My Virtual Canvas
My imagination is very first person based. Most of my written and animation work is done from a first person perspective. That's a hard perspective to convey. One must often resort to illusions and tricks in order to convince the reader or viewer to feel as if they were in that same position.Or at least be very descriptive at the risk of boring the crowd. But I always feel unaccomplished when I do. I always have that thought, if only I could truly show that vision, convey that sensation so they would understand my work completely. So that they don't misinterpret or miss the point about the whole thing. So I have to explain it step by step, why this or that happened, when it should be clear from the get go.
This is why I think virtual reality is the canvas I've been waiting for. I can put you exactly where I need you to be, and show you the story I want to tell. To truly immerse you in my creation.
This is why I think virtual reality is the canvas I've been waiting for. I can put you exactly where I need you to be, and show you the story I want to tell. To truly immerse you in my creation.
You might have a subconscious fear of going to an art gallery, seeing abstract pieces on the walls, when suddenly being asked by someone who looks important, what it means? What was the artist trying to convey? What feelings and why? And then of course being completely wrong on everything, then ridiculed by posh drink-holding stuck-ups, which for some reason are better than you. A situation you probably will never be in.
To be fair, these "nightmare"-scenarios have been forced into your mind by being overused in movies, series and literature. It's that awkward sensation that makes some of us switch the channel, because you can sympathize with the character and can put yourself in the same position so easily, perhaps bringing back memories of your own most embarrassing moments.
Though virtual reality today is not complete immersion,(which would require touch, smell, movement, etc), it's still is a near complete replacement of one of your senses. Which seems to be more than enough judging by the feedback the Oculus Rift has gotten over the last two years on it's immersion potential.
Another thing I have had a problem with, and often avoided is to convey connection between characters. But with virtual reality, I believe I can make those connections. It has been tried before in many video games, but looking at a screen does not successfully achieve the sensation of eye contact. Sometimes eyes are a bit off as if they are looking right through you like a news anchor reading a prompter. And facial animation can also be very cartoon like, when it comes to smiles and frowns. The video game industry has been a little too basic when it comes to facial expressions in my opinion.
In virtual reality you actually feel like there is a personality in front of you, abstract or not, and along with that immersion comes subconscious rules like respecting personal space, staring, attention, body language and so on. Things you rarely think about, but are there and decides the social connection between you and whom or what you are communicating with.
Even the smallest details like how pupils dilate when you are looking at something or someone you desire. Or avoiding eye contact, looking around when nervous or shy. Something you also rarely see in video games is communication while both the player and characters are moving. Characters are often locked in one position. with their head locked in your general direction, moving gradually from one position to the next. Not very seamless. Not very convincing.
Animation of every aspect of a human body is probably the most important thing if you want to convey a sense of realism to a player. Static walk and run animations are not enough if you are expecting to be immersed in a story with other characters. The body must express anxiety, being tense, either out of fear or in anticipation. Being relaxed, in distress, out of breath, angry, reacting to the environment and events. These has to be automatic by characters or it will break the spell, and the player will lose their sense of immersion. Though this is barely noticed in games anymore, because it has rarely been prioritized in games.
The reason I find these so important is because I want to create such an experience. Where you can befriend someone, have fun and fight alongside them, and be truly shocked when you realize their utter betrayal. By using certain "charming" events, between you and one of the characters with a great personality, you might fall for a fictional character. And feel broken if they leave you, or feel sorrow if they die in a vicious fire.
The core idea is to make you believe you personally inflicted this pain or caused that consequence, without revealing a scripted event.
Producing tears with video games has been hard, but the video game industry has come a long way the last ten years. Movies still have the best writers, but they are also accompanied by the music that trigger those feelings in viewers at the perfect moment. Another trick.
When you combine these ideas with good story telling, epic events, war, tragedy and action, in virtual reality, I think we can truly revolutionize a genre, or create new ones.
Though virtual reality today is not complete immersion,(which would require touch, smell, movement, etc), it's still is a near complete replacement of one of your senses. Which seems to be more than enough judging by the feedback the Oculus Rift has gotten over the last two years on it's immersion potential.
Another thing I have had a problem with, and often avoided is to convey connection between characters. But with virtual reality, I believe I can make those connections. It has been tried before in many video games, but looking at a screen does not successfully achieve the sensation of eye contact. Sometimes eyes are a bit off as if they are looking right through you like a news anchor reading a prompter. And facial animation can also be very cartoon like, when it comes to smiles and frowns. The video game industry has been a little too basic when it comes to facial expressions in my opinion.
In virtual reality you actually feel like there is a personality in front of you, abstract or not, and along with that immersion comes subconscious rules like respecting personal space, staring, attention, body language and so on. Things you rarely think about, but are there and decides the social connection between you and whom or what you are communicating with.
Even the smallest details like how pupils dilate when you are looking at something or someone you desire. Or avoiding eye contact, looking around when nervous or shy. Something you also rarely see in video games is communication while both the player and characters are moving. Characters are often locked in one position. with their head locked in your general direction, moving gradually from one position to the next. Not very seamless. Not very convincing.
Animation of every aspect of a human body is probably the most important thing if you want to convey a sense of realism to a player. Static walk and run animations are not enough if you are expecting to be immersed in a story with other characters. The body must express anxiety, being tense, either out of fear or in anticipation. Being relaxed, in distress, out of breath, angry, reacting to the environment and events. These has to be automatic by characters or it will break the spell, and the player will lose their sense of immersion. Though this is barely noticed in games anymore, because it has rarely been prioritized in games.
The reason I find these so important is because I want to create such an experience. Where you can befriend someone, have fun and fight alongside them, and be truly shocked when you realize their utter betrayal. By using certain "charming" events, between you and one of the characters with a great personality, you might fall for a fictional character. And feel broken if they leave you, or feel sorrow if they die in a vicious fire.
The core idea is to make you believe you personally inflicted this pain or caused that consequence, without revealing a scripted event.
Producing tears with video games has been hard, but the video game industry has come a long way the last ten years. Movies still have the best writers, but they are also accompanied by the music that trigger those feelings in viewers at the perfect moment. Another trick.
When you combine these ideas with good story telling, epic events, war, tragedy and action, in virtual reality, I think we can truly revolutionize a genre, or create new ones.
Kommentarer
Legg inn en kommentar
Keep it clean :)