What if laughter was a weapon? What if teasing could be an art form? What if the power of playfulness could change the world? Meet Tickle—iMyth’s first Hero, and a force to be reckoned with.
Tickle bends reality with her own invention: tickle bending—a mysterious skill that makes people feel like they’re being playfully tickled, without ever being touched. Sassy, fearless, and sharp-witted, she turns every encounter into a game, using humor and mischief to outsmart even the toughest opponents. But beneath her cocky bravado lies a heart searching for something deeper—significance, connection, and a way to rise above her past.
Born Thi Beiphong, Tickle’s early life was shaped by comparison—overshadowed by her sisters’ brilliance and abandoned by the people who should have loved her most. She reinvented herself, crafting a skill no one else could master, carving out an identity that was truly her own. Now, as the go-to problem-solver in the city’s underworld, she walks a fine line between chaos and heroism. She may be a trickster, but her ultimate goal? To make the world a little brighter, one laugh at a time.
Tickle isn’t just a character—she’s an experience. And soon, through iMyth Heroes, you’ll be able to meet her yourself. Ready to step into her world and see what tricks she has up her sleeve? Join the adventure today.
Imagine standing in your own living room, talking to your favorite hero—an interactive, fully immersive character that remembers your name, responds to your emotions, and invites you on a journey beyond your wildest dreams. This isn’t the future; this is iMyth Heroes, and it’s happening now.
At iMyth, we are pushing the boundaries of storytelling by blending augmented reality, interactivity, and deep character engagement. Our mission is simple yet groundbreaking: to bring happiness and wonder to children of all ages by making their dreams come alive in the palm of their hands.
Breaking the Barriers of Traditional Entertainment
For decades, books, movies, and video games have transported us into incredible story worlds—but they have always remained static, unable to react to who we are as individuals. With iMyth Heroes, that changes. By integrating cutting-edge AI and augmented reality, we create dynamic, real-time experiences where:
You are the protagonist – Every child (or child-at-heart) is the hero of their own story.
Your choices matter – Conversations with iMyth Heroes aren’t scripted; they’re interactive and personal.
The world responds to you – Our characters learn, adapt, and grow alongside their users, making each experience unique.
The Road Ahead: What’s Next for iMyth Heroes?
Our journey is just beginning. We are actively refining our first commercial product and collaborating with partners who share our vision. Here’s what’s on the horizon:
More heroes, more adventures – New characters from beloved stories and original worlds are coming soon.
Expanded interactivity – Enhanced voice recognition and deeper storytelling mechanics.
Global reach – Bringing iMyth Heroes to children everywhere, in multiple languages and cultures.
Join the iMyth Revolution
We believe in the power of storytelling to inspire, uplift, and transform lives. And we want you to be part of this journey. Whether you’re a supporter, collaborator, or potential co-founder, your contributions help shape the next generation of interactive storytelling.
? Stay connected, explore opportunities, and help us bring magic to the world by following this link and registering with iMyth.
I like to stay abreast with technological developments which not only advance location-based entertainment but interactive storytelling as well. This new announcement from Disney sounds interesting. Disney research just filed a patent for a new head mounted display(HMD) and a gizmo which is referred to as an “Air Flow Generator”. I have no information about the HMD but the air-flow generator sounds interesting.
This air-flow generator evidently generates gusts of directed airfields which can be used to simulate the haptic sensation of the movement of a virtual object such as sword swinging, animal moving etc. In addition, the generator can also manipulate the smell of the generated air gusts to simulate particular smells such as the smell of soil, smell of flower, etc.
For sure there are many other air field generators, (fans), which can be actuated by trigger events within an experience. However, these have always been very “low frequency, high amplitude”, for lack of better terms, sensations. This generator sounds very localized and directed. There have also been other manufacturers of HMD attachments promising custom generated scents. This gizmo, as an external generator, promotes more of a collaborative, shared experience. The Void produces similar sensations in their experiences. I am unfamiliar with their technology.
In a conversation with an Imagineer many years ago, I think Disney is on to a product which can really contribute to large scale experiences. He told me exactly how such a gizmo exactly like this could be implemented. Maybe he decided to have Disney research actually implement it?
If this product is what I think it is then I believe it could make a significant contribution for the location-based entertainment market. An apparatus such as this could not be marketed for home use. If location-based immersive experiences are to be bigger, bolder and more fantastic than home based experiences, then this technology could aid in widening the gap between home and location-based. Of course there is a huge dependency on how reconfigurable this device is. However, if it fully reconfigurable and “dynamic”, then it will contribute to an experience that is physical, collaborative and highly memorable, (Always unique) – Just what the iMyth team ordered.
Before this posting I have never seen or heard of Boom Town before. It sounds a bit like an English variation of Burning Man mixed in with a music Festival. Music Festivals are wonderful immersive experiences. I love how Boom Town is a theme world integrated with the festival. I wonder if the theme world changes each year they put this festival together.
As far as iMyth is concerned, I think it would be awesome to empower participants to participate in an immersive theme world, such as Boom Town. With the magic of the internet, participants may choose how they interact with the theme world; actively, semi-actively or passively.
The most dramatic method would be active. Participants would be required to go to an immersive theme world arena, such as iMyth, put on the immersive equipment and jump into the fun. They would be able to physically act and react and participate with all of the sensory stimuli the theme world has to offer. Folks who participate in this method are the most adventurous and crave the most interactive of all experiences.
Semi-actively, participants could join in the fun from their mobile devices or from their home computers. They will be able to experience the theme world from personal based HMDs such as Oculus, Vive, or even Magic Leap. The important aspect is that the participants would not be required to participate from an immersive theme world arena. However, they will not be able to Physically participate. They will contribute to the experience as interactors or non-physical participants. Folks who participate at this level may not be able to physically participate in an iMyth arena. They may simply wish to not interact as deeply; metaphorically wading into the water instead of diving in.
The third option is to participate passively. Restricted once again to a mobile device or home computer, the participant will not be required to employ a visualization device, (HMD), but could view the activities of the theme world from their phone screen or monitor. The view options of this passive perspective are unlimited. However, the amount of interactivity and immersion are also the least. This perspective is for folks who wish to watch on the sidelines and sample the experience before venturing in deeper.
Festivals such as Boom Town are an inspiring goal of where immersive theme worlds can get to. Since iMyth experience can exist on all three levels of interactivity and immersion, they might actually be able to become something even larger. This of course will need to be explored further once immersive theme worlds start gaining traction.
Wow! It’s been a long time since I’ve contributed to the iMyth Blog site. It’s time to fire up the Furnace and get cooking again! This time it’s not about reporting about another article or another development but to support a concept that has pushed iMyth from the very beginning.
iMyth is built on three tenets; Physical, Social and unrepeatable. I’m writing this article to support the first and third tenets, phsyicality and non-repeatability. The support for this comes from an article written by Harry Baker for UploadVR, Two-Bit Circus Maze.
In Harry’s article, he talks about the Maze created by Treyarch/Ubisoft for the indoor amusement park of the future, Two Bit Circus. While this maze is nothing new or revolutionary, I really am drawn to two aspects about the article. The first aspect is that the maze was created with two facades; the mine/maze filled with skeletons and minotaurs and the second filled with iconic Rabids. The experience is basically the same except the experience can be a little more tame or less frightening, depending on the demeanor of the participant. iMyth has always supported an experience that changes dynamically in order to conform to the individual in order to provide them with a “rewarding” immersive experience. This will continue to be something iMyth focuses on. It is confirming to know that a funded immersive experience, Two Bit circus, also stands for the same concept.
The second tenet, physicality, seems like an unintentional element at Two Bit but really seemed to capture the attention of the article writer, Harry Baker. To quote his article, “For me, I find VR experiences that intersect with physical space and location really interesting. When I’m playing VR, immersion is everything for me. The more immersed I am, the more I enjoy the experience. To be able to walk through a physical space and feel the walls, the wind and feel like I’m in an elevator made the experience notably better. Had I completed the maze in an open-plan room with no walls or physical alterations, it just wouldn’t have been the same.“
I see this inclusion as further conformation that physicality is and will continue to be a significant contribution to the overall quality of an immersive experience. While I myself would not call the sensation ‘immersion’ but rather ‘presence’. Presence, as defined by philosopher Mel Slater, is the willful suspension of disbelief in the presence of an understood pretentious situation. Presence will continue to be an iMyth objective and physicalness will continue to be one of its primary focuses.
It’s been over two years since iMyth performed it’s last presentation of “The Courier,” and I have not scene a location based theme world experience like it since, until now. The folks at Madison Wells Media have created a location-based, Mixed Reality amazing interpretation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol called Chained. I have not been able to participate in Chained myself. Unless MWM Media decides to come to Orlando to give a few performances I don’ think I’l be able to partake. None the less. I understand exactly what they are doing. I found out about the experience through the Verge Article, “Chained mixes virtual reality and live actors to tell a dark Christmas tale.”
Created by Justin Denton, Chained seems to be doing everything correct. The experience takes place on a motion capture stage complete with props and set pieces. Actors and actress from immersive theatre done Motion Capture suites and become interactors in the 20-minute-ish. experience. I have to use the term “around 20 minutes” since each performance is an improvisation and every experience is unique, co-authored with each participant. “Combining a scripted show with on-the-fly moments of improvisation and customization allows the story to remain fixed, while still ensuring each participant’s individual experience will be unique. That approach also extends to the show’s pacing and structure. Rather than having the entire piece run on a timed loop, some individual scenes and transitions are triggered by an on-site stage manager, while others are activated by the way the participant handles certain props. When meeting the Spirit of Christmas Present, for example, I was handed an apple; placing that item on a table in the room triggered the next beat in the scene.”
Within the experience, bony arms and hands reach out and touch the participant, pulling them into the experience, amplifying their presence. “Chained demonstrates how live performers can allow virtual experiences to become more personalized than they would if an audience member was just watching an automated digital character moving along programmed rails. The actors can change their performance, cadence, and approach based on participants’ behavior.”
“Chained” is seen as a prototype event, very much like “The Courier.” The experience, which is to be expected, did have its flaws, “As with any production that’s experimenting and pushing boundaries, some moments that work better than others. At one point, I’m pretty sure I nearly stepped on Bates as he tried to secretly crawl away during a scene transition. At other points, it appeared a character was looking down at my chest rather than meeting my eyes.” As the iMyth experience demonstrated that these early immersive experiences do have their mistakes. However, having live interactors does an amazing job anchoring the participant’s presence in spite of the goofs and less than perfect executed sequences.
The one key factor that “Chained” has that “Courier” didn’t is multiple performances with multiple participants. Running the experience through with hundreds of willing participants really helps iron the wrinkles of a new concept, “When you run lots and lots of audience members through, you really learn a lot, and we’ll make it better and more seamless and more comfortable for people throughout the process.”
I’m very excited for Chainedand I hope it creates a strong media buzz. The more positive attention it bring the more likely iMyth will be able to create more immersive theme world experiences!
Update: 12/12/18
I just found this CNET web article about Chained.
From the web article it is a bit difficult to tell just what the journalist’s perspective of the entire experience is. She does seem impressed however with the feeling of presence and Being There when she knows it is not real.
In this podcast the announcer interviews Chris Perkins, Master Dungeon Master and Head Story Creator for Dungeons and Dragons. During the interview they discuss why Dungeons & Dragons is such an effective collaborative storytelling medium and how VR and technology in general can not quite live up to those demands.
I am inspired by this interview. First it explains exactly where VR needs to be in order to generate a rewarding experience similar to Dungeons and Dragons. Even more importantly the interview helps explain some of the methodologies of what iMyth is trying to achieve and why they are important.
One of the comments made near the end of the interview is that whenever Chris Perkins put on the VR headset he was experiencing a situation from someone else’s perspective. He was looking forward to the opportunity to experience that same situation but from his perspective. The individual perspective is what makes the experience memorable and live on in the accounts told about the experience. I can’t help but feel this is the essence of what collaborative storytelling/experiences are all about.
I have not gone through all of the sub-links and articles but there is a lot of talk of combing games with traditional media but not a whole lot of substance.
A couple of web article have come out over the last couple days which are really inspiring.
In a few days, Activity on this web site will slow down in favor for the development of the iMyth experience. The iMyth experience is exactly just that, an immersive, theme world experience. This is not a game. This is not a story. However, this doesn’t mean that one cannot derive narrative or a competitive score while immersed in the experience. These are serendipitous bi-products which may occur but are never the primary focus.
Evidence of this is expressed in the Upload to VR article, What the Billionaire saw in the Void. Instead of focusing on the sensational aspects of the experience, the article focus closer on the experiential side effects. There is a great quote in the article form Curtis Hickman, the lead designer for the experience, “People in The Void don’t want to rush, they want to take their time and absorb the experience,” Hickman said. “The Void is the exact opposite of where the rest of VR seems to be heading. We don’t see ourselves as making games, we see ourselves as making experiences.”
In an entirely unrelated article, also from Upload to VR, The VR Scene Is Growing and Getting Weirder, there is a very interesting documentary about legendary film maker Phil Tippet and his experience with VR. In A nutshell, the video displayed Tippet encountering the VR media as less of a story telling devise as an experiential generator. In fact, there was a point in the interview where he found it necessary to abandon linear narrative entirely in lieu of the opportunity presented by this new media format.
