Titanfall Replica Data Knife

A recreation of the knife used in the game series Titanfall to ‘hack’ consoles and other electronic hardware. These were produced as a limited run for sale to collectors.

The knives were designed with integrated electronic components- specifically, an arduino microcontroller driving RGBW LED lights and a piezo speaker for sound. A thumb button in the handle turns the knife on and off. A laser-etched and engraved display disc on the top of the handle strobes and flashes in an animated ‘hacking’ sequence when the knife is turned on. The knives were designed to incorporate a Lithium Polymer battery, and included a recharging circuit with a MicroUSB port by the blade. I was responsible for all of the code and programming that drives the animated sequences and sounds.

The knife itself was 3D modeled and printed. It was sanded and finished, and molds were made of all of the various components. The final products featured cold-cast aluminum blades, cold-cast brass circuitry inlays, and a cold-cast graphite handle.

Boxes were designed for the knives to be sold and shipped in. The box art was styled to be consistent with the ‘military surplus’ aesthetic of the Titanfall game, and included lore-relevant notices and warnings.

Twenty of these knives were produced and sold to collectors as a limited run. They were custom laser-engraved upon request with pilot names or other details, and included a laser-cut and engraved acrylic display stand.