Most mixed reality games use room geometry in its raw form, but for this experiment we opted to use it as a template upon which we could build our own virtual environments. Using the headset’s passthrough feature meant that the player could still view and feel connected to their real world surroundings throughout the experience, but we also used the headset’s room geometry capabilities to manipulate this environment. We developed a bespoke ‘voxelizer’ to analyse the triangles of the mesh and create representative blocks that formed the base of our new worlds, a simple but effective visual effect. This meant that the virtual layers, created by the voxelizer, were directly informed by the player’s real physical space.

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Creatively, we wanted to explore the relationship between realities, gradually moving from physical reality to full virtual reality through playful interaction. We liked the idea that the more a player interacts, the more they can unlock - a progressive reward system works well as an engagement mechanic. So we decided to arm them with a range of balls, each with a different capability - some split in two when they hit a surface, some destroy voxels straight away and others combine together in order to cause maximum damage. The real world environment was fully destructible by the player in real time, with no perceivable drop in performance, leaving them surrounded by a multidimensional virtual world at the end of the game.

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With only a few weeks to experiment, we delved into UX rapid prototyping for mixed reality. Collaborative spatial design tools such as Bezi helped us create a number of early iterative interactive prototypes so we could eliminate or prioritise elements before moving on to the proper build. Ultimately, this allowed us to conceptualise our spatial experience ideas in a more focussed and effective way.

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Our whole process was driven by playfulness, knowing that this is a crucial component of successful spatial experiences - but making something fun is much more complex than it appears. It requires striking a delicate balance between setting the right challenges for players while allowing them to develop the skills needed to complete them (known as enabling a ‘flow state’), plus many other intangible things. To accomplish this, we prototyped, experimented and assessed based on the fun factor at each and every stage. After refining our core mechanic to the point where it was enjoyable to play even without any bells and whistles, we then added the juice through animations, styling, VFX and sound to layer the fun on top.

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