LevelUp is a Photoshop plug-in that teaches you the most efficient way to use the dozens of features in that application. It also has the feel of something useful that’s been embarrassingly marred by top Adobe management types telling their marketing folks to “build us something that uses that social media thingy.”
That’s because LevelUp, true to the name’s video-game origins, has been designed as an online competition, complete with a hierarchy of badges to earn for completing each “mission.” Mission 2, for example, is to whiten teeth in a photo. Complete it and you get the “Dentartiste” badge: a blue tooth.
Other missions:
- Craft the perfect touch-up while smoothing a face
- Select the object you want to remove from a photo in record time.
As you rack up these badges and earn points, your results are placed on the weekly leaderboard for all to see, and theoretically will enter you into prize drawings at some point. LevelUp may well improve your Photoshop skills – your self-esteem, however, may be another matter.
