When Rockstar Games released GTA Online in 2013, carnage ensued. The open-world game, opened further to the interactions of players, has been an enduring hit ever since, prompting Rockstar to release regular updates. In summer 2020, they released the Los Santos Summer Special, providing new missions, vehicles, play modes, and a race track creator.

The Grand Theft Auto series of sandbox games/bad behaviour simulators has featured in almost every gamer’s library since 1997. It’s the fourth best selling series of all time—Mario, Pokemon, and Tetris have all sold more, but none have racked up GTA’s property damage. The wide-open worlds, anything-goes play, witty writing, and style that references classic films have provided hours of fun for bored people who wish their lives were more like Casino or Menace II Society.

The referential style of a game channelling movies channelling the 1990s, calls for quality type. That’s why Rockstar used BLKBK’s High Voltage for the Los Santos Summer Special logo font. This font is BLKBK channelling the 1980s channelling the 1950s, in the form of neon signs. To emulate the round look and energy of hand-bent tubes of glass lit by plasma, the type is hand written with a round-tipped marker. The result is a lively and retro-feeling font with a consistent line weight, suitable for any logo between Whisky a Go Go and Hawthorn Grill.

Since GTA III, the game series’ logo is based on Pricedown, see the dedicated post for more details.

Big Liquor benefits from one of the happiest relationships in sales: the more we drink, the higher our alcohol tolerance. It is, therefore, their prerogative to get drinkers drinking, early and often—anywhere left of equilibrium alcohol-tolerance/insulin-sensitivity is, laws permitting, their target market. Understanding this, Big Liquor moved aggressively into Big Soda territory. Rivers ran candy coloured with alcopop.

But you already know that. What you may not know is that in an effort to reach a new generation of drinkers, Diageo launched Smirnoff Pink in spring 2021. “It’s the pink you’ve been waiting for”, they say. And how. Their ads feature the classic Missy Elliot track, “Get Your Freak On”, modified so that “Freak” becomes “Pink”. Whatever the word, Mme. Misdemeanour is implying the same thing: this is a beverage you can screw your tongue into like a light socket.

That’s why Smirnoff chose BLKBK’s font High Voltage for use in the Pink logo and elsewhere in advertisements. Written with a round-tip marker, with a fine finish and easy curves, this neon sign font flows, electric and smooth. It packs the flavour to make up for taste, stamina for years, and an easy appeal—perfect for the Smirnoff Pink logo font.