Research and Project Timeline- Developing Work In this project i will: Apply research-driven idea generation to develop a production piece related to emerging technologies. Demonstrate effective project management skills in the creation of the production piece and the compilation of a portfolio. Showcase software proficiency by incorporating appropriate tools and techniques in the production process. Incorporate ethical values and principles in the production piece and portfolio. Exhibit forward-thinking by integrating emerging technology trends and concepts into the work. Week 1& 2 Inspirations, User Research, and Ethics 17/11/2025 My project is largely inspired by Bioluminescence. When talking about the natural phenomenon of Biolumienescence, it described a process where living things such as mushrooms and animals produce a glow, for example organisms in very deep parts of the sea exhibit this amazing glowing characteristic. Natural History Museum states: “The light that living creatures can produce is created by a chemical reaction. For this reaction to happen a plant or animal must carry a molecule called luciferin, plus one of two enzymes called luciferase and photoprotein. When luciferin chemically reacts with oxygen, it releases energy in the form of light..” K. Pavid (N.D.) They also state: “In this environment, the light some animals can create for themselves is fundamental to survival.” K. Pavid (N.D.) Engaging in art is a light we create for ourselves; In my project, I would like to create an experience which provides a space for art and joy. Blackreach My first inspiration is Blackreach, which is a large subterranean bioluminescent cavern beneath Skyrim. The environment is full of blue glowing giant mushrooms and strange plants. I wanted to incorporate elements of this into my project like glowing plants and mushrooms. I found that it is many people’s favourite place in Skyrim due to its aesthetic and its experience, as well as a user who stated: “I couldn’t help but feel fascinated with all the colours” And another user stated “Blackreach is one of the most amazing and innovative locations in all of gaming.” (Archius99 2020 r/Skyrim. Reddit.) In addition to this, someone stated the size of the map to be a huge problem: “It’s a beautiful place, but it’s massive. I think it’s what causes a lot of people to dislike it.” (OrangePoweraid 2020 r/Skyrim. Reddit.) Therefore I think the smaller size of my 360 environment could help with this pain point, while still keeping the colours and general theme. Biolum Another inspiration includes Biolum, a VR immersive underwater experience on Meta Quest. It features visuals such as glowing plants and animals, and lots of aqua blue colours which I thought would be captivating, as well as enhancing the aesthetic usability of my project. Flora Inspirations In Subnautica In addition to these examples, I am also inspired by all the different types of glowing and unusual alien flora found in the underwater game Subnautica, and would like to create some of my own alien plants for my VR experience, in blender. Cory Strader, the art director for Subnautica states on drawing inspiration for the assets in the game: “Some of the more basic flora has a closer relationship to actual earth vegetation, such as the grass, seaweed, and coral branch filler assets.” P.Warr (2017) In considering both these things, I think it will be useful to draw inspiration from the natural world, while still having the freedom to create something new and captivating that users will enjoy such as glowing ferns, improving the aesthetic usability effect. Racoon Lagoon One other competitor for this project is a VR game called Racoon Lagoon. I am inspired by, and love the ethereal and glowy nature of the landscape blended with fantasy. I also liked the stylized low poly style as this will be easier to render and a sensible way to execute my vision. One Reddit user states that “Racoon Lagoon is a wonderful cosy game”, They also state that Racoon Lagoon “has more vibrant colours and very nice to look at in general”. Gregasy (2024) It can be noted that a similar theme of users perceiving a higher Aesthetic Usability due to these vibrant looking visuals. Fuji Gardening Adventure During my research for other VR experiences with bioluminescence, I found a game called Fuji Gardening Experience. This is a game where you can play as a magical gardener in an ethereal world in space, and this inspired me that it could be fun for players to be in outer space for my VR experience. User Profile It can be seen from my user research in my first submission, that the demographic for this experience ranges from ages: 18-54 . Pain points include “massive maps being off putting” User wants include, “vibrant and fascinating colours”. Something nice to look at. Accessibility needs include, a safe experience, and an accessible experience, which can be accessed standing or sitting. Accessibility and Ethics Considerations One UX I proposed to use is Hick’s Law, which will utilise the small space of the environment to allow people to have this VR experience, without feeling lost, or overwhelmed with choice and the size of the space. This can help with those who are Neuro Divergent, as it can be extremely tough on the senses to put on a headset and enter a new environment. It is preferable that the environment be a small experience, making it more accessible. Medium also states “Staying too long in VR may cause social isolation or change how people see reality.” Using Hick’s Law to make a smaller and shorter experience will help with this ethical consideration, to give regular breaks to using VR headsets. Week 3- Mid Fidelity Sketches, Colours 1/12/2025 The colours I decided to use as a theme for my environment are based off of bioluminescence in the natural world, as well as the colours I enjoyed from my inspirations, such as the glowing aqua marine from Blackreach in Skyrim, and in Subnautica… Continue reading Portfolio/Production
Category: Exploring Emerging Technologies and Immersive Design
Lab Exercises
Lab Exercises Prototyping The Immersive Experience What is Virtual Reality? “VR applications immerse the user in a computer-generated environment that simulates reality through the use of interactive devices, which send and receive information and are worn as goggles, headsets, gloves, or body suits.” Lowood, Henry E (2025) In this assignment, I will be writing about how certain softwares can be utilized using visual language such as light, colour and sound to create 360 environments. The Cell Fracture Exercise In Blender In lab session one, I set up a 360 environment in blender, and experimented with a plugin called cell fracture. I then applied it to a basic sphere mesh using geometry nodes to create an exploding particle effect. One of the features of cell fracture that could be used in a 360 VR environment is the control of the direction of the explosion, and depending on where the user is standing during the cell fracture, they could see different particle effects at different angles. Potentially this control of explosion shape could direct a user’s view to a specific object or direction to further the narrative of the experience. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JWWjJ8AtYM A particular issue I overcame included the size and range of the explosion being contained to a really overt circular shape, which looked inorganic and not very immersive, and the unexpected result could trigger VR sickness. I had to adjust the settings of the ‘from max’ value on the map range module in geometry nodes, to expand the range of the cell fracture; this made the distribution of the exploding particles look more natural for the user. UX Design Institute states on replicating real life expectations: “According to Leon Zhang writing for UX Collective, spatial interaction design in the VR world is how the world really functions. In other words, users don’t need to learn to sit on a chair or grab a sword; they already know from experience. UX designers just have to replicate that experience” C Vinney (2023) Therefore more organic reactions in objects, (which will be expected due to real life heuristic expectations), could help prevent VR sickness from unexpected visuals that don’t corroborate with real world knowledge and experiences, as well as creating a strong feeling of presence in the user, as well as trust. I also experimented with sculpting a tree in blender for my project, as i wanted to have ago with making something in the 360 environment, as well as playing with naturistic lighting and camera movement. https://youtu.be/dUl28zZbyb0 Music Visualiser Exercise During this set exercise, I followed a tutorial on how to make a 3D music visualiser. This could be interesting used in a 360 VR environment as it shows responsiveness to the sound used in the environment, and something like this could be used to create a musical VR experience (for example like beat saber), which represents the music itself in a physical moving form, utilising things like colour and light, to create a unique and interesting VR experience. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Emr4loczAAI Seeing the music moving in this way could also help people enter a flow state: “The mental state in which a person performing some activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity.” J. Yablonski (2025) Flow Laws of UX When used in a musical experience, seeing the physical visualiser of the music in a 360 environment could engage users by having them enter a flow state, and gain interest through the use of colours that could change and even glow depending on the type of music being played. FrameVR. io In this session we were asked to create a concept and narrative using FrameVR.io’s online VR environment, to tell a story or evoke a feeling. This space allows designers to externally import assets such as 3D models and images, and gives access to a range of 3D models already included with the software. Range of 3D assets readily available to use in Frame VR.io as well as player view and character The Muder Mystery Idea I drew up a storyboard idea for a murder mystery, in which i wanted to use hierarchy and heuristics in the form of visual language such as light, and colour, in order to create an immersive story which invites users to engage problem solving skills, however i realised this would be impractical as just an “experience”, and would really require coding and interactivity to be functional, and decided to create some other story boards for an immersive glade/nature scene. New Concept An article by medium states that VR: “Provides a world that is enjoyable to see, live in and interact with while eliminating dangerous or extraneous features or entities that might negatively impact the user experience.” N Dauchot (2018) The concept is a 360 nature scene with flowers, trees, and lots of ethereal colours, with the goal of giving the user a beautiful experience that will make them feel awe and wonder, as well as allowing them to explore the scene, to provide fun, and allow the user to engage in escapism from daily life, in a way that is aesthetically pleasing. Storyboards The plan was to have the user will start in the middle of a medium 360 environment, which encourages them to look around in all directions, and view the sky from a view point, giving an otherworldly, ethereal pretty nature experience; my concept, albeit crudely executed at this point in time, is inspired by the game “Fuji VR Gardening Experience”, a game which is based on another planet, rich in colour and unusual flora. B Lang. (2019) Fuji Review Fuji VR Gardening showing bright colours and ethereal beauty. B Lang. (2019) My Scene https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEbhN4rIkPQ The prettiness of the environment could help to engage users more efficiently due to the design law “Aesthetic-Usability Effect” (Kurosu and Kashimura), making the person want to spend more time exploring the 360 environment because of its… Continue reading Lab Exercises