Reflective reflection.

After my tutorial with Al (where I presented the headset masks and talked about the development of the PC version of Lunarium),  I jotted down some notes.

In adopting a spirit of reflective reflection ( a multi-layered reflection on practice). I hope to adopt a similar approach to my final video in which I will present Lunarium, talk about it’s development while speculating on future development as well as reflecting on my personal journey through this course and tentatively talk about my next steps.

Headsets

Photo here 

Material
I’d like to echo the materiality of the headset masks and set prototypes, in the app aesthetic but this has been difficult so far. It may be achieved in post production which I will discover when I begin to capture walkthrough video.

Project Concept 
Sharing the headsets with Al sparked a concept which involved a group of headset users deeply immersed in their experience while one person wasn’t as they didn’t have a headset. Strangely I could see how this could evolve and we had a good discussion over its potential.

Multiplayer
It’s too late to develop the app as a Multiplayer but this should definitely be considered in the next phase. However, research shows that teenagers tend to exhibit more risk taking behaviour when in a group and that social networking is important, particularly for this age demographic.

It may be that the app could be altered to reflect the character that the player has chosen by the choice of their headset.

PC Build 
I have spent a week rebuilding the app completely from the bottom up. I have done this so that I could gain wider access to user testers.  The VR build was limited to Oculus Go users and I couldn’t access that many players. I have since joined a discord group who may be able to help. I also felt that I would be able to add more features and have more freedom to create the app as I clearly envision it on my mind. I am hoping that, as I do this, I will be able to better represent my app concept as walkthrough video. This is an essential aspect of the assessment process.

Shifting between Unity 2019.17 and Unity 2018.4 LTS has been really insightful. It is clear that VR is still very much in its early stage of development (as am I). I felt that I could freely develop my concept within my early knowledge of the engine. 


Cross Platform Development 

Although the Oculus Go App works well and I have set up an Alpha works okay and has given a small amount of user research I wanted to capture wider user research. This is why I decided to develop the app Standalone PC. I have also experimented with WebGL export for publication on itch.io. This worked fine and could be published but I am not happy with the player controls.

in the next phase of development I will be able to Optimise the PC Version for Mobile VR. At the moment, in many respects the two apps are very different due to performance issues. The PC file is very small and this is mainly down to lighting and effects optimisation and so I think that tweaking this for mobile VR is feasible without too much work.

Additional Features 

I would like to add some additional features for which I have a list. Essentially I’d like to include particle dynamics and instantiation in the project but this will be dependant on the time I have to produce a high quality walkthrough video. One feature I’d like to include is a card shower using the particle dynamic function (similar to leaves falling from a tree). The question I have is, In the particle dynamic generator,  Is it possible to draw from a pool of materials rather than just one?

I have given the PC app link to Al and I’m hoping he will have time to play it. I have advised that is really is simple but any feedback would be very welcome.

Submission

Video Submission Video 8 – 10 minutes
1) App Showcase
2) Development ( Review Blog) challenges/research
3) Next phase of project development
4) Course Retro.

It will be possible to Submit the app APK for PC and Mobile VR – (email is Al’s), and so I will submit my files on google docs.

I need to remember to package the submission as if demonstrating it to my Mum (lol) This will avoid the trap of assumption and the resulting confusion.

What’s next… 

Recent events have allowed to to reflect on my intended career Direction and this has prompted a change. I am currently planning two routes both commercially and experimentally.

Commercially

I was self employed for 10 years before becoming involved in academic research. I have now decided to work on a number of indie development projects in my commercial practice.

To do this, I have identified an App Jam which will run from 1st May to 8th May. This will help continue the impetus to create apps quickly while also forging a new network.

I also have my next major project is on the drawing board but this is likely to be a very large project. This is Fizhogg, and Illustrated Adventure Game.

I would like to submit a piece of work to Annecy Animation festival and am looking at prospect of lively collaboration 😀

Experimentally

I’m an artist .. just keep making work as it will be in its originality that will be of interest not just common games made to high quality.

I can see how experimenting with the engine and immersion in nature could be really interesting. Self reflexivity on technology and form of videogames/natural environments/world building/immersion. I intend to just experiment with the engine to see what happens…

I could also see how my experimental work could be presenting using unity, representing immersive work in an immersive medium. My immersive arts portfolio.

Also, As part of the Falmouth Alumni I should be able to keep in touch and maybe even come back to talk to future students about my work, both commercially and experimentally. I should be able to access the course content after the course ends.

Research

I am not currently considering research as a first priority although I know in my heart that I will complete my PhD. It’s a timing, location and person thing.

In the past I have applied material thinking to CGI tools and produced projection mapping along with kinetic sculpture and animated film.

I have also applied the Basic principles of CGI to material craft and explored the glitch through the tension between algorithm and heuristics amongst other things.

Now I have a game engine and code to play with… how exciting 😀

Next steps:

🔲  Use timeline, Cinemachine and post production to capture a walkthrough video.
🔲  Capture user feedback