WIP Studio 3, Week 3

Further development of narrative and UX design on The Curator

Reflection:

Whilst chipping away at the design of The Curator, I've read, referenced, talked, thought and planned.

Some of my reflections relate to experience and some to technology, both of which are intertwined some of the time.

Here are some of the areas of reflection to do with app-based, markerless AR for mobile.

The Pros:

Mobile AR:

- is fertile ground for innovation, particularly when AR can be experienced in a live installation/exhibition environment. Added potential for real-life person-to-person interaction via the experience

- is accessible and affordable format

- is highly immersive

- has high demand and uptake via audiences on instagram, potential for AR narrative to expand via app-based AR. 

- has rich potential in spatial experiences and user experience/mechanics:  eg. sound-driven indirect control mechanisms/narrative devices to direct players to certain assets/areas in the game

- has potential to mix AR and other gameplay formats for mobile

The Cons:

Mobile AR:

- when experienced in a live installation/exhibition environment: too many bodies in the real world; or low light can interrupt the camera feed ground plane and wall detection system.

- has some limitations on graphics capability and requirements to optimise.

- demands a lot of battery power, making shorter experiences or chapters more desirable

- means people are moving around in the real world, which can lead to complex crowd control/planning of audience flow through space.

I have put a lot of thought into how real-world museums and places like Ikea, use real world  spaces to indirectly control the movement of people towards a somewhat hidden agenda, via the use of corridors, lighting and sometimes sound.

In our virtual museum environment, which is experienced in a real world one, we can’t use colliders to stop people walking through virtual walls.

With this in mind, I have so far been designing this story to take place in a wide open virtual environment, and experienced or installed in a wide open real-life venue.

However I will explore this further with my team: Hizi, Fabian and discussions with Sahaj.