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VR Game Design
Boulevard VR: Art and Design, VR Experience Design
ANN [winter]: an Agent
World War Toons, VR Game Design
n 2015, I began working on the game as a senior designer and artist. I designed and created the map "Sacre Bleu" and designed and developed the map "Pyramid Scheme" as well as designed and created a diegetic game lobby re-imagined as an World War 2 airplane interior.
VR forced a foundation re-working of established methodologies the creation of new approaches to traditional approaches to design and development. New metrics for level design, player interaction and agency and novel technology for motion control and head rotation mechanics were among the solutions developed to meet challenges and solve problems that we had never encountered in console game development.
Levels, Interiors and the Implied Horizon
The challenges of designing in VR are different than traditional games. The scale must accommodate the player's perception and more closely match real-world dimensions.
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Motion sickness can be triggered when players lose sense of the horizon line when movement occurs in tight spaces or when the engine begins to lose framerate. These and other issues were addressed by various techniques within the design and layout.
This in-game video capture is an example of interior layout with multi-layer FPS combat. The space is accessed through the large archway and once inside, strong horizontal lines (wooden beams) help the player maintain a sense of a horizon within the confined space. To further prevent disorientation, openings on all 4 walls help the player sustain a sense of local orientation by keeping the exterior landmarks visible.
Diegetic U.I. and interactive objects
2-D U.I. or HUD elements do not work as expected in VR. Using diegetic U.I. (objects within environment) is more engaging and provides tactile dimension to reward the player that is not possible in any other medium.
In-Game capture of player using the game lobby's 3D U.I. within the narrative space of the game's theme.
Level Design and Art
Screen capture of "Sacre Bleu" from Unreal 4 editor. I modeled and the layout in Maya and assembled the final level in Unreal 4.
My low-resolution mesh for "Pyramid Scheme" in Unreal 4 for testing (left image). The final level in game promotional capture (right image).
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