How can you tailor your VR storytelling to a specific audience?

I use visual and interactive elements that resonate with user and consider their comfort with VR technology. As well as research my audience deeply, and test my story with a small group. We know that engaging stories come from knowing who you're talking to and how they perceive and interact with the virtual world.

The best way to know your audience is to be your audience. Create something that you would create for yourself as a member of that audience. The most successful business owners that I know started a business related to solving problems they had experienced already. This doesn't mean they had experience at the product level either, it means they had experience in dealing with the problems that their end user type would be faced with. In other words, if you are the audience, you know what jobs need to get done. No amount of research is going to replace experience. Now if that's not you, then find a way to make yourself accountable for your results, such as a performance guarantee. That'll light on fire under your ass.

Even better is to BE your audience. Attempting to develop a product for a community you don't relate to is a recipe for disaster. Be willing and proactive to take the time to engage with your product as an audience member. If you have no interest or investment in your own product, you can't expect anyone else to.

Adaptar ou criar as narrativas para uma experiência de realidade virtual é crucial conhecer profundamente o público-alvo. Entender as preferências, interesses e as expectativas dos usuários é fundamental para moldar narrativas imersivas que a atinjam o público desejado. Isso impacta além da história, impacta na escolha dos elementos sensoriais, intera??es e desafios que cativar?o e envolver?o os usuários de forma eficaz. O sucesso de uma experiência de realidade virtual está intrinsecamente ligado ao entendimento detalhada do público-alvo e à capacidade de criar narrativas que se conectem profundamente com seus interesses e emo??es.

Il est effectivement très important d'adapter son récit à son public. J'ai un horrible souvenir de jeu dans l'espace basé sur une voix nasillarde avec une ambiance très enfantine qui était en décalage complète avec le jeu plut?t en mode bourrée destiné à un public plus agé. Le ton et la tonalité doit être impérativement étudié et judicieusement choisi pour une expérience VR narrative.

One of the most important criteria for VR storytelling I would say is choosing a platform. There are multiple possible factors that come in during the choice of a platform: - What is the budget of the organization? - Does the experience actually need a 6DoF device or can we work with a 3DoF? - What is the graphical rendering requirements of the experience? - What is the audience most comfortable with and what are the restrictions that we must consider to create an inclusive environment? (Eg. Is their movement restricted?)

Having a distribution gameplan before creating a narrative the choice of platform strongly impacts the amount of people you can reach. While there might be more involved fans who enjoy narratives on PC VR, they are in no dimension of Quest owners. Therefore, if you create a standalone experience you will have a wider target audience, however also a tighter performance budget to create with.

A sele??o da plataforma vai além das preferências do cliente; é essencial explicar as distin??es, vantagens e desvantagens para alinhar e atender às expectativas. Fatores críticos como or?amento, objetivos da ativa??o, prioriza??o entre qualidade e acessibilidade, além da estrutura e espa?o disponíveis para a experiência de realidade virtual, s?o pontos cruciais a serem definidos e alinhados. Esse processo n?o apenas ajuda a tomar decis?es mais informadas, mas também assegura que a escolha da plataforma esteja em total sintonia com os objetivos e possibilidades para a ativa??o desejada.

La VR mobile est selon moi à oublier, car elle dégrade naturellement l'expérience. Et surtout dans les choix techniques, il est important de construire un audio de qualité dans ce type d'expérience et de préférence spatialisé pour vraiment exploiter la VR à 100%.

I find that two main things effect the platform chosen for a project. The clients budget, and their experience with the technology. You may need to ask your client questions to get a better idea of what options are available such as "are your employees working from home? If they do work from home, you may need to use a cheaper headset that the client can bulk buy and ship out to their employees. "What kind of tech do you want to see in the app?" With technology such as photogrammetry, volumetric videos, and AI coming more avaliable you need to be aware of what platforms can support them. Another thing I often see overlooked, is the headsets support network. You need to know what headsets have been discontinued and have poor reviews

Immersive storytelling in VR mirrors traditional storytelling in many ways. It's vital to consider the progression and movement through the virtual space. Clear intentions in the design are important to guide the user's experience. Additionally, adding easter eggs can be a great way to reward and engage returning users, adding depth and interest to the environment.

Após compreender os objetivos do cliente, incluindo o storytelling e a defini??o do hardware a ser utilizado, iniciamos o storyboard. Esse é um conjunto de representa??es visuais, apresentadas em frames, oferecendo ao cliente uma prévia da experiência antes do início do desenvolvimento e modelagem do ambiente. Esse processo é fundamental para alinhar as expectativas do cliente e, se necessário, avaliar a necessidade de ajustes no hardware, por exemplo. Embora, na maioria dos casos, recriemos situa??es reais no ambiente virtual, em alguns projetos, desenvolvemos experiências totalmente novas, adaptadas às necessidades e vis?o específicas de determinados clientes.

During our design phases, we've had to use environmental storytelling as we simply don't have the budget for many voice actors for this specific project. To combat our luck of funding, we've used environmental storytelling to lessen the need for the user to acquire information from a vocal source. This could include putting posters on walls that spread a message, designing the environment to portray the impact of an event, leaving notes on screens, posts-its on desks and then tying all of that information together with any other storytelling elements so that the world follows and portrays a consistent message.

Compared to screen-based games, which often communicate a 'journey' (and filling out much of the playtime) by having the protagonist move through long levels and large spaces which are largely empty of interaction, it's tougher to represent such a 'journey' in VR. Users want to explore and interact with the environment like IRL, and will tend towards greater scrutiny and make asset repetition more obvious. Add to this avoiding discomfort while moving, the processing overheads of VR, and the additional complications of immersive design, and it's easy to understand why smaller, interesting, interactive spaces tend to be a more sensible approach. But this means how you build a feeling of 'Journey', which may be essential, needs rethinking.

Designing your VR environment: 1. Narrative Alignment: Ensure seamless alignment with the story's theme. 2. Customization: Allow user personalization for a tailored experience. 3. Dynamic Elements: Integrate interactive elements for user engagement. 4. Adaptive Realism: Adjust realism based on emotional tone. 5. Multi-Sensory: Explore engaging multiple senses for immersion. 6. Environmental Storytelling: Embed narrative elements within the environment. 7. Accessibility: Implement features for diverse user needs. 8. Collaborative Spaces: Create social interaction opportunities.

A smart approach to narrative in any immersive medium is to build it around interactions. Let the user progress the story by doing, rather that just watching and listening. Keeping the user immersed in your story is about keeping them immersed in the world that it takes place in. And interaction is a great way to give the user agency in your world, and make them feel part of the story, and it's simpler, quicker and more effective than enabling this sense of agency through a nonlinear narrative. Build your narrative around user interactions and interactive locations, while delivering your dialogue without the user getting bored standing about just listening. Idle hands are the devil's hands are far as user engagement is concerned.

Le récit d'une histoire en VR ne doit surtout pas oublier d'inclure l'utilisateur dans l'histoire. Il doit en faire partie en intégrant des éléments interactifs même si c'est des choses très ponctuelles et simple. Une des meilleures expériences courtes dont j'ai le souvenir c'est celle de Dawn Of Art qui est raconté avec une voix merveilleuse et nous emporte tout à fait dans l'univers. N'hésitez pas à la découvrir pour vous inspirer.

Na adapta??o de um storytelling para a realidade virtual, é essencial compreender a história enviada pelo cliente, adaptar elementos para o ambiente virtual, criar cenários imersivos, planejar intera??es envolventes, testar e ajustar a narrativa e, por fim, refinar a experiência para atender aos objetivos do cliente. Essas etapas garantem uma transi??o eficaz da história para a experiência virtual, proporcionando uma imers?o significativa aos usuários.

Crafting your VR narrative is pivotal. Ensure your narrative captivates and maintains audience interest throughout the VR experience. Deliberately manage pace, tension, conflict, and resolution to evoke specific emotions and reactions from your audience. Adjust narrative structure based on audience preferences. For a concise experience, opt for a linear plot; for a more intricate journey, employ a branching and nonlinear narrative. This customization ensures your VR story aligns seamlessly with your audience's expectations and creates a memorable and engaging experience.

A imers?o em uma experiência de realidade virtual n?o se resume apenas ao storytelling envolvente e ao protagonismo do usuário. Compreender as expectativas quanto ao nível de intera??o é crucial: quanto maior a intera??o, maior a imers?o, mas também mais complexas podem ser as etapas envolvidas. Por outro lado, uma experiência mais observacional e passiva pode ser menos interativa, porém mais simples e direta. O entendimento dessas expectativas possibilita ajustar a experiência para atender às preferências do usuário, garantindo um equilíbrio entre a profundidade da intera??o e a fluidez da experiência.

Implementing your VR interaction is crucial. Enable audience influence and participation in your VR story to enhance immersion and agency. Consider the type, frequency, and feedback of interaction to impact audience satisfaction and enjoyment. For a passive, observational experience, offer minimal and optional interaction. For an active, participatory experience, provide frequent and meaningful interaction. Customizing interaction aligns your VR experience with audience preferences, ensuring a satisfying and enjoyable engagement.

If you want to leverage the medium properly I suggest building in interactions that don't deter new users or people with disabilities from enjoying it but provide a fun way to interact with the world and story for people who can use them. What creators often also do is putting the experience "on rails" which basically triggers certain parts of the story if the users struggles with the interactions or doesn't do them for some reason.

VR interactions can be powerful in both big and small scales. Yes, the main features of your application are the selling points, but even the small minute details that involve user interaction in your VR experience can make or break the immersion you’re trying to create. Even button press in a UI could completely throw the immersion you’ve worked so hard to build.

Often your initial idea on how the story will be perceived (and how much of it) varies from the final product. Think about pacing and information density when creating affordances, Voice overs, subtitles or other elements that carry the story such as objects in the world or SFX. Then test them frequently, even if they are not perfect yet! You'll realize quickly how much of the story they retain and due to what elements. Don't forget that some are more visual and other rely more on audio - try to strike a encompassing balance.

Testing and refining your VR story is essential. Conduct tests with your target audience and diverse groups to measure and enhance quality, usability, and appeal. Refine your VR story based on collected data, insights, and suggestions to meet audience expectations and needs. This iterative process ensures the delivery of a polished and tailored VR experience for your audience.

Tailoring a VR experience for storytelling involves a few key elements. Consider crafting a compelling narrative arc that takes advantage of VR's immersive capabilities, using spatial audio and visuals to guide attention and evoke emotions. Design interactive elements that engage users, allowing them to influence the story's progression. Finally, focus on seamless transitions between scenes or viewpoints to maintain immersion and flow within the narrative.