Red Bull Flight Lab
Flightlab is the online equivalent to the Red Bull Flugtag; a global event taking place in 23 different countries around the world where people build homemade, man-powered flying machines and pilot them off a 30-foot high ramp.
The online platform includes a fun-to-use workshop where people can build and paint their own flying machines. Physical qualities - material, size and shape - all influence the flight behaviour, giving each plane unique characteristics.
Pilots can store their planes on their personal homepage, a hangar, and continue working on them later on.
The goal of the game is to cover as much distance as possible. To achieve this, users may experiment with acrobatic maneuvers, collect cans of Red Bull to refuel and employ the thermal updrafts.
Points are given after each flight for distance covered and piloting style. Loops, drifts, rolls, low-level flight and other maneuvers are rewarded. In addition, the other users rate the plane's design. A total score is calculated which, if it's good enough, may be included on a high score table.
Awards
The project has won numerous international awards, 2 Webby Awards, Gold at the BIMA awards, 2 x Gold at the Davey Awards, Silver at the W3 Awards, Bronze at The One Show Interactive and the Cannes Cyber Lions, a FAB and a FABulous Award, Gold at the Clios, Winner/3D and Best In Show at Flash in the Can, and it won FWA Site of the Day and Site of the Month, amongst others.
The hugely successful game nearly doubled the traffic on Red Bull's corporate website. Flight Lab's spiritual successor, the Red Bull Soapbox Racer was launched one year later, and an update of Flight Lab is in the works.
