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WORLD UNDER WATER

My personal project has developed and changed extensively. Since the move summit and the talk with Framestore I have been thinking extensively about the Mars Bus they created in the USA. (https://www.framestore.com/fieldtriptomars) I am particularly drawn to this as it is the best example I have seen of a group VR experience. It’s like a theme park ride!  The idea doesn’t use personal mobile devices either and has great potential to utilise interactive storytelling techniques like sounds and trigger points on board the bus. 

It is now my plan to lift their tried and tested technology and methods to create an experience in Leith with the aim of highlighting what could happen to the coast should global warming not be calmed in some way. 

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Seven Digital Deadly Sins

The separation of the digital self from the true self is something which fascinates me. What people get up to when they feel like they will not get caught or maintain a level of anonymity is astounding.  I think it is because unlike robbing a bank or committing a murder we all have the ability to partake in this “deviant” behaviour at any time on a device we carry in our pocket.  What even is deviant anymore when there is a club or a forum for everything? Outsiders and misfits are finding their cyber tribes.  Some of the topics explored here were quite confronting. How many times have I scrolled through an ex’s facebook to see what they’re up to and who they are dating now? I couldn’t tell you. But when I see it called “stalking” here I am seriously ashamed. I wouldn’t dream of climbing up their drainpipes to peek into their bedrooms and all of a sudden that’s what their social media feeds feel like. Littered with clues to their real worlds through their highlight reels.  This has made me seriously consider policing my behaviour online. I need to behave as though people can see me. In fact they’re probably spying through my uncovered webcam and following my keystrokes anyway. They (whoever “they” are) probably know every kink and curve of of my moral compass. How terrifying to realise what we get up to when we indulge every whim and frightful fancy in our pants, covered in crumbs in my case in my parents spare room... What a cliche. 

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Exoriare.

I am not the biggest graphic novel/comic book fan- I tend to invest WAY more in the film franchises which they spawn. I did come to this with bright eyes and sat upon my bushy tail, ready to be entertained.  The site didn’t make a lot of sense to me. I didn’t really know what I was supposed to click on and what I was looking for. It made me feel a bit stupid. The whole “dark net” aesthetic put me on edge and make me think I am going to download something obscene by mistake.  I thought about this a little more, is this intentional? Maybe my nervousness wasn’t a natural reaction to an unfamiliar site but an orchestrated reaction implanted by the makers? It’s about hackers and the dark net after all isn’t it? Of course it was all intentional and although it worked, I found the user interaction really frustrating. I was never sure what was a glitch, intentional “game play”/experience or broken. Hence the reason I was stuck on loading for 5 minutes at first before refreshing and find myself taken straight to the page.  I had a google and read up about what I was looking for and what to expect finding rave reviews from fans who all seem to think this transmedia experience is something special. (https://www.argn.com/2009/11/exoriare_exploring_the_darknet/)  Now I knew what I was looking for, I committed to playing and enjoying the text game. Unfortunately everything I wanted to do, I was told I “can’t do right now” (Falconhoof was ringing in my ears). The quicker and more basic my instructions the more successful I was which makes me think I was over complicating things. I am also aware that I approached this as an exercise for class, rather than investing in it for entertainment. I was trying to understand it. 

I finally got to the climatic Matrix rip of the button//rabbit hole and the screen froze again and I gave up. 

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Gill White Workshop.

Gill White, (Creative Practitioner, Writer, Director and Producer of design and film led interactive experiences) took us through an interactive workshop based around the development of interactive experiences.  We began with an exercise in empathy. Looking at an object which means a lot to us and really delving into the connections we have with things. I chose my necklace which was a gift from my auntie. It has a lot of sentimental value, not unusual for me as a highly sentimental person.  Everyone had such widely varied relationships with their objects. There was everything from stuffed animals to childrens’ clothing to knitting needles.  This exercise reminded me a lot of tasks I have completed in design thinking workshops, in particular, the innovative student of the year awards last year where I attended the bronze and silver workshops. I approached this part of the session as I normally do when creating empathy maps of customers, audiences, consumers, users... whatever word is most applicable for the situation. I listened to my classmates and tried to understand them not by just what they had chosen but how they spoke about it.  Breaking down barriers and connecting with people before working with them to create stories is hugely beneficial. We bonded as a group. We connected. We loosened up.  We then used these objects as clues in a murder investigation storytelling game! This was a really fun and creative way to paper prototype. I have prototyped using tin foil, lego and good old fashioned pens and paper but this was a really interactive and collaborative process.  We got then acted out our scene to the class which was fun and probably only really worked because of the initial task where we got to know each other. We were comfortable sharing our ideas because we had already shared personal stories.  The joy of this workshop was it proved how low-fi prototypes can really prove concepts before money is spent. 

My VR game could really benefit from a prototype like this. 

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MOVE SUMMIT 2019: Framestore Dark Ride

I love a dark ride. At Universal Studios in California, 6 years ago I spent 5.5 hours total queuing for the Transformers ride because after the initial go I HAD to go round again.  When volunteering at the latest MOVE summit I was lucky enough to get to attend a talk given by framestores Ross Burgess. He was there to talk about their latest dark ride project in China, Pearl Quest.  Interestingly he spoke a long time about the theatre and what a stage is and the way he manipulates his “stage” to give audiences a breathtaking story world experience.  I had never thought of a ride as a platform before. 

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MOVE SUMMIT 2019: FRAMESTORE BUS TO MARS  A group VR experience.  They mapped 250 square miles in unreal engine. It is so immersive and completely wonderful.  

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Initial Idea ‘Sentencing’

(Idea 1:  I am interested in telling interactive stories within Virtual Reality (VR). An immersive role play game, where the player finds themselves held in a police interrogation room with no idea why.  The knowledge to get you off the hook is all around. In conversations, in notepads, in name tags... even an eye roll can indicate deception. 

The player must make choices as to which pieces of information they choose to ingest. It is also worth noting that if they are not looking in the right direction they may miss vital clues as to what is going on, opportunities to escape and even the opportunity to frame someone else/expose the real perpetrator.   The aim is to avoid jail. Success can vary from reducing sentence time by having enough information to lower the charges, to being smuggled out of the police station by a bent copper. 

The trajectories of every character will change depending on every piece of information the player receives. It will also matter if the player begins to listen to a conversation half way through. There is no way to go back and try again- you’re freedom depends on your intuition, nerve and perceptiveness.  The technology already exists.  Inspiration: Meanwhile (https://zarfhome.com/meanwhile/) Balderdash (Netflix) Police procedural drama series (Line of Duty, Luther) 

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UNTIL DAWN: Narrative Horror Gaming [released 2015]

I don’t play a lot games but one I did sit and devour was Until Dawn.  The decision making process wasn’t laborious, you could go with your gut (especially seeing as they kept the main killings until you had already gotten to know the characters).  What really appealed to me was that there were actually a few surprises in there! While the story isn’t without fault it was SO entertaining.  HIGH: It was scary in places and surprising- you would be lulled into a false sense of security before fighting for your life or deciding who to saw in half! The acting was decent and the monsters were creepy. LOW: There was a bit of weakness in the female characters they were pretty underdeveloped. The choices you make at “Checkpoints” detracted a bit from the element of surprise. “Do you like clowns or rats?” Really.... ?  Overall it stuck in my mind as an experience I enjoyed a lot so wanted to signpost it here.