Concept #1 – VR Simulation/Experience Project
My first idea was to create a Virtual Reality experience of abusive relationships, primarily emotionally abusive as opposed to physical. The goal is to create something that would give the player/user an understanding of emotionally abusive relationships, since lately, I find people don’t fully understand it or believe it’s something easy to leave or get over. It may range from romantic ones to friendships or family relationships. I haven’t decided fully how many kinds of relationships I’d want to cover given the time I have to refine the script I’ve started along with actually making it. It would take place in a forest where the environment would change based on the events going on in the relationship at the moment and be harder to navigate and escape the forest as it progresses. I would use the Occulus Rift so remotes could be used to walk around and the headset would be used to keep you in the environment for the full experience so you cannot ignore what’s going on around you. I’m still considering whether or not I should make it an interactive story as well, since it may be an effective way to get my point across.
Concept #2 – Landscapes or environments in VR
This was honestly my original idea for a thesis project when I first transferred into IMM. I considered painting a variety of digital paintings in different layers and trying to make a 360 environment for the user to explore the painting. I wanted to bring the painting to life in some way. I would now consider using 3D modeling as well and creating textures to make the models look more like paintings as well to blend it all in.
Concept #3 – Interactive Museum VR
I’ve thought about creating a museum in VR to display different projects of mine in a different way. It would basically be like a portfolio, but in a museum set up. It would be a unique way to show off my own work as opposed to building a website like I already have and let people click through. It would have different “exhibits” in the museum to showcase the variety of work I may create from traditional paintings or photography to digital media. Not only would it be a fun way to show off my own paintings or animations, but it would showcase any 3D modeling, texturing, and programming skills I have as you navigate a VR I created.
VR EXPERIENCE
A fascinating idea that you’re clearly motivated by. It would be beneficial to other “users.” It would also be valuable for the animation and game design students in IMM to see a thoughtfully executed example of VR and interactive experience design being applied to something more subtle than entertainment or puzzles or quests with clear-cut objectives. As we’ve discussed before, to do this right will require a lot of research — into the underlying psychology, for example, but also into the symbology and representation of abuse in other forms, ranging from mythology to poetry to film, also other games and interactive media. And before you start on any VR you’ll want to do extensive storyboarding, and you should test those storyboards with others before spending time on polished graphics. I would love to see you develop this, but I’m sure you already realize it will require a lot of work and self-discipline to make the final product match your vision.
LANDSCAPES OR ENVIRONMENTS IN VR
This would allow you to learn and practice many of the same skills as your first idea, but of course it gives you a lot more latitude in terms of content and the experience you’re trying to convey to the user. There are already plenty of examples of people doing this kind of work in VR (Tilt Brush comes to mind. And there are lots of VR recreations of famous paintings) so you’ll want to make sure your project is distinctive and innovative in some way.
INTERACTIVE MUSEUM IN VR
Please check out my comment on Rachel’s post. And add your own thoughts to Rachel’s museum idea if you haven’t talked to her already.
Your VR landscapes Paintings idea sounds interesting as I’ve never thought about exploring art in such a way. Would we be exploring them in a full 360 view or diving into them in a straight line? kind of like If we were on an amusement park ride on a set path/ rail?