PROTECTRESS VR
VIRTUAL REALITY PROTOTYPE
Protectress VR preview. APK for Meta Quest sideload or full video walkthrough available upon request.
DESCRIPTION: Protectress VR is a prototype of a single-player interactive narrative experience for Meta Quest 2 about the protection and restoration of a sacred forest. Tasked with the quest of healing the forest by the Ancient Artemis, it is up to the player—a Defender of the Earth—to plant a seedling thus communicating with the Tree Kingdom before the knowledge is lost forever.
TIMEFRAME: 4 months (December 2022-March 2023)
BACKGROUND: This project was created out of the OYA Scale Up Immersive accelerator program offered the OYA Black Arts Coalition in partnership with the CFC Media Lab and other industry partners.
MY ROLE: UX Designer
My tasks included:
Researching player archetypes and gamer motivations
Designing and conducting concept testing survey
Synthesizing survey data to create user personas
Conceptualizing the logic, layout, and flow of all user interactions
Designing intuitive navigation and interaction mechanisms
Low-fidelity 3D prototyping and mockups
Providing direction to UI graphic designer
Collaborating with Unreal developer to ensure a cohesive VR experience
Conducting playtest
Providing creative input on all aspects of the immersive experience
Motion capture session support
Pitching and presenting at cohort industry showcase
DESIGN TOOLS & PLATFORMS: Figma, ShapesXR, Arcweave, Miro
THE CHALLENGE
How do you create an immersive experience that positively impacts a user’s relationship with nature?
Our team recognized the potential for VR to increase empathy in ways that traditional media cannot. Our goal was to create a moving, visually stunning immersive experience that would have a meaningful impact in the real world as we collectively live through a time of ecological crisis.
Photos: Protectress VR team member Derek Brin with playtester; Glendon Forest, Toronto.
DEFINING OUR CORE AUDIENCE AND UNDERSTANDING THE USER
Soon after my team and I began developing the concept of a gamified narrative experience centred on nature, I set about conducting research to more clearly identify and define our target audience. I delved into game design principles, player psychology, and gaming industry research methods and created a two-part survey.
Part one focused on player archetypes and motivations, and part two involved an evaluation of our game concept. We received feedback from over two dozen respondents with diverse gaming and virtual reality experience. When evaluating our concept, we found that respondents would like to see more mythical and magical elements incorporated into the experience. We also discovered that a majority of the respondents self-identified as one of the two following player archetypes: achiever (driven to complete goals quickly and/or fully) or explorer (driven to discover the unknown).
54% of respondents reported that a gaming/interactive experience has influenced their behaviour.
This key insight revealed the potential impact Protectress VR could have on a user’s relationship with the natural world. The survey responses guided our design process and informed the creation of the two user personas below.
USER PERSONAS
DESIGNING FOR IMMERSIVE
As the narrative design and writing team collaborated on the script, I carefully considered the emotional journey we wished the user to embark upon.
After the script was finished, I collaborated with our music and sound designer to conduct a comprehensive review and identify all UI elements, sound effects, and 3D assets. I selected the majority of the required 3D assets from Unreal Engine's marketplace. The remaining ones were customized by our technical artists and animators.
I provided guidance to our UI graphic artist in the creation of UI elements such as menus, navigation instructions, and text to accompany voiceovers. I prioritized accessibility and usability to ensure that the final experience was user-friendly and inclusive. However, due to developer-related technical challenges and time constraints, many of the UI elements were not included in the prototype but will be included in the next iteration of the project.
On other aspects of the experience, I made user-centred suggestions such as:
Script edits that resulted in more inclusive, gender-neutral language (implemented)
Less scripted content and more game time so that user can feel more engaged (implemented)
Design elements to ensure the user would be stimulated and engaged throughout the gaming experience (not implemented due to developer time constraints)
TRANSFORMING OUR VISION INTO (VIRTUAL) REALITY WITH OUR DEVELOPER
After our motion capture session and in preparation for working with our team’s developer, I created a low-fidelity 3D prototype of our greybox scene using ShapesXR, a VR design tool.
I also used the gaming story platform Arcweave to map out the details of the story alongside our narrative design and writing team. All of this enabled me to think spatially about all aspects of the user experience and ultimately create intuitive navigation and interaction mechanisms.
Our developer and I worked closely to establish regular touch points and I provided all necessary information to enable him to understand our team’s collective vision for Protectress VR. For this, I created a controller mapping document, scene mockups and a flowchart from onboarding until completion, detailing all aspects of the experience.
I supported the design of the playtest survey along with conducting the session with other members of my team.
3/4 of the playtesters reported that Protectress VR made them reflect on their relationship with nature.
OUTCOME AND LEARNINGS
The prototype is now complete and we’re currently testing it with audiences. Our initial playtest and demo have been promising, and our team is confident that we’re moving in the right direction to achieve our goal of positively impacting a user's relationship with nature.
During the accelerator program, our team received recognition for our hard work and we were awarded additional funding to further develop the project. We are now actively seeking partnerships and more funding in order to complete a full buildout.
In terms of my design approach, I am constantly learning, refining, and evolving. Given Protectress VR’s environmental focus, I am in the early phase of exploring biomimicry design processes to potentially incorporate into the next iteration of the experience while remaining committed to user-centred design principles.
I’d like to also share a few things I learned along the way:
Accessibility First: Our team realized how easily accessibility can be sacrificed with time and budgetary constraints. Centring and advocating for accessibility is critical for full buildout of our project.
Teamwork & Owning our Roles: There were no clear roles at the onset of this program but I encouraged the team early on to select roles based on interests and skills and I implemented a design process that was key to creating a solid prototype. Our core team members also had a strong work ethic, great communication and were deeply committed to this project. As a result, we were able to effectively navigate challenges with a solutions-oriented approach.
User Access to VR Technology: Very early on, we realized that our target audience may not own or have regular access to VR headsets. We’ve identified a need to engage in collaborations and strategic partnerships to offer on-site experiences that could amplify our core environmental message and increase access to the project.
Testing, Testing, Testing: We had one external playtest and then demoed our project our cohort industry showcase. Each time, users offered invaluable feedback which will inform the design of the full buildout of the project. We have concrete plans in place for further audience testing with the general public to ensure that the final experience will be inclusive, accessible, and fully centred around the needs of our users.
THE TEAM BEHIND PROTECTRESS VR
Producers: Ngardy Conteh George & Alison Duke, OYA Black Arts Coalition
Narrative Designer, Writer: Sharrae Lyon
Story Development, Writer, Project Coordinator: Valerie Amponsah
UX Designer, Script Editor: Tendisai Cromwell
Music & Sound Designer: Derek Brin
Production Manager: Sara Tekle
Unreal Engine Developer: Władysław “Vlad” Bronowicki
Character Animator: Ivan Yu
Technical Artist: Stephen Kozak
CGI Artist: Val Bachkarova
UI Graphic Designer: Donica Willis, DW Creative
Motion Capture Actress: Celeste Henriques-Powell
Voice Actors: Cortni Jordan (Artemis), Iylah Mohamed (Opening Narration), Arzu Mountain Spirit (Wisdoms), Marlon Brin (Lumberjack)
Additional Percussion: Kobe Aquaa Harrison
Motion Capture Lead: Justin Cathcart, Dark Slope
Motion Capture Production Manager: Wafa Ktaech, Dark Slope
Motion Capture Technician: Nimi Ariel, Dark Slope
Motion Capture Technician Support: Misty Sitcheron, Dark Slope
Program Co-Lead: Laura Mingail, CFC Media Lab
Program Co-Lead: Ngardy Conteh George, OYA Black Arts Coalition
Program Co-Lead: Adrian Driscoll
Prototyping Lead: Karen Vanderborght
Technical Advisor: Joseph Ellsworth, CFC Media Lab
Prototype/Program Mentors: Nataly De Monte, Adrian Driscoll, Dahlia Thompson, Elli Raynai, Evan Jones, Joseph Ellsworth, Justin Cathcart, Nimi Ariel, Kai Little-White, Karen Vanderborght, Kwame Newman-Bremang, Laura Mingail, Magalie Boutin, Ngardy Conteh George, Orla Garriques, Sean Ramsay
