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Mixed Reality

LIMBO
ODYSSEY

Collaboration_Lisa Xiao and Shuoyu Zhan




Folly: A Limbo Odyssey delves into the uncharted realms of MR (Mixed Reality), where physical interactions in tangible spaces trigger diverse scenarios in a VR (Virtual Reality) perspective. This project posits virtual space as an alternative to the traditional Euclidean architectural system, presenting a unique, multi-dimensional 'folly'—a term traditionally used to describe ornamental buildings with no specific purpose. Here, however, it acquires a new meaning: a virtual, cross-dimensional construct, shaped and defined by player interaction. Limbo Odyssey invites participants to rethink space and reality, encouraging a collaborative creation that defies conventional architectural constraints.





Mixed Reality_Immersion/Decepetion


Mixed reality, as we understand it, transcends the basic fusion of physical and virtual content—this isn't just a matter of combining the two. In our experience of the physical world, we engage all five senses to construct our understanding of our surroundings. In contrast, virtual environments typically stimulate primarily our visual and auditory senses. Tactile interaction, a crucial element for building a comprehensive cognition, is often overlooked.

The brain's cognition demonstrates a certain inertia. When faced with ambiguous or incomplete information, it has a tendency to fill in gaps using past experiences. This phenomenon paves the way for an intriguing exploration. Our project aims to delve into the realm of visual deception. By integrating physically interactive objects with hyper realistic graphics, we want to make experiences that are not only believable but deeply immersive.




Folly_To be determined
Follies are generally defined as an ornamental structure which has no practical purpose. Its appearance only provides suggestions for possible modes of interaction and inhabitation. The definition of a folly is subjective, lies in the eyes of the beholder. Parc De La Villete, by Bernard Tschumi is a composition of 26 follies scattered over the landscape.Some experience it as a gigantic architecture, while some see it only as some small fascinating structure.It welcomes visitors in every direction, and invites visitors to use it in undetermined ways. The blurred line between interior/exterior, function/event, context/content largely inspired us.




The Portal_Expansion/Redefinition

What if we create a series of interactable mechanisms in the real physical world that act as portals to bridge the physical and the virtual realms together? The participants exist in both worlds at the same time. Using their body as a device, they teleport themselves into the virtual world.  The participants build and expand the folly in the virtual realm, redefine the scope and the function of the physical space.

We started with the most common gestures in life: pulling, pushing, spinning, sliding etc. To our surprise, these hand gestures have similar motions but can have very different meanings depending on the context. We then build up three mechanisms that could respond to most of the gestures we identified, each could lead to at least 2 scenarios that are completely different.  






Physical Mechansim
Vitual Realm Expanded



Narrative_A Heterotopic Life Theatre


When thinking about the architectural typology of our virtual scenes, we decided to adapt our scenes to a theatre stage setup. This virtual experience is essentially a replay of a person’s life journey as the participant is teleported into different stages of a person’s life and gets glimpses of each setting. So, we want this immersive experience to be a bit dream-like and we tried to explore a new spatial dimension in virtual reality and break the conventional euclidean concept of three dimensionality of physical space. Every virtual scene contains three spatial layers, with the outermost layer being the theatre setting, implying that all of these scenarios are just acts happening on the stage. The second layer is the spatial setup related specifically to the stage of life we are viewing. They usually represent mundane spaces which exist in shared memory like parks, classrooms or tube carriages. However, this mundane space is disrupted by heterotopic elements which creates a sense of surrealism to further reinforce the fragmented quality of these dream-like scenes. The juxtaposition between the hero asset and the scene construct challenges real-world rules about scale, structure and the relationship between interior and exterior.




Final Showreel