Sam Muth aka Str8 6ix on Graphic Design in Esports

The Esports Narrative: A Competitive Video Game Podcast

TEN:001 | Graphic Design in Esports with Sam Muth aka Str8 6ix

Sam is a designer for Str8 Rippin, a veteran organization in the world of Professional Halo and Call of Duty which has been around since 2005. He also heads up the design work at Apotheon Esports where he designed their most recent jersey rendition and he has his own design studio where he offers creative services such as Logo & Branding, Stream Graphics & Overlays, Social Media Designs and Jerseys.

Tweet: “If you’re good at something and you think it can go somewhere don’t give it up” @6ixbelow shares his .02 on graphic design in esports

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Time Stamped Show Notes

• [1:27] How did you get into design; how did you get to work for Str8 Rippin
  • [1:29] Gained inspiration from sniper youtubers and began designing for them with photoshop and cinema 4d in 2012
  • [1:50] Stopped designing for a brief period
  • [2:10] Noticed esports getting bigger and decided to get into that
• [2:58] VALUE BOMB: Everyone has innate talent for something but it requires developing
• [5:31] Is there more of a demand for designers now that there are so many teams coming out?
  • [5:32] They have always been important to the scene in general but it is growing a bit now; so many new teams coming around every day
  • [6:05] Sam thinks there is a growing demand for it
• [6:35] How do you stand out as a designer in a crowded market?
  • [6:48] It’s not easy anymore; any design you can think of has pretty much been done already; so many of them out there are really really good
  • [7:15] Sam has designers that he looks up to for inspiration and strives to get to their level
• [8:08] VALUE BOMB: Sam gets inspiration from outside of esports such as logos on a restaurants and billboards and thinks of how to make it different
• [9:15] The Big Nerf – Worst Moment in Esports
  • [9:30 Started a design studio with a friend who was also a designer, Freshman year of college; after a year Sam moved back home and they ended their studio. Since then Sam has now re-opened his studio solo
  • [10:45 Probably one of the worst decisions I made was allowing it to end the first time
• [10:50] VALUE BOMB: You have to have the self-awareness to identify and acknowledge your skill set and focus on that rather than lie to yourself about what you wish you were good at
• [12:03] What’s your biggest accomplishment in your esports career?
  • [12:05] Joining the two teams i’m in right now
  • [12:08] Apotheon was the biggest team that I had joined, they had been to Call of Duty Champs in 2016 and had done a lot of big things in their past
  • [12:29] Joining Str8 was definitely a big one because of the influence they have in the Halo community; being able to be a part of them and make things in that area is definitely something i’m proud of
• [13:45] What’s it take to be successful as a designer in the esports industry?
  • [13:49] One of the big things is having connections; you have to make contacts and be able to reach out to people
  • [14:14] One big thing is to have friends that are constantly making you better and giving you feedback on things that you do and making sure that you’re staying on track
  • [14:50] Sam has a lot of friends in the design community that have really helped him get to where he is
• [15:10] VALUE BOMB: One great way to take advantage of technology is to DM people and use it to network. That’s how this podcast was started. I literally DM’d everyone I thought would be a great guest on this show. [Side note not recorded in the show: I actually got put in Twitter jail because I sent so many messages in a 1-2 window] I DM’d 85 people or so and I got 5 replies. [5 is better than 0]
• [16:30] Is it important to pump out a lot of content or focus on fewer “better” pieces content?
  • [16:51] Sam’s a believer in quality over quantity
  • [17:20] More content gets your name out there more if you’re constantly posting things, it often reflects more in a positive way if the things they are posting are things they really took their time on and really wanted to make as good as possible
• [19:00] What gets you excited about continuing to do what you’re doing in esports?
  • [19:24] It’s exciting to wake up and picture what you’re going to make, it’s fun to visualise stuff you haven’t made yet
  • [19:58] Especially if you can go on your computer later and actually do it, it makes it all the more better
• [21:30] 5 Question Combo Breaker
  • [21:35] Best advice someone has ever given you? If you’re good at something and you think that it can go somewhere don’t give it up
  • [21:50] What does the esports industry need to continue to grow and be successful? Some events i’ve watched have been different from what I imagined so maybe more excitement or hype around events
  • [22:25] If not in esports what would you be doing? I would be branched out more in professional design around user interface and user experience. Design is what I really love to do
  • [24:03] Favorite design you’ve ever done? The Twitch package I did for Laser Kittenz
  • [25:50] Best play you’ve ever witnessed in esports? Optic Formal is my favorite player, they were in a Game 5, bomb was planted, clayster got it down to a 1v1 from a 1v3 and shot Formal from behind. Formal turned around, used his FTL jump and got the kill. “I was watching that and I was like, there’s no way he just did that!?”
  • [27:35] Thank you Sam, lets do it again sometime!

You can connect with Sam on Twitter @6ixbelow check out his portfolio at 6ixBelow.portfoliobox.net and visit his design studio Oxidize Designs at OxidizeDesign.com

3 Big Narratives

1. Everyone has innate talent for something but it requires developing
2. You should get inspiration from outside of esports such as logos on a restaurants and billboards and brainstorm on how to make it different
3. Use your friends and your network to help you get better and allow them to give you honest feedback

Resources Mentioned

• Sam’s Design Studio – OxidizeDesign.com
• DM people of interest to you on Social and use that to network

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