Abstract
In this project, my team created a VR cooking simulator in a magic world setting. The game tells a story of making magic potions in a witch’s cauldron and involves cooking, exploration, and puzzle elements, available both on PC and VR. The final product is available here and the demo video is accessible on YouTube.
During the design process, we used Aframe and Glitch as the main development tools. This article will cover the detailed ideation, design, and implementation process of Witch’s Cauldron.
Brainstorm
During the brainstorm process, we each came up with a game in mind and discussed the most outstanding features and the feasibility of each game.
Group brainstorming by itself is not the best approach. It’s been shown that you’ll generate more ideas if you and your teammates first think about it privately, write down your individual ideas, then come together as a group to synthesize and build on each other’s ideas.
(From Reading: Ideation by MIT Intro to HCI)
1. Black Jack
Challenge: counting cards
Randomization algorithms- Spotify, YouTube, etc
2. Sports event analysis
Discussion: Being on the field? In a betting location?
In a sports game, stats appear above players' heads as plays are being made?
3. Calculation Running Game
Graph algorithms: travelers dilemma, knapsack problem
4. Cafe Experience with prices/foods
5. Cooking simulation (papas pizzeria, play to nostalgia)
Challenge: Multiplayer, recipes, element interactions
Discussion: What are the game modes and settings? What theme and environment?
6. Scavenger hunt
Challenges: Vibrate controller? Moving around with joysticks
Discussion: How many environments/rooms/etc should there be to explore?
After coming up with these ideas, we discussed the benefits of the VR gaming experience vs traditional PC gaming.
VR: Immersive, interactive
PC: Precise and subtle movements, accessible, strategic
VR transports us to amazing new places. People want the freedom to explore those places on their own terms and to be able to share those experiences with others.
(From Applying human-centered design to emerging technologies by Peter Hyer, Fabian Herrmann, and Kristin Kelly)
We came to the conclusion that VR is able to offer a more unique experience that requires more hands-on interactions that may be inaccessible in real life. Hence, we decided to move forward with the idea of a cooking simulation in a magic world. Below is the workflow of the brainstorm process.
Needfinding and Interviews
In order to deliver a product that fits the market and customer needs, we interviewed potential target customers based on their interests in different game modes and elements to be included.
Interview Questions:
- Do you have any prior experiences with VR?
- What kind of games do you play the most? Have you played games similar to cooking simulators?
- If you are interested in cooking simulators, in what world setting would you expect the game to happen? What kind of food/products is enticing to cook?
- Do you prefer single-player or multiplayer game mode in a cooking sim?
- What rewarding systems would you expect to see in the game? Options might include level-up, unlocking recipes/ingredients, unlocking different customers, and unlocking decorations in the kitchen.
- Would you prefer to have competition or timing in the game?
Sample Answer:
- Yes, I have tried VR games before.
- Mainly multiplayer competition games. I have played Overcooked.
- I would love to experience both realistic and magic world settings, but magic world settings would probably be more fun and inspiring, which is a unique experience.
- I prefer multiplayer game mode because cooperating with friends in a cooking sim is more interesting and interactive.
- Game elements could include unlocking recipes, customers, and avatars, which inspires the desire to collect for gamers.
- Competition and timing are not preferred.
Other Interviews:
Sketches and Designs
Based on the need-finding process, we summed up the elements to be included in the game below.
Following the elements, we created sketches to simulate the real game views in the “kitchen”. Two variants were provided for comparison, the realistic setting and the magic setting.
Implementation
We first created a detailed implementation plan and evaluation statements. The idea is to realize as many features as possible while maintaining the completeness of the project. See the statements below.
During the implementation, we first created the environment with assets on Sketchfab. Two competing models were presented.
The two versions were presented to random interviewees and the realistic style version received more votes. Based on the latter version and the game elements the team agreed on, we moved on to deploy entities (interactive objects) and control actions.
Besides the elements, we also determined the interactions that users can make with the objects. The game logic (winning/losing conditions) is decided by the recipes.
The main development process happens on Glitch. Resources of assets are collected on Sketchfab.
We decided to put the main interactive objects close to the spawn spot and navigate users using hints in the text format. Ideally, the objects would have smart labels and parameters to implicitly guide users to make the right decisions in the game. Given the limited amount of time, the hints are currently displayed as texts.
Navigating the user via a certain path in a cluttered environment can be difficult without using conventional wayfinding UI elements. The usage of these elements could break the immersion of the experience.
Interacting with objects — when the user turns his/her attention to an interactive object the reticle should react accordingly.
(From Design Practices in Virtual Reality by Jonathan Ravasz)
The ingredients are set on the table behind the spawn spot. Ideally, we would want the ingredients to be collectible and abundant. It is very important that the users are not frustrated by constraints such as forcing functions. Trials and experiments should be encouraged so that users don't have to restart the game just because they want to put a tree root in the potion.
Forcing functions are a form of physical constraint: situations in which
the actions are constrained so that failure at one stage prevents the next
step from happening. Forcing functions are the extreme case of strong constraints that make it easy to discover erroneous behavior. Not every situation allows such strong constraints to operate, but the general principle can be extended to a wide variety of situations.(From The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman)
Throughout the game process, players may try out different combinations of potion ingredients and receive feedback from the system. Certain recipes would fail to make the right potion. Players would learn from the failed trials and remember the decisions they make. In this process of exploration, the users build an empirical database that allows them to figure out the correct recipe. The building process is called Grounded Theory.
Grounded theory is a systematic methodology that has been largely applied to qualitative research conducted by social scientists. The methodology involves the construction of hypotheses and theories through the collecting and analysis of data. Grounded theory involves the application of inductive reasoning.
(From Grounded Theory by Wikipedia)
Final Product
In the current version, the player may try to put different ingredients into the cauldron. However, the one correct recipe including four correct ingredients can be decoded by collecting hints across the map. Putting in the right ingredients will bring you victory!
Click on this link to try it yourself!
https://just-jagged-loaf.glitch.me/
The demo video is available here.
Discussion
Given the limited development time, we were only able to deliver the game with one recipe and play mode. Future improvements could focus on:
- Unlocking new recipes
- Unlocking new avatars
- Exploring a bigger map for 3d puzzle hints
- Collectible ingredients and custom recipes
- Multiplayer collaboration
- Better rewarding system
In a three-dimensional context, prefer 3D hints. For example, placing a 3D rotation indicator around an object is more intuitive than displaying text-based instructions in a 2D overlay. Avoid displaying textual overlay hints in a 3D context unless people aren’t responding to contextual hints.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Witch’s Cauldron project is an innovative and exciting addition to the VR gaming world. With a unique concept of making magic potions in a witch’s cauldron, it offers an immersive experience of cooking, exploration, and puzzle-solving in a magical world setting. The use of Aframe and Glitch as the main development tools helped in the smooth implementation of the game, both on PC and VR. The detailed ideation, design, and implementation process discussed in this article showcases the creativity and dedication of the team behind this project. The availability of the final product and demo video on the web will surely attract many gaming enthusiasts to experience the magic of the Witch’s Cauldron. Overall, the project demonstrates the potential of VR technology to create engaging and imaginative gaming experiences.
Date: 3/31/2023
Author: Yulin Hu
Course Instructor: Dr. Emily Wall