In a category known for cold, clinical design, Play Studio brought a more human approach to Cy Biopharma, a company developing psychedelic-based therapies for chronic pain. Instead of sterile minimalism, they led with emotion, using soft gradients to visualize the relief patients could feel, paired with the clarity of Univers type and precise iconography. It’s a system that balances science and sensation, setting the tone for a visual identity as thoughtful as the treatments it represents.
By: Casey Martin, Founder & ECD, Play
Cy came to us with a request to help articulate a visual identity that could communicate both care and credibility—something more human than the cold, clinical world often associated with pharmaceuticals.
Cy develops breakthrough drug therapies for treating chronic pain through the generation of novel psilocybin and other psychedelic-derived molecules, so it felt important to us to engage more deeply with the emotional outcome of Cy’s work—the real impact it has on patients versus the problems or issues associated with Cy’s “why.”
That desire led us to develop a gradient language, born from our attempts to visualize the sensation and relief experienced by Cy Biopharma’s patients. It became a way to represent not just how they felt but how they could feel again. Each product was assigned its own distinct gradient, allowing us to visualize each treatment uniquely while helping customers easily identify their correct product on an often crowded and chaotic cabinet shelf.
To balance that ephemeral, sensory-driven language, we introduced a more technical typographic approach. Univers, with its precise and machined aesthetic, provided the perfect counterpoint, bringing clarity and structure without sacrificing warmth.
The fine linework and iconography followed naturally from this philosophy. They strengthen the sense of technical excellence and convey the finely tuned attention to detail we all crave from a company like Cy. In the end, the identity lives in that balance between emotion and precision, sensation and science.
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