On Tue, 23 May 1995 rayn@crossaccess.com wrote:
> Not sure if someone mentioned something similar to that (I think so,
> and I dont have web access right now so I'll be obnoxious an mail
> anyway without checking) but it was something that formulated in my
> little peabrain as the hamlet disccussion went around. Just this image
> of walking down the street in denmark to see the scene where Ophelia
> is talking to her father, with this translucent red line in space
> telling me where the builder thinks I should be standing...
I think this is an interesting way to try to get the user to "move along"
in the play, and be at the right place at the right time, but I have two
criticisms.
The spirit of theater is the effect that it has in the audience. The main
quality of this effect is that the audience is drawn in and forgets they
are sitting in a seat. They become part of the creation of the moment. A
set plot in a popular play is helpful, in that the audience has a good
chance of knowing what is about to happen. This effect is somewhat
destroyed by these "clues" being suggested here. Having to follow a
glowing ball of light around, and look for lines to stand behind takes
the person's head out of the play.
But that is merely an implementation issue. Is the concept of the
"clues" inherently flawed for the purpose of maintaining immersion, or
just the implementation. I feel that once a user got use to the hints,
they would not detract from the immersion any more that window borders
do. (although arguably, window borders do ;) It becomes a matter of
processing the information, and once you adapt to processing a form of
information, it becomes easier to become immersed. I've been quite
immersed in text, as much so as movies and plays, and things like page
numbers and chapter headings don't destroy my immersion ;) This
especially applies to play reading... Once you get into the play, you
(or at least I) stop noticing things like the stage directions and
speaker names, and build a mental image that incorporates these in a,
well virtual play.
The other thing is an assumption I think you may have made. The actors
are not human, so they can wait until the person arrives at the right
point in order to start the scene. If the viewer takes a couple of hours
to get there, that should not matter, therefore, pacing is not needed.
The rule that the destination should be controlled is easy to enforce
without providing out-of-context clues. You just fix it so that the only
path open to the viewer is the one that leads to the next scene.
Actually, I think this is an assumption you're making. I addressed two
types of VR in the first part of my mail, the interactive multi-user
type and the CD-ROM type. I personally get bored with CD-ROM games in
a few hours, the current level of AI is not enough to hold my
interest, so I will admit this is a bias towards the first, but I
*did* mention both, and highlighted advantages and disadvantages of each...
The above scenario assumes there is only one person, or group of
cooperating people who are viewing the play. This is why I keep bringing
up the idea of VR on CD-ROM (or a dedicated server). I am also assuming
that the play can be adapted so that the timeline is not broken by a
viewer who is taking a lot of time to move between scenes. A play about
the Battle of Trafalgar may seem kind of disjointed if it takes the viewer
two hours to follow the group of officers carrying the wounded Lord Nelson
below decks. I suppose the play could be written to switch into background
mode while the viewer dawdles. The actors could sit and pat Nelson's hand,
treat his wounds, and the gunners could keep firing away. More shells
landing on deck may be an interesting hint to the viewer that it's time to
head below. Once the viewer is in position, then the significant lines
could be delivered. Of course once this begins to happen, the viewer would
have to be prevented from leaving the area. A smaller viewing area would
also free up server resources, since less could be seen, and less would
have to be rendered.
This is what prompted my initial letter. What do we really mean by an
immersive environment? From my viewpoint, Myst with HMD immersion
isn't enough. I prefer the virtual world that runs regardless of my
attention, which is what the "hints" idea is aimed at. In a single
user play-vr scenario the time games are more appropriate.
An interesting concept was presented in "The Langoliers". Once we have
passed through a point in time, everything begins to deteriorate, until
there is nothing left. This effect would clue the viewer in to the idea
that they have to move on to the next place in order to stay with the
action. It would also free up server resources to concentrate on the
rendering of the active portion of the play. If the viewer does not get
the hint, we could always write it so that the final thing to be removed
is the floor, which then allows them to drop into the correct viewing area
in the next scene. "Move it, or lose it."
But this loses some of the "what was happening in the city while the
duel was going on?" effect. It also somewhat kills the type of thing
that happens in _Rozencrantz&Guildenstern_ I think, because it assumes
that the directors interest is all that is interesting, which is why I
offered providing clues and not rigid rules (move it or lose it;).
Much of what is being suggested here is new, compared to the traditional
methods for presenting plays. Personally, I think the effect of the
director would have a much smaller role in a VR play, in relation to
pacing and point of view. I think I would like to see Hamlet, and
possibly have time to wander around for a few minutes between scenes.
This is a new medium, being created as we watch. Most of what will become
commonplace is only now being discussed for the first time. Some of what
is currently expected will not be transferred to the new medium, but will
continue to exist in the traditional forms.
Yes, I think a lot of my viewpoint is biased by my non-theater
leaning. I'm not as interested in making VR plays as virtual worlds,
and I'll quickly say that this doesn't mean one is better than the other :)
Ray