An 80’s inspired map to bring neon back
By: Madison Draper
Recently, a friend and I went to a couple 80's music concerts where synths roared, neon lights flickered and a mysterious image of a setting sun appeared on all merch. Searching for inspiration for an 80’s amp style I looked at Blade Runner, 8-bit Nintendo games, Devo, and very tall hair-dos. But I kept returning to the setting sun over a pitched neon grid.
I abstracted pieces of the image below into a simple guide for this map style. I always make minimal sketch pads when designing maps because it helps me focus on keeping the theme consistent throughout the map.
The 80's was a shift in self-perspective, a breaking from the original sub-urban grid. As the viewer sees beyond the regularity of the pitched grid, they’re presented with places to go and aspire to: the spontaneous geometric mountain range, the neon colors, making terrain lines jump with electricity.
Neon lights were centric in this design. The effect was created with gradual lower opacities. Roads and labels shine brightly against the dark background and even each other when overlapping.
In my sketch pads, I add the fonts next to each other to gain a sense of the aesthetic while staying abstracted from the geographic context.
The Press Start 2P font reminisces technology’s milestones in the ’80s with 8-bit gaming consoles and cell phones. Heebo’s clean lines make it perfect for coating a neon halo and compliments Press Start 2P vibrancy.
Add the 80’s 8-bit style to your Mapbox Studio account to explore this electric style, and let's bring neon back!
Designing the 8-bit map style was originally published in Points of interest on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.