Immersive Storyworld (aka. Virtual Amusement Park)
The Immersive Storyworld has two immediate ambitions. The first is to provide an engrossing interactive story experience. The second is to create a transmedia storyworld from the immersive experience.
The Immersive Storyworld facility is divided into two areas; the lounge and the storyworld Stage. One facility may be equipped with more than one stage. However,for simplification, all of the unique stages may be considered as one large unified stage. Inside the lounge, spectators may interact with each other and watch video displays. The video monitors display the storyworld’s interpretation of guests’ activities inside the stage. Certain guests viewing the activities may have a limited amount of interaction with the guests in the storyworld. However, this will be described later.
All activity inside the storyworld and all that is displayed outside is monitored and controlled by the storyworld engine(swe). All environments, characters and story elements are pre-installed into the swe. The swe captures the activities of the player characters in the stage and re-creates them virtually in a stylized representation set forth by the storyworld designer. That representation is fed back to the player characters to generate their perception of the storyworld. The representation is also processed and displayed by the swe to guests in the Lounge. All elements defining each storyworld are stored in the swe. All events occurring within the storyworld stage are recorded. The swe may replay any scenario of the storyworld any number of times. All perception of the storyworld must be through the swe.
Guests participating in the storyworld stage are called player characters. Player characters have no direct, real world communication with other guests. Instead they are bound to the communication interface set by the storyworld designer. Each player character is equipped with a headset, earphones and a motion tracking suite. The headset displays the storyworld’s visual interpretation of the stage and all characters contained within. The earphones supply the audio interpretation of the storyworld and its inhabitants. The motion tracking suite enables the swe to monitor and track the exact position and orientation of the player characters. More sophisticated versions of the tracking suite will be able to track facial motion and expressions. All speech and motion of the player are sampled and saved by the swe.
The storyworld stage is constructed like a generic motion picture or stage set. Platforms, walls, stairs, doors and variably shaped objects behave as the physical environment for the player characters. However, the appearance of the real world stages are not how guests perceive them. The positions and orientations of the environments have been pre-installed into the swe. The swe recreates the appearance of the environment in the designer’ stylized interpretation. This new appearance is displayed in the character players’ headsets and the guests’ displays in the lounge.
The swe takes the recorded player position and orientation of a player character and transforms him into a stylized storyworld denizen. The storyworld interpretation of denizens is how other players and guests perceives each player character. Just as the swe re-interprets the contents of the stage, so too are the player characters. If a player character looks at himself in a storyworld mirror, he would not see himself wearing a motion suit and headset but a unique, stylized denizen of the storyworld.
The player characters’ environment is a stylized interpretation of the storyworld stage. The swe takes the fundamental physical characteristics of the stage and, using style guides, templates and grammar based rules, transforms into a virtual storyworld. Similarly, the players characters’ actions and movements are transformed by the swe with the same grammar based rules to generated integrated, naturally looking characters.
All changes in the storyworld, both concerning the characters and the environment, are recorded by the swe. The swe renders a 3D representation of the storyworld as observed from the perspective of the player character. That 3D representation is then displayed in the headset of the player. Thus even though each player is observing the same storyworld, no two perspectives are the same. The reality of the storyworld is generated uniquely per player. This enables each player to perceive the reality of the storyworld with an altered consciousness based on the players’ emotional, physical and spiritual state. Just as a the storyworld can be viewed from any players’ perspective, then so too may the world be observed from any perspective. Active and passive spectators can observe the activities of the storyworld from an unlimited number of entertaining and informative perspectives. Similarly, just as the perspectives of the players may be manipulated by the swe, then so too may any of the spectator perspectives.
The storyworld stage is created from a composite of re-configurable stage elements. These elements can be any physical structure such as floors, walls, ceilings, stairs, doors, windows, railings, drop-offs, hills, roads, rocks, etc. Any possible structure, both man made and natural, can be represented. Other than shape, size and density, these structures contain no other identifiable detail. The swe will supply all detail when the storyworld is generated for the observer. The position and orientation of the structures must be pre-established to maintain parity with the representation stored within the swe. This will guarantee one to one correspondence between what the players observe and what the swe controls. Movable structures such as props,(window sills, weapons, rocks, vehicles, etc.), must be tracked by the swe at all times, insuring prop integrity from all perspectives. Tactile features such softness vs. hardness, heat vs warmth will need to be worked out as technology continues to develop.
All structures in the storyworld stage need to be re-configurable for two reasons. The first is they may change during course of a player’s story. The storyworld stage is meant to be experienced multiple times by many guests. Therefore, once a player is finished with a particular stage, that stage must return to its exact same configuration before the next player character starts. This insures all player characters starting from a similar starting point and giving the swe an opportunity to reset the storyworld to its original configuration. The second reason is the inter-changeable nature of the storyworld stage itself. Once an individual stage has finished it’s utility, it can be reconfigured with other elements from different stages to construct brand new stages. The components of the stage need to be recyclable. Of course, certain “one-off” components will be needed from time to time. However, if the bulk of the stage components are re-usable then stages become portable and scalable.
Since all structures must be tracked by the swe then anything that can possibly change should be considered a character. Players should be considered as “Player Characters”. Props and other mobile structures should be considered as “Prop Characters”. Walls, platforms, ceilings and other structures should be considered as “Static Characters”.
Player characters in the storyworld perceive themselves to be stylized characters in the virtual landscape. Player characters observe other characters the same way they observe themselves. Similarly, all non-player characters are represented in the same stylized fashion. Player characters, co-players and NPC’s are all denizens of the storyworld. A player character should not be able to differentiate other co-players from NPC’s. Similarly, other players will not be able to differentiate the player characters from other NPC’s.
Since all characters appear in the same stylized fashion, the real world location of the guests is irrelevant. Multiple player characters may share a stage location. However, one guest may be participating with another player 2000 miles away in the similar stage configuration. Guests will not be able to differentiate other player characters from NPC’s. Similarly, a player character will not be aware of the real physical location of other characters or NPC’s. As long as guests can interact with each other in the virtual landscape of the storyworld, there should be no limitations to the player characters’ ability to interact. Physical contact and all stimulation related to touch and feel are more challenging issues and will need to be resolved at a future date. Some props can be configured dynamically in order to provide some kind of physical resistance incited by other players or NPC’s. For example, slamming or striking into another person or object should provide realistic resistance. However, anything requiring more intimacy will need to be worked out.
An interactive storyworld may be a vast, galaxy sized epic spanning thousands of generations. However, it may also be the size of a broom closet existing for a five minute short story. The choice is made by the storyworld designer. The stages are configured to correspond to one chapter or scene in the master storyworld. The storyworld designer may choose to lay down all chapters of a story in one location. The swe keeps track of all events. This information can be passed to the next chapter or scene in the master story. Similarly, individuals can re-experience that portion of the storyworld multiple times. The swe keeps track of each and every session and makes the information available for any guest to review. Regretfully, all active player characters may not be available to recreate a session. Other player characters’ recorded activities will be played back through NPC’s. The player character should not be able to identify the difference.
The active story is the state of the storyworld narrative during the player characters’ experience. This active story can be experienced through three perspectives; active, passive and omniscient. The active perspective is viewed from the eyes of the characters in the storyworld. Any character can be “played” by any playing guest. The player has full control over the character and all activities of that character are recorded. If desired, they can play through the perspective of a Non-Player Character. There may be certain limitations to ensure the NPC fulfills his responsibilities. This may manifest itself as the character not being able to perform certain activities unless certain “objectives” are accomplished first.
The second perspective is the passive or the cinematic perspective. In this situation the guest has no control, no influence and no involvement in the activities of the storyworld. They are pure observers. Their perspective is not driven from the characters but from the cinematic direction of the storyworld designer. The goal of the designer is to produce the most effective and entertaining story experience. They choose the camera perspectives, music and sound effects and the chronological order of the viewed scenes. This creates an experience very similar to watching a film or television show. The only difference is that when viewing the storyworld, the activities of the characters are less contrived and open to serendipity. Guests in the lounge are treated to this cinematic perspective. If a guest wishes to experience the storyworld without some kind of participation, this is the best alternative. Versions of the cinematic are available for review and for posting on social media.
The third storyworld perspective is the god-like omniscient perspective. The guest may view the storyworld from any possible perspective, including the non-rendered, “real world” perspective. Similarly, the guest is not limited to just one sequence of actions. If there are multiple variations of the storyworld occurring consecutively, the guest may “switch between channels”, choosing which occurrence to observe. From this omniscient perspective, the guest has no direct control over any character or environment but may “influence” their behavior. Depending on the freedom allotted by the storyworld designer, the guest may change the behavior, placement or functionality of any storyworld variable excluding those controlled by active guests. Allowing this perspective adds an extra dimension of variability and randomness to the active guest experience. It may be used to alter the mood, tone or theme of the scene. This may be done to make the experience harder or easier or with the intention to keep player characters confused and always on their toes.
During a session of the storyworld, all perspectives are not only viewable but they are recordable, playable and able to be up-loaded on any social media. This empowers the story to continue from the storyworld stage and into the perspectives of the active and passive participants. Thus any scenario may be viewed from any perspective at any time by any third party. The intention of this is to create stories about the storyworld experiences. Over time the second hand stories may become more popular than the first-hand experiences.
The installation of a storyworld stage is intended to be temporary. Just as films and museum exhibits travel and move from venue to venue, so too do the individual storyworld stages. An individual set may be part of a larger story. In order to experience the entire story, guests may be required to participate in each installment. Certain facilities may be unable to entertain certain storyworld installments. Thus these can only be experienced at the locations equipped to handle them. Temporary installments create urgency for player participation. Without limited engagements, some guests may be less motivated to visit which translates to bad business for the location. The size and sophistication of a facility may control the number of storyworld experiences it can house. There may be multiple active storyworld experiences occurring at the same time in any one location. Similar to a movie studio, movie theater or museum, a single facility can house multiple storyworld stages concurrently.