UWAS-C0056 - Designing and Creating Virtual Worlds, Lecture, 1.11.2021-13.12.2021

Topic outline

• General
  Participants learn the basics of designing and implementing a virtual world. The presentations in the course touch on a diversity topics related to the process of design: 1. Cultural history of virtual reality and anthropology of the human senses; 2. Information architecture, content domain development and making a production schedule 3. Scenario design, storyboarding; and user studies research 4. Interaction design, user interface and narrative; 5. Using sound for storytelling. We also touch, albeit not as deeply as might be the case in a longer course, on critical issues regarding the use of immersive technologies.
  

  
  

  WHAT THE COURSE IS ABOUT (IN A NUTSHELL)
  

  • Basics of designing and implementing a virtual world
    
  • Cultural history of virtual reality 
    

  
  

  WHAT THE COURSE IS NOT ABOUT 

  • Introduction to Unity 3D (see Game Design and Production)
    
  • No other VR frameworks, e.g., VRTK, OpenVR, AR framework …
    
  • 3D Modeling and Animation (see Animation for Games and VR D)
    
  • Spatial Sound (see Immersive Sound)
    
  • HCI principles (see Human-Computer Interaction)
    
  • Bigger VR projects (see Independent Study in VR)
    

  
  

  RESOURCES

  Literature

  • Bucher, J. (2018). Storytelling for Virtual Reality, Methods and Principles for Crafting Immersive Narratives, New York and London: Routledge.
  • Haynes, P. (2001). How We Became Posthuman: Virtual Bodies in Cybernetics, Literature and Informatics by N. Katherine Hayles. Body & Society, 7(4), 105-108.
  • Jerald, J. (2015). The VR book: Human-centered design for virtual reality. Morgan & Claypool.
  • Salter, C. (2011). Entangled: Technology and the transformation of performance, Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
  • Slater, M., Wilbur, S. (1997). "A framework for immersive virtual environments five: Speculations on the role of presence in virtual environments", Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, Volume 6, Issue 6, December 1997 pp. 603–616, https://doi.org/10.1162/pres.1997.6.6.603

  
  

  Podcasts

  • Kent Bye - voicesofvr.com

   

  Steam VR experiences (available in the VR Hub)

  • Museum of Other Realities: Alex’s Sci
    
  • Dreams of Dali
    
  • The Isle of the Dead
    
  • The Dawn of Art 

  
  

  Mozilla Hubs experiences

  • Feelings: https://hubs.mozilla.com/TqygwLx/feelings/
    
  • Lockdown lobby: https://hubs.mozilla.com/eLfHrrt/lockdown-lobby/
    
  • Ars Electronica 2020: https://www.keplersgardens.info/

  
  

  Other
  

  Monika Bielskyte’s talks related to futurism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixg7e1fWdM0&ab_channel=GoogleDesign
  
  
  Tutorials
  
  

  • Setting up the Oculus Quest for use: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVkivmMKikU&ab_channel=VirtualRealityOasis 
    
  • Introduction to Mozilla Hubs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QnOsyyebEQ&t=847s&ab_channel=MozillaHubs 
  • How to create Hubs scenes (virtual worlds) using Mozilla Spoke: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUECN5fEN-o&t=637s&ab_channel=BenKreimer 
  • Basics of using Google Blocks in VR: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2KByucQ7zk&ab_channel=Annadreambrush
  • Using blender to convert fbx or obj to glb for Mozilla Hubs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpDbcxtxxpM&ab_channel=ExpandedMedia 

  
  
  RULES FOR USING ZOOM:
  

  • All the sessions are recorded and uploaded to mycourses for the participants.
  • Join the sessions using the Zoom App on your device rather than via a weblink.
  • Please ensure that your microphone is on mute while others are speaking.
  • Use the “hand raise” feature whenever you wish to speak.
  • Post your questions and/or comments using the chat and they will be addressed.
  • Preferably keep the camera open while speaking.
  • While entering the Mozilla Hubs scene, ensure that your zoom microphone is muted and the only Hubs microphone is on.

  
  

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