Looking back, I see this development journey as a continuous evolution from details and storytelling into focusing on challenges and motivation. When I started, I was concentrating on finding a way to present the CBOW and the topic, but I am ending the project thinking mostly about how to motivate and engage the participant, letting the topic take second place. Since motivating the participant to reflect and potentially change is the main goal for the intended VR experience, the most important success factor is to ensure that the participant spends time interacting with the material. If the VR experience does not invite to an engaging user journey, then the participant might not explore the material fully, and the intended reflection cannot take place.

I have also realized that my change of focus has resulted in a gradual removal of facts and realism in the concepts. The exploration started with thoughts about filming and volumetric capture. However, the second concept changed to animation, the third limited information to separate lab environments and the fourth only presented an otherworldly landscape. The reason was a wish to remove distractions to the participant’s personal reflection. I also wished to avoid triggering any unconscious biases.

This evolution away from facts has resulted in the concepts growing increasingly intimate. Where the first concept offered the participant the role of a passive observer, the second the role of an exploring visitor, the third concept tried to place the participant inside of their own ‘Soul space’. Finally, the fourth concept immerses the participant is completely into water, with the experience indicating that the environment is directly affecting the participant’s survival.

I do not think that these two development trends are inter-related, but they both serve to centre the attention of the participant on their personal situation and individual reflection.

The development process has ended up as a continuous process of removing control over the storytelling from the creator and replacing it with more agency for the participant

From simulation to stimulation

Motivating and avoiding distractions are challenges for all VR experiences, whether intended for entertainment or educational purposes. However, when presenting non-fiction issues and wishing to generate reflection that can motivate empathy and change, the experience must also take the initial opinions of the participant into consideration. Is it even possible to create a VR experience that will be relevant for anyone experiencing it – regardless of their background, cultural affiliation, or potential prejudices?

As discussed in the text “Empathy and simulation” in the library, both VR experiences and interactive simulations can be efficient at creating empathy. However, simulations place the participant in the role of a different person, giving the participant a personal demonstration of another human being’s situation.

The development in this artistic research project resulted in concept four, “Otherself”, which is attempting to focus the participant’s reflection and user journey onto their own decision-making processes.