By creating the environment i have done, i hoped to present and portray a mixture of feelings; from fear, trapped, and a feeling of being lost and alone in a world with monsters.

I decided to place the player in a broken down looking shed facing a dimly lit corner, and at first they would think they are alone, but as they focus on the multiple scary sounds playing in the back and the ability to look around at your surroundings the player realizes he is not alone and there are scary things outside and they have their eyes on him.

At first i created and edited the shack to fit the idea i had in my head with the help of multiple prefabs of lamps and dim light bulbs

Then i decorated my platform with multiple scattered zombies,

I then included a night sky box with a cloudy atmosphere

Here is a video of the game play;

https://drive.google.com/open?id=14oQ1dWQG2NZtOCQy5B4Oez3z8BAtQFRM

Reflection/Evaluation: I really enjoyed playing around with Unity and the freedom you have with creating almost anything. I feel like this project, although very simple is something that I am happy about, although I feel like I have yet so many ideas to add such as weather (rain, blizzard, fog) and maybe a winter themed terrain with a campfire.

Here are the files for Unity;

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1MCqwK2y2EwByBLKCeRbreIoLNBGxl2qp

1.Project Description: describe the space you created and the identity you used to guide the design.

For my space that I created, I used several different external assets and Kaplan’s GRE words. I am interested in how VR can be utilized in improving educational learning, and thus I decided to play around with the space that I made in order to create a small prototype of how learning vocabulary can be made easier by placing various GRE words around the space, in accordance to their word groups.

For my space that I created, I used several different external assets and Kaplan’s GRE words. I am interested in how VR can be utilized in improving educational learning, and thus I decided to play around with the space that I made in order to create a small prototype of how learning vocabulary can be made easier by placing various GRE words around the space, in accordance to their word groups.

I decided to use the identity of “abandoned” in order to guide the design. I choose the colors, assets, and texture so that they match the “abandoned” identity. I chose buildings that had somewhat a mysterious feel, rather than any building with a majestic, luxurious-looking façade. In order to create the “abandoned” identity, I wanted to mix nature and human-built objects, and thus, I have placed various rocks and cliffs between the tower and the dome. This is because my image of “abandoned” is usually at the middle ground of nature and man-made, or perhaps, nature is gradually taking over the man-made objects because the objects have been left abandoned for a long period of time.

However, the sense of “abandoned” does not necessary mean that the place is completely dead. Therefore, I placed bushes that are being blown by the wind, and I made the sky color the typical sky color – nothing dark or grey.

2. Process and Implementation: discuss how you built the scene within the development environment and choices you made to stage the space for this particular mode of viewing.

What design decisions did you make to represent the identity (emotion, feeling, mood) and to aim toward the desired effect of it being an alternate world? What guided your composition of the areas in view and what effect were you hoping it might have on the viewer? Feel free to share images or sketches of visual inspiration or reference if you used them.

In order to express the identity of “abandoned” in my design, I decided to unify my scene with dark, gloomy colors for the man-made objects, such as the buildings, tower, and the dome. I accumulated textures that had mostly black, grey, and dark colors so in order to create a mysterious and lonely mood. Even for one building which has a light blue color, there is something about the ratchet texture that makes even the light blue color show its dark side.

I used the below images when brainstorming my idea.

I also chose GRE words which have negative connotations in order to match the identity and the mood of the alternative space that I created.

The following are the word groups that I chose to place in the space:

Group 1: Death/mourning

Bereave, cadaver, defunct, demise, dolorous, elegy

Group 2: Bad Mood

bilious, dudgeon, irascible, pettish

Group 3: Sorrow

elegiac, doleful, disconsolate, lament, dolor, forlorn

As much I want the user to understand and visually memorize the GRE words, I want the user to feel like they are in an abandoned town that is separated from the rest of the world. However, I did not want the user to feel as if they are in a fictional world, and thus I placed objects that are familiar in real life, yet with a feeling of far and distant.

3. Reflection/Evaluation: This should discuss your expectations and goals in the context of the what you felt was achieved with the finished piece.

In the beginning, I was going to compress different scenes with different moods which matched accordingly to the GRE word group. For example, for the GRE word group which roughly all meant “delighted,” I was going to create part of the scene which showed that mood. However, I realized that creating multiple scenes each with different moods was too complicated. Not only that, mixing moods in one space was not a good idea as it would confuse the user. Therefore, I decided to choose to the “abandoned” identity, and bring in various GRE words that had had negative and pessimistic connotations.

If I look at the scene that I have created from the scene view, it seems as if the space is small and enclosed. However, when looking from the actual game view, the scene seems as if it has so much to it. Therefore, I am quite satisfied with the scene that I have created because it fulfills the purpose of trying to help the user visually memorize the GRE words using location sensing.

I would say that one of the challenges I faced in this project was placing the GRE words in the optimal location. Because the GRE words are 2D, whereas everything else is 3D, I had to maneuver the GRE words in a way that they seem as if they are stuck to the building or the rock. It took a quite a bit of time to adjust each and every word because I was trying to place a 2D object with the 3D objects.

Welcome to Nerudia, a mystical land of trees, mountains, and all things mother nature!

Projection Description:

Nerudia is a nature-filled land characterised by its tall hills, bountiful trees, plants and rocks. I’ve chosen “mystical” and “grandiose” as my main direction for the identity of Nerudia.

Process and Implementation:

Knowing that I wanted to create a grandiose effect with tall mountains and hills, I started playing with the terrain feature to experiment with different heights for the ground. I initially built mountains and trees all around but after quickly realizing not all this will be visible from a single point where I put the player, I redesigned it so that the tall hills are on one side. I ensured the other side is more sparsely packed with trees and with shorter ones as well, so as to emphasize the tall hills more and create a contrast between the two. Building contrasting materials is a design strategy that I’ve repeatedly used for this project – emphasizing something and making it pop out more by creating others that are unlike it.

To add to the grandiose component, I decided to add a Mother Tree for Nerudia – an evident landmark that is symbolic of the place. So I placed a giant tree on top of the mountain, so the player can look up from the ground and really feel the power of its size and elevation. Again to make the Mother Tree stand out more, I made sure all the other plants and trees were properly colored green. I also added a Directional Light that lights the hills up from the bottom to brighten up the hills and Mother Tree more.

I also experimented with the color and texture of the mother tree leaves, and eventually went with a glass reflective material I found in the Asset Store. I also decided that color was key to tackling the “mystic” identity. To do this, I looked for various different textures that I could apply to the hills and mountains. I discovered a purple-blue-neon-colored stripes that added lava-like effect to the hills. I was careful not to overuse it and applied it only here and there to build up to the hills and the Mother Tree.

On the other side of the hills, I left the space less dense and only populated it with small plants so the player is not overwhelmed with too many materials around him/her. This relatively empty space was to create some breathing space for the land and the player. I also designed and made some stone-like structures to place around the ground. I also designed and made some stone-like structures to place around the ground.

Reflection/Evaluation:

I think Nerudia turned out quite well and I’m happy with its overall design and aesthetics. I’ve asked for feedback from my friends and they agreed that they felt the “grandiose and mystic” vibes from Nerudia. One friend even commented that she felt like “going on an adventure up the hills.” Designing a concept that suited the identity was central to my goals for this project so I was happy to hear that my friends agreed.

In the beginning, I was struggling with how to convey the “mystical” element because before adding the neon texture, it looked like a normal forest to me. Searching for an interesting texture really helped my concept and I think it played a big role in shaping the identity of Nerudia. Both the color scheme and the use of glass reflective material for the Mother Tree really defined the “alternative world” for me – something that we can identify as making sense but is different from the norm and what we expected. In other words, we would expect to see leaves on trees, but might not anticipate them being made of glass materials. Similiarly, we would expect to see mountains to be green in most cases, not some neon-colored stripes running down the hills.

Project Description

Video demo:  https://youtu.be/eTXNGwPbcrs

Color is an inherent part of some of our daily lives. It can add vibrance or even different moods – a bright yellow can inspire happiness whereas a dark blue can inspire sadness. With this environment, I wanted to explore how the absence of color could affect a mood. I created a forest with a completely desaturated sky and ground, making its identity one that is eerie and spooky.

Process and Implementation

I was initially inspired by the idea of a spooky forest when playing around with the tree building function of Nature Starter Kit 2 since the branches of the trees could be warped in a way that were windy and pointy.

When browsing pictures of spooky forest images, I noticed that a lot of these images were in black and white as if to enhance the creepy effect, hence inspiring me to create a black and white forest to add on to the eerie effect.

In terms of what to put into the actual environment, a lot of my implementation had to do with what I came across in the assets store. I wanted my environment to look a little more realistic, so I kept this in mind when browsing various packages.

The trickiest part was definitely getting the lighting right. I removed the directional light and added fog in order to give the illusion of nighttime, choosing a night setting because night is inherently more spooky than day. However, my biggest struggle was with the skybox. I would try out different materials with different combinations of tint and exposure in order to try and remove the color, however there always seemed to be a slight tinge of color. I eventually realized that I could just edit the saturation out of png images of the panels using a simple photo-editing website (Pixlr), and then place these edited panels into a new skybox material. This finally completely desaturated the sky and gave the effect I was going for.

Reflection/Evaluation

Overall, I think the eerie effect was accomplished because of the absence of most color and the choice to make it nighttime. However, I do think it’s possible that someone could be in this world and feel at peace rather than spooked out, depending on what their feelings towards nighttime forests are. If I were to build upon this, I think I would try and add some animations or sounds in order to enhance the spooky effect. For example, it would be cool to have wind whistling so that the user could perhaps feel “chilled,” and have some leaves rustle in the wind.