
Duolingo, help diverse gamers in Overwatch?
We make use of the in-game maps.
Introducing
Duolingo – Learn Board.
The maps in Overwatch are based on real cities around the world
such as
Busan in South Korea,
Paris in France,
and Dorado in Mexico.
Through virtual billboards on these maps,
we teach gamers gaming terms from different countries.
Such as
Ult: Refers to an “ultimate,”
telling players to use the most powerful ability a character has.
Spawn Kill: The act of immediately killing an opponent at their spawn point.
OTP (One Trick Pony): A player who repeatedly plays only one hero
and uses the same tactic over and over.
These terms are displayed on billboards,
helping gamers understand gaming vocabulary.
To further engage fans,
selected players who take photos in front of the billboards
and share them online will be invited,
along with their team, to the actual city.
Additionally, country-specific “gaming language” learning content
will be launched on the Duolingo app
to help players improve their performance.
This is how Duolingo transforms the gaming arena through billboards.