September, 2023. A new trend emerges: people impersonating NPCs on TikTok, earning thousands of dollars. It seems like easy money, but mimicking an NPC live without breaking character is trickier than it seems. It's a skill that requires practice, and making faces in front of a mirror isn't enough. 

Replicating the UI was the easy part. Using real NPC videos as references, I created the assets for the filter. They had to be identical to the real thing, so no one would think that they are fake.

The technical aspect of the creation of the filter was a challenge on its own. I had to replicate exactly the duration and movements of the elements to achieve realism. Adding to that, the type of gift and the quantity had to be randomly modified. If it were a sequence that repeats all the time, the illusion would be lost.

Sharing this effect on a new account and without putting any money on ads, the effect got almost one million views from around the world. There are even videos shared in languages that I don't understand.