The Kesey Signal:'Field Station 02'

The Kesey Signal:'Field Station 02' Microsite for Rob Ford / FWA 2Advanced set out to create a bitmap-fonted, 1999-energy microsite by for 'The Kesey Signal' - Rob Ford's cyber-noir thriller about truths buried in source code. Background

The Kesey Signal: Some truths are embedded in code is a new cyber-noir thriller by Rob Ford - founder of The FWA (Favourite Website Awards) - and the first thriller born from the lost world of Flash. The story asks: what if the truth about humanity's past was hidden in plain sight, embedded in the source code of forgotten websites? The trail winds through archived classics from the golden age of web design - MONO*crafts, 2Advanced Studios, Subservient Chicken - each holding a fragment of evidence. It's a thriller about digital archaeology, memory, entropy, and what we're willing to lose to preserve the truth.

The Brief

Design and build a launch microsite to celebrate the book - one that didn't just promote it, but embodied the era the story is built on. A throwback love letter to the early web that still felt premium, intentional, and 2026-grade.

The Approach - "Field Station 02"

Field Station 02 was conceived as a dossier-style microsite: part book companion, part interactive transmission. Built with bitmap fonts, strange signals, interactive fragments, and a deliberate hit of 1999 energy (with a knowing nod to 2Advanced's Attractor era), it functions as the second node in 2Advanced's broader "Field Station" archive.

The site includes a hidden code mechanic: follow the trail, unlock the pelican case, and uncover three brand-new 2Advanced "Kesey Signal" desktop + mobile wallpapers. Visitors can also enter a drawing for 1 of 7 limited-edition Kesey Signal posters - 24"×36" prints designed by 2Advanced and autographed by both Rob Ford and Eric Jordan.

Recognition

Nominated for Website of the Day at CSS Design Awards

Up for public-voted UI Design, UX Design, and Innovation awards at CSS Design Awards Live

Microsite: keseysignal.2advanced.com

About the book on FWA: thefwa.com/about/the-kesey-signal

CSSDA nomination: cssdesignawards.com/sites/2advanced-field-station-02/49365