The 2016-2017 FIRST Robotics Competition game theme was revealed as steampunk a few weeks ago to my FRC team’s great joy. We are hyped about the artistic possibilities. There is an A for Art in STEAM, after all!
Hananiah Wilson… created a cool steampunk style guide for FRC teams. We were so impressed we decided to include it, with her permission, in the DLC Pack being released this week. (Read the full announcement from Frank Merrick.)
Update: Frank Merrick, director of FRC, emailed me and said that they would include the guide in the second official FRC DLC (Downloadable Content) package! The guide was also mentioned in an official FRC blog post. Make sure to download the DLC pack to get the guide and other Steamworks content.
Free Steampunk Style Guide
I put together this free style guide that you can use for inspiration for your FRC team’s graphic design. Feel free to use and modify anything in the document for your own use without giving credit.
If you are confused about this geek robotics competition thing, you may still find the steampunk style guide useful if you are designing steampunk style graphic design. Just download the guide and ignore all FRC references. The guide itself is pure graphic design and not specific to any organization.
Files updated October 25, 2016
If you are on an FRC team, you may also like:
5 Ways FIRST is More than Robots
Cool Geeks = an oxymoron?
10 Ways to Learn Graphic Design During High School
FIRST Updates Now Podcast
I was interviewed for a steampunk episode of the FIRST Updates Now podcast! Watch the recording below, and don’t forget to find FIRST Updates Now on Twitch, Twitter, and Facebook to watch their future shows.
Steamworks Game Reveal
Here is the reveal video in case you haven’t seen it already or need to share it with your FRC teammates.
Fonts List
All the fonts are free. Most are Google Web Fonts, which means that you can download them for free and use them on your websites. I added notes inside the style guide about where to find the fonts, and will also include the links and notes below.
Ewert
Google Font
Web font available
Classic steampunk font
Use this font very sparingly
Rye
Google Font
Web font available
Classic steampunk font
Readability is fairly high
Sancreek
Google Font
Web font available
Classic steampunk font
Very good readability and clean design while being distinctive
Geosteam
Font Space Font
Web font NOT available
Classic steampunk font
Very good steampunk font
Numbers would be great for your FRC team numbers
Steamwreck
Font Space Font
Web font NOT available
Classic steampunk font
Very nice Steampunk font
Making the first and last letters in a word capital (as here) has a nice effect
Medula One
Google Font
Web font available
Modern steampunk font
Righteous
Google Font
Web font available
Modern steampunk font
Unica One
Google Font
Web font available
Modern steampunk font
Sail
Google Font
Web font available
Script font
Berkshire Swash
Google Font
Web font available
Script font
Fontleroy Brown
Font Squirrel Font
Web font available
Script font
Alfa Slab One
Google Font
Web font available
Serif font
Ultra
Google Font
Web font available
Serif font
Arbutus Slab
Google Font
Web font available
Serif font
IM FELL DW Pica
Google Font
Web font available
Body font
Since this font is both not sans-serif and has a distinct personality, please make sure that you make the font size large enough that it can be read easily, especially online.
In addition, if you mix this font too much with more modern fonts, it will look out of place.
Open Sans
Google Font
Web font available
Body font
Any easy to read sans-serif font will work as a base in addition to the few display fonts you pick. Open Sans is a free and popular font that works.
If you’re involved with FIRST, you may also like this blog post I wrote about my three years on an FRC team:
Thanks for reading. Robots for life. : )
