Inside a Looking Glass
A Cooperative Virtual Reality Experience
A Cooperative Virtual Reality Experience
Created by Cal Thorndyke
Synopsis
Cooperative Science-Fiction Virtual Reality experience taking place in parallel dimension environments tasking each player to portray a mirrored version of one another to work together and find the cause of the tears in the multiverse affecting a hotel caught between worlds.
Project Description
This project is called ‘Inside A Looking Glass’ which is a cooperative virtual reality experience that needs to be played with two users who need to work together to complete tasks and progress to the end of the story. This experience is a science fiction exploration game where two players portray parallel universe androids who are sent with the same goal of finding the cause of a multiverse tear in a hotel in both of their worlds. The main aim for this experience is for the users to explore, discover and work together to progress through the mirrored environments while also finding out some more back story, hints and information about the different worlds they are in which will hopefully encourage replayability depending on which path the user went into first. The main mechanic of the experience is completing tasks or objectives in tandem with the other player while seeing one another in both horizontal and vertical reflections to create a visually unique world to explore together.
Story and Design
Concept Designs and Sketches
Original sketches and ideas for world mirroring and cooperative elements of the experience which are shown in the images below inclduing the characters seeing one another througha mirror in the elevator, side by side pulling a lever and upside mirroring using puddles from the rain.
Level Design and Map Layout
The images below the full map layout of the entire experience because each player is in the same level and are directly seeing one another through transparent surfaces and to achieve this the same map was duplicated side by side allowing the users to see one another depending on the position of the mirror. To further emphasise the mirroring concept the second player is actually teleported around player ones enviroment to allow different mirroring positions rather than just being continously side by side to one another which includes the alleyway being upside down to player ones using reverse gravity to make it seamless for both players of the experience.
In-Game Screenshots
Some further captures of player perspective of seeing the other player in the experiences through different reflective surfaces in the world including some screenshots of the hotel lobby sequence, Alleyway and Elevator section of the game.
Unity Build Screenshots
These are some captures of the game inside of unity showing some different angles to the experiences demonstrating the environment and level design which was mostly created by myself with some free assets online used for decoration and texturing around the experience.
Unity Build Commentary by Designer
In the video below i talk through the unity build and how it was developed as part of my final major project during my masters degree in virtual reality at University of the Arts London.
