Category: Interaction Lab

1. Gold Miner

Basically, this project is a game that imitates the job of the gold miners. And here is an image of this original game that we found online. 

In the game, the hook would rotate automatically and the value of the gold depends on the size of it. What you need to do is to press the DOWN key when the hook is aligned with the gold. The hook will go down and catch the gold and you can get money depending on the gold you just got. But if you don’t align, the hook will still extend, and you’ll waste time waiting for the hook to retract. The time of every round is fixed. So you need to achieve the goal in a certain time. Otherwise, you’ll lose. Moreover, you can buy some tools to help you to achieve the goal in the next round. This game can teach kids how to manage money because if they spend too much money buying helpful tools, you may not succeed get enough money to get into the next round. And the players need to make decisions about which gold to get in order to achieve the goal in time. Besides, the original game is not so interactive because all the only interactive part in the game is to click the DOWN key to release the hook. Thus, we want to make it more interesting and interactive. For example, we can make a device that is similar to the machine in the game. You need to rotate the rocker to release the hook. Hence, the user experience can be interesting in this case. Thus, the most two challenging parts are to complete the game by using Processing and to create the rocker device. On the one hand, the game that we write determines whether the project itself is interesting or not. On the other hand, the device we created determines whether the user experience is interesting or not. 

2. Scream ！

This project would be adapted from a game called “Don’t Stop Eighth Note”. And here is a video of how to play this game. 

Basically, you need to shout to let the character move or jump. For example, if you just want the character to move forward, you just need to speak with a low volume of voice. If the character meets with a gap that requires you to jump to cross it, you need to shout with a high volume of voice. The louder you shout, the higher and the longer the character can jump. Besides, the score of the game depends on the distance the character has moved. However, the original game is not too challenging because if you keep shouting at a high volume, the character can always float on the sky and never come down. In this way, you can get a high score of the game easily. Thus, we are trying to add some improvement to make the game more interesting and challenging. Moreover, nowadays, people can feel pressure from anywhere but they don’t have a place to release their pressure. Thus, this game is a good way to release your pressure and you can have an enjoyable experience after playing it. Therefore, the trajectory of our project is to write the game first and consider what improvement we can add as well as in what ways people can interact with it. If we can make this project, it will be a good way for people to shout out to release their pressure. 

3. Aircraft war

This project is an improved game based on my partner’s previous work. And this is a video about his previous work. 

In his game, you can only control the direction to attack and control whether to shoot or not. However, it is a little boring to play by pressing some keys on the keyboard.  So we decide to make it an aircraft war game. The user can control an aircraft to attack the enemies. In this sense, we can use two buttons to imitate the accelerators of the aircraft. And the user needs to use his feet to tread the buttons to control the position of the aircraft. And the experience is like the user is actually sitting in the aircraft and driving it. Thus, the trajectory is to think of some other ways to interact first because in my opinion, only using your feet to control the position of the aircraft may be a little simple and boring. Furthermore, it’s a good chance for the user to have the experience of driving an aircraft to attack the enemies. 

1: rethink the human-nature relationship

We want to address the problem of environmental protection and let the audience think about the question: how closely man can interfere nature. The insight comes from one writing class both of us are taking, the topic of the class is called: the question of the Anthropocene. The reason to declare this new era, the Anthropocene, is because of the acceleration of environmental changes caused by humans are so profound. And we need to rethink the relation of human and nature. It’s relevant to all of us. In the researches, we found more and more contemporary art works start to look at nature and humanities, including the exhibition in our school’s gallery. Also, in my research, I think it’s better to involve more people in an interactive experience.

We want to shoot videos ourselves of scenes that represents nature, combine it to processing and add web cam interactions that the users can see themselves in the scene. In both our research and personal experience, we found that projects involves mirror or some kinds of reflections that we can place ourselves in can attract our attentions more. By seeing themselves on the screen realtime, the users will want to move farther of nearer, or have different poses. We want add some kind of sounds can visuals that will change according to users distance to the screen with the distance sensor. In this case, we want the users to think about their distance between nature and the power of one man and a group of them.

2: Project title: release your magic

As a fan of Harry Potter, I always imagine myself to have that kind of power: controlling things in a wave of the wand. For this project, we aim at children or Harry Potter fans of all ages, to interact a scene from the movie, seeing themselves on the screen. In our research, there’s a very playful interaction screen that the movement of objects on the screen is depending on the act of users. This interaction evolves huge physical movement and multiple people. The issue we want to convey a positive attitude towards our users: we all have magic power. Recently especially after midterm, many of my friends are under great pressure and keep looking down on themselves. So, I think it’s really important to send out positive messages towards our project.

3:project title: Listen to the non-human

We are inspired by a project called “Meaningful interactive audio experiences” created by Playtronica Studio Showreel which experimented with sounds from different objects such as plants, water, and our everyday objects. The project involves different kind of senses including watching, hearing and touching. In this artistic way, everyday objects take on new identities. In our project, we encourage users to experience the relationship between themselves and the objects around them by interacting with the objects in a totally different way from what we are used to: to touch and hear. In this kind of practice, we want to encourage people to be not that rush in everyday life and ignore the value of little object around us.

we are trying to enhance the interaction between human and non-human to make humans realize that non-human like static object has its own logic and even possesses some human traits, so as to raise humans’ respect for them and challenge assumption about them as disposable. In terms of the interaction, we will attribute human traits like generating sound (even language) or make movements so that the user will realize that the seemingly static and non-living thing has its own logic and life.

Final Project Proposal

So far, my teammate and I have developed three basic proposals that we would like to have a try in the final project.

1.Gold Miner

This idea is basically to create a physical gold miner machine connected with the game. We intend to build a physical roller and push button for the users to mine. This proposal is inspired by the idea of making a computer game into a physical one in my first preparatory research where a physical pinball is made out from the pinball game on the computer. Doing so increases the interaction experience of the users.

This game is intended for kids. Such a interactive machine intensifies their cognition of money management and labor. The challenge we would like to address is to create a simulation of the mining process and the reward, so that the audience can get a direct and actual experience.

2.Scream!

This game is similar as the game “Eighth Note”, which emerged into our view in our second round of research. In our view, the idea of using shouting to control the movement of the character in the game provides an outlet of the pressure in the daily life. 

The good thing of this idea, also the goal we would like to achieve is that it also provides reward&punishment system, where user can enjoy the gaming process while releasing their pressure. We want to add more interactive and zen elements (both visual and acoustical) to this game so that it really becomes a game which eases pressure while giving users joy.

3.Aircraft War

This idea is based on my game in week 7 recitation, the “Strike!” game. The basic principles remains the same, which is to smash the bricks using cannonballs. This game is designed for all users since the processing of destorying something brings joy.

The previous design is a bit boring. We would like to make the previous cannon into a place with different weapons, which gives users more control of it. Also, we want to complicate this game more by adding more challenging barriers and other elements. Besides, we would like to use a tilted platform so that the user can stand on, and control the movement of the jet by tilting on the platform. We would like to increase the sense of interaction to the most. We want all the users can feel the simple but infinite joy through this game.

Proposal 1: Our Planet

As from the research Vivien has done for the first stage, she has realized unsustainability/climate change is one of the most vital issues that the United Nations has addressed lately. Vivien would want to work on something that illustrates the outcomes of unsustainability. But in the project, we would also like to show how humans could participate in the process of lessening the harms of unsustainability. Ian is highly interested in doing something that requires collaborations among people. He has proposed an idea of encouraging four people to make some movements simultaneously for the project to function. If only one person participates in the process, the project will not provide an outcome. Thus encourages collaborations among people, even among strangers. We both are highly interested in each other’s ideas. And we have worked together to combine these two ideas into one doable thought. Then we have figured out that we would want to create a project that requires movements among several people to lessen the unsustainable global issue. For the movement part, we want to make it very specific. The participants need to physically use a shovel and plant trees to push back the time of the earth explosion. The faster they plant trees, the longer the earth would stay away from the explosion. However, if the participant chooses to work alone, then there is no way for him to get fast enough to beat the accumulated speed for several people. We would set the number in our codes to be ridiculously high to make sure that no individuals could accomplish this goal by himself. In this project, we want to raise people’s awareness of the harmful outcomes of unsustainability. However, we would like to highlight the positive effect that we can bring forth through the collaboration processes. Our targeted group of the audience would be everyone on this planet. Overall, the earth is everyone’s plant. We all have to take part in helping to solve the unsustainable issue.

Proposal 2: Ourscraft – Creating a World of Ours

            The insight comes from the research Ian did for teamLab Borderless Shanghai and Vivien’s research that emphasize on impact to individuals. Ian went to teamLab last Friday. It is AMAZING. Ian wrote about the notion of “create the world together” in the research. Ian fully experienced it that every action of human movement will make some impact on the whole room. It indeed makes the audience connected with others, including all the human and non-human factors. It is super funny, creative, communicative, and inclusive.

Therefore, we want to build something that can make the participants interact to create their world. Then, a game called “Minecraft” hints at us. The player can use the blocks of material that the game set to build anything they want in the virtue world. How about making a 2D but a multiple user version of that? Here, we also get the inspiration from the “Dance pad” in the arcade and a fun small game called “Tetris.” We think these can be combined to build as an excellent form of interaction. Also, according to Vivien’s research, we believe that the project could also function as a tool for people who have problem in social relationships to try getting in touch with others non-verbally, which is a significant social impact.

            How it may work: Four participants required. They will stand on each side of the screen. The random piece will appear on the screen. By stepping the bottom in front of them, they can make the shape move towards them a little. They can shake hands with corresponding people to reshape the pattern. Once a piece is confirmed, all four people put their hands together, and the next piece will appear. Therefore, after ten rounds, they may have built an interesting pattern!

            This project will give the audience the opportunity to cooperate to express their creativity. Their minds should not be limited by the project. Random pieces and colors with free choice to reshape and position enable them to free to make their crazy ideas shown on the device. Also, they are connected non-verbally to each other as a way of enhancing cooperation. It should be an enjoyable and creative experience for both the players and the audience.

Proposal 3: Where does your trash go?

            Vivien researched bomb. As described, it addresses a significant social problem that is worth people to pay attention and think. Also, Ian researched the project in PSA which works in response to the environment. However, both of us believe that these projects have a very significant core value but lack the application of interaction. Deriving from that, we start to focus on the issues that are around ourselves and try to figure out an engaging, interactive way to demonstrate it to the general audience by using a technological device. The recent hot topic about the trash sorting policy in Shanghai attracts our attention.

            We researched the existing technology that addresses the issue of trash soring in Shanghai, including the automatic trash-bin and the mini program in WeChat that tells the public how to sort the garbage. (http://tech.163.com/19/0821/22/EN4TIL6H00097U7T.html). However, we think that both of them are practical tools for daily use that do not build a communication environment, nor do they significantly arouse the public’s awareness. Therefore, we are thinking about creating a simple device that impresses the audience to think about a more fundament question: why should I sort the trash?

            How it may work: the audience can put different sample card, which indicates different types of trash into the trash bin. On the screen, it is demonstrating the different ways of dealing with different types of trash. When one trash is thrown into one of the bin, the animation will show the audience how it may impact the environment around them. Multiple motors and lights may be used to create an authentic experience for the audience and leave them a deep impression.

            Since many people in Shanghai do not understand the purpose and the importance of sorting the trash, this project brings impact to the general public by showing them the process and the effect of recycling garbage. It builds the connection between people’s daily lives and the changing environment around them. It may motivate them to reflect on their relationship between their living environment and take action to make themselves live greener with the environment.

References

https://climate.nasa.gov/causes/

http://tech.163.com/19/0821/22/EN4TIL6H00097U7T.html