Thesis Documentation

I’m designing a multiplayer asymmetric VR game that blends non-VR and VR mechanisms

into one game, in order to provide equally immersive gaming experiences for players with and

without VR headsets at the same time.

Normally, VR games are exclusive to one player at a time, but I am creating a cohesive

game experience for all players with different devices.

(VR is one of the best words I’ve learned in New York, the marvelous visual views make our

dream worlds come true. I love to share my VR experiences with my friends, the unique

experience is hard to describe, however. As we all know most of the VR games are designed

to be exclusive to one person at a time. My thesis is about bringing people together, with or

without VR headsets, and sharing the remarkable emotions and experiences.)

(My thesis is a collaborative multiplayer “puzzle” game. The primary player experiences the

game through a VR headset while the secondary players interact with the game using

different devices, like laptops, mobile phones, iPads. Different players have different gameplay

experiences. They must cooperate with each other verbally to win the game and advance

through multiple levels.)

The goal for every player is to keep the primary player’s character alive.

However, depending on different devices’ features, I've designed different experiences. They will have different

perspectives and be given different abilities.

(Imagine that you have one Oculus Rift and some friends at your home, how can you play a

VR game together?)

(Playing my game with a VR headset will let the player explore the world with (a word that

describe the thing that is based on the real world but beyond that) movements. As primary

players, they will play a small character and jump in between cubes floating in the air, or be

knocked into the sky. It’s like riding a roller coaster or bungee jumping. They will walk

through swinging cubes and worry about their balance at the same time as feeling like they are

walking on a tightrope on the top of skyscrapers, just like in the movie "The Walk" - but

sometimes, thanks to your friends’ mistakes, you do fall.

If it’s not your turn to wear the VR helmet, there are 3 other ways to participate.

The first one will be a traditional way – with a computer and a mouse. In this way, the second

player can remove all the cubes in between the primary player’s character and the ground by

just clicking on the cubes. Watch out! Where you click on the cubes determines where the

cubes fly to. And it’s very easy to upset the balance of the cubes which may cause the

primary player's character to fall and die. So, please be nice to him!)

(This is where I was at the end of last semester. This semester, I designed two new

gameplays for the players without VR headset. I was also working on how to connect all the

players together, which is to build a server. I will talk about this in the coming slides.)

(If there are already two players ready to play, you can still join them.4 players is my

maximum.

The next two players can play with mobile devices. It will be easy: download the game, and

type in the IP address then they can play together.

With mobile devices like Ipad or Iphone, players can interact with the game world in other

ways.

The mobile devices usually have smaller screens that make aiming and clicking harder.

Based on that and considering the advantages of touch screens and gyroscopes, I have

designed these two new play types.

They can choose either to hold the game world or to build inside the game world.

Holding the world means using the gyroscope. The players will play with balance. If they

change the angle of the iPad, the game world slopes with the orientation of the iPad.

Stabilizing the world will be their tasks. When the building in the game is going to collapse,

angling the iPad can be the tool to save their friend.

They can also choose to build. Building inside the world can be fun, Because the building is

made of cubes, it’s very easy to understand and play with. I got a lot of feedback about what

they wanted to build inside the world. So I introduced this construction mechanic that allows

the player to drop or place cubes in the game world. Cubes will be released every few

seconds even if the player is indecisive in placing cubes. The cubes can be different, such as

normal cubes, bomb cubes, floating cubes. The cube type will be indicated by the color, and

the color will be constantly changing until they drop it. So they can either build something that

helps the player with VR headset to land or kill this guy by dropping a bomb or building

something wrong.

This is how I bring them together. The four players: one with a VR headset, one with a

computer and two with mobile devices.

)

The server is fundamental to my game. No matter, how many players there are, I need a

server to run it. Now I’ve finished a basic server that can run a multiplayer game. And I

already know how to build it to support my game. The server can be done in two weeks.

My gameplay encourages me to research asymmetric games.

(In an asymmetric game, different players view the game environment from

different perspectives and are given different abilities.)

(other gameplay 3 examples)

(Without further ado, let me dive into my prototype.)

My plan for the coming 10 weeks is to finish my gameplay and polish it.