Ethics

I’ve also been working on my ethics form over the last two weeks – this project is more of an ethical minefield than I thought it would be! There are a lot of concerns over mood alteration and the oculus rift health and saftey booklet has a lot of warnings. Hopefully I’ve covered it all enough to not get it sent back.

Project Outline

Project Overview

This project aims to examine how emotion and aesthetics driven game experiences affect their players. This will be done though the creation of a piece of interactive media that explores how the formal elements of art can be applied to game effects to relax a player and guide them towards a meditative state.

Prototype Contents

 As a piece of practice-based research, the project will be executed in the form of a game prototype that research participants will play and evaluate. The prototype presented to the participant will be an experiential game, where the participant will be required to wander and explore a changing environment that is symbolic of their mind. The visual art, audio and feel of the game will attempt to induce a relaxed state in the player though use of visual deprivation in areas of darkness, and abstract forms that allow freedom from representation and real life. This presentation method of the prototype is currently undecided – it may be on Oculus Rift, projected or be displayed on a computer screen.

Evaluation and Interviews

Presuming the Oculus Rift is used, potential participants will be asked to fill in a form to make sure they have no medical conditions that make use of the VR headset dangerous before they play. If they are then able to participate, they will be asked about their current mood and state of relaxation with a lincher scale questionnaire. Participants will be asked to play the game to the end, though will have the option of leaving the study at any time. Whist playing, participants will be invited to use think aloud protocol, articulating their thoughts and feelings at that moment in time. The facial expressions, body language and reactions of participants will be noted, and if the subject consents, filmed. A debrief interview will be performed with every participant, noting their thoughts and feelings in particular areas of the game, whether they reached a meditative state, general views on the strengths and weaknesses of the prototype, and most importantly, their current emotional state. They will be asked to fill in a second questionnaire, identical to the first one, to show the difference in their mood. This information will then be used to determine whether the current prototype relaxes players, and how it can be improved.

Ethical Issues

Use of Human Participants

The use of human participants raises a number of ethical concerns. In order to minimise damage to subjects, they will have the research project and anything required of them as a participant explained prior to deciding whether to participate. After deciding, they will be asked to sign a consent form. They will be notified that they can leave the test at any time. Some subjects may feel uncomfortable with being filmed. All participants will be given a choice of whether to be filmed, and asked to sign a consent form if they agree. If a participant feels uncomfortable being filmed, it will be stopped. All data on participants will be sorted securely in university M drives and will be destroyed when the research ends. When discussed on the blog or in the dissertation, all participants will be kept anonymous.

Altering Mood States

The prototype aims to change the player’s mood. Though it aims to create a positive, relaxed, meditative state, this still raises ethical concerns. Every subject will have it made clear to them, before consenting to participate, that their mood may be changed. Meditation activates the right side of the brain, which can be a distressing experience for some, as losing logical left-side thought processes can make those unused to meditation feel as if they are not in control. While this is not very common, it will be important to inform participants of this possibility and let them know that they can leave at any time if they feel distressed.

Use of Oculus Rift

If the prototype is to be tested using the Oculus Rift VR headset, the player’s safety will have to be kept in mind at all times. This headset makes the player unaware of the outside world, so the sensory deprivation could potentially aggravate the potential distress felt when in a meditational state. This headset can cause some players simulation sickness. To minimise this risk I will provide the participants with mint sweets to suck on whist playing – this is often used to minimize motion and travel sickness. Again, the participants will be warned that motion sickness is a possibility before they agree to take part.

A sign will be put up at the exposition warning viewers about motion sickness and distress.

Credit

I will require sound assets for my game, which is something I am unable to produce. I will give appropriate credit explicitly within my exposition set up, with a plaque and in the game, though a credits screen. They will also be acknowledged within the dissertation. Though it is not likely, if photo textures belonging to someone else are used, they will receive the same credit.

Human Participants

Initially, participants who play games and have an interest in emotional depth in games will be chosen. This will help align the project with current works that exemplify the ideals of this project. Once a solid prototype has been produced, a wider demographic of participants will be chosen, including those with a purely consumerist knowledge of games and those who do not play at all. These participants will be between 18 and 30 years old.

Due to health and safety concerns, none of these participants will be pregnant, have binocular vision abnormalities or psychiatric disorders, or suffer from a heart condition or other serious medical condition. This will be asked about before allowing anyone to proceed.

My initial participants will be recruited from the Abertay Game Development society, and game developers/students I know personally.

My wider game-playing demographic will be sourced from within the AMG school. To find interested participants I will ask lecturers to advertise my project to their students.

To find non game players to take part, I will ask my family and their friends, as well as asking my supervisor to put a post on the Abertay Intranet asking for participants from courses outside of the AMG school.

In order to minimise damage to subjects, they will have the research project and anything required of them as a participant explained prior to deciding whether to participate. They will be notified that they can leave the test at any time. All participants will be given a choice of whether to be filmed and if a participant becomes uncomfortable while being filmed, it will be stopped. Every subject will have it made clear to them, before consenting to participate, that their mood may be changed to a relaxed one, but sometimes this can lead to distress. I will reiterate that they can leave at any time.

To minimise the risk of motion sickness while using the VR headset, I will provide the participants with mint sweets to suck on whist playing – this is often used to minimize motion and travel sickness. Again, the participants will be warned that motion sickness is a possibility before they agree to take part, and that the sensory deprivation of the headset could be distressing for them.

A sign will be put up at the exposition warning viewers about motion sickness and distress.

Oculus Rift Health and Saftey

Main Hazards Identified	Who Will Be Affected	Control Measures to Reduce the Risk
Risk to those with existing health disorders or who are pregnant. Seizures Disorientation and lack of awareness of surroundings – trip hazard, could bump into people, could touch dangerous objects etc. Impaired balance affecting the VR experience and leading to sickness or discomfort. Extreme discomfort or heath issues. Mild motion sickness when using the headset. Radio Frequency Interference: The headset can emit radio waves that can affect the operation of nearby electronics, including cardiac pacemakers.	Those who are pregnant or have binocular vision abnormalities, psychiatric disorders, or suffer from a heart condition or other serious medical condition. 1 in 4000 people may experience severe dizziness, seizures, epileptic seizures or blackouts triggered by light flashes or patterns, and this may occur while they are watching TV, playing video games or experiencing virtual reality, even if they have never had a seizure or blackout before or have no history of seizures or epilepsy. This is more common in children than in adults. There are also those who have a history of seizures. All participants using the rift. Participants who are tired, need sleep, are under the influence of alcohol or drugs, are hung-over, have digestive problems, are under emotional stress or anxiety, or are suffering from cold, flu, headaches, migraines, or earaches. Participants who experience seizures; loss of awareness; eye strain; eye or muscle twitching; involuntary movements; altered, blurred, or double vision or other visual abnormalities; dizziness; disorientation; impaired balance; impaired hand-eye coordination; excessive sweating; increased salivation; nausea; lightheadedness; discomfort or pain in the head or eyes; drowsiness; or fatigue. Participants who experience light nausea or disorientation while using the headset. Those who have an implanted medicial device, such as a pacemaker.	Before consenting, the potential participant will be asked if they fit into this group. If yes, they will be not be allowed to participate. It is hoped that due to the age range and intended number of participants that this will never come up, however the participants will be warned and asked to stop playing and inform me if they feel sick at all. Those with a history of seizures will not be allowed to participate. I will make sure that participants using the rift remain seated at all times. The research will not be conducted near other people, objects, stairs, balconies, windows, furniture, or other items that the participant could bump into or knock down when using the headset. The audio volume will be low enough that participants can hear what is going on around them. Participants will be asked not to stand up straight away after using the headset and will be given time to adjust to their surroundings. Before consenting, the potential participant will be asked if they fit into this group. If yes, they will be informed that they will be more susceptible to motion sickness or discomfort than other players. It is then their choice whether to take part. If they are under the influence of alcohol or drugs they will not be allowed to take part. Participants will be warned and asked to stop playing and inform me if they feel sick at all. As those with serious medical conditions are barred from participating it is hoped this will not be an issue. To minimise this risk I will provide the participants with mint sweets to suck on whist playing – this is often used to minimize motion and travel sickness. Again, the participants will be warned that motion sickness is a possibility before they agree to take part. This will be asked about along with the other medical questions. Those with implanted medical devices that could be affected will not be allowed to take part.

Azela Garden – Patrick Herron

Azelea Garden by Patrick Herron is seen by some as a Tachist (non-geometical abstract, European equivalent of abstract expressionism) painting, though as it is a non-figurative representation, perhaps this is not the best categorization. He uses bold colour and free brushstrokes to invoke the idea, though not the image, of his garden. Herron takes influence from the colours, shapes and textures found there and represents foliage with overlapping brushstrokes. This painting is “pure visual sensation”, using the idea of emotional abstraction, or hyper-sensitivity to the characteristics of a location, to create the feelings and mood associated with a place without representing it figuratively. This can be seen as an immersive and liberating experience, as the viewer is drawn into the emotion of the piece, but is free from representation. The juxtaposition of heavily saturated reds, blues, greens and yellows compliments boldly and brings with it the idea of a bright summer’s day, communicating warmth to the viewer. Paint was applied to the canvas directly from the tube, simultaneously creating colour and line, so that the negative space in the painting serves as a sort of bridge between areas of colour.

http://www.arttimesjournal.com/art/reviews/Sept_Oct_12_Ina_Cole/Patrick_Heron.html

http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/patrick-heron-1278

Stress Testing and Particle Optimisation

The game is running slow in parts, so I need to look at my fx and see where I can speed up the frame rate. The rift slows things down a bit, so I’m going to do optimisation in two stages, one for monitor and one for rift.

Monitor Stress Test

Water Real

Has already had some optimisation done. Uses fixed bounds and has lower spawn rate. Works fine but the visual impact has been reduced greatly, a shame since the fx is supposed to be the forefront of the game. Will experiment with improving this. Frame = 100

Game = 16

Draw = 100

GPU = 100

Water Abstract

Same as realistic. Can notice jumps in frame rate when passing underneath fx though. May leave this as is and see.

Frame = 100

Game = 12

Draw = 100

GPU = 100

Nature Real

Runs very smoothly. No issue at all.

Frame = 16

Game = 9

Draw = 16

GPU = 16

Nature Abstract

Runs very smoothly. No issue at all. Go nature rooms!

Frame = 10

Game = 8

Draw = 10

GPU = 10

Fire Real

Frame rate drops considerably, messes with sound and ability to move. Incredibly jarring. Needs fixed. Frame = 250 Game = 12 Draw = 250 GPU = 250 Fire Abstract A tad slow, noticeable to me but perhaps not to players. Will leave for now and see if anyone notices. Frame = 113 Game = 12 Draw = 113 GPU = 113

Monitor Optimisation

Realistic Fire

First issue here is that there are too many fx visible at once. I took out the first ones to allow the player to at least get orientated before the game starts chugging! Didn’t improve anything when near the fx, but better on entry.

Second thing was adding fixed relative bounds, so the particles only draw when they can be seen. This took me down to about 200 for frame.

I then halfed the spawn rate of all emitters, coming down to about 150, and removed the second smoke emitter, coming down to 100.

Realistic Water

I read on the unreal documentation that material complexity was an issue for particle optimization, so took out the roughness, refraction and metallic of the water material, as it didn’t seem to be having much effect anyway – it didn’t look anywhere near as good as in the first prototype. Its running at around 100 now too.

Essentially the game is now running at a consistent 15fps. Too low I know, but at least its consistent.

Wee Fixes

Today’s a bit of an odd day – working on fixes and optimisation for the game, so seemingly getting very little done even though its important!

I’ve fixed some awkward places where the meshes meet, and fixed some z-fighting and uv issues on the corridors by getting rid of the outer set of polys.

Game Ending

I wanted something to happen at the end of the game, to show the player they’d completed it and to provide a nice exit point. I looked to proteus and flower for inspiration, noting the circular particles that form in proteus and the ribbon trails on the tree in flower’s first level.

I did the code first and ran into a few mistakes along the way. I tried IsValid first, the idea being that I would check to see if the orbs existed and if so, create the fx. This didn’t work, so I tried a branch with an IsValid condition. What I learned by hooking this up to a key press and testing it, is that the object is always valid, regardless of weather or not it is visible.

As an alternative, I decided to use a hidden variable that would “score” the player and assign a point for each room completed. When the count reaches 3, the fx would appear. This wasn’t too hard to set up – I created a float variable,

I connected this to a branch and audiocomponent to test, and it worked.

Then I needed some artwork to connect to it! I created a sort of fake ribbon by creating a curve in maya, extuding some polygons around it, and doing a planar map for the whole thing. This means that I can pan a material up it to give a ribbon like effect. I used this technique in Seek to create the cutscene and have had a lot of good feedback on it.

I also added some shiney dust particles and a trigger box, that when overlapped by the actor, ends the game.

I

The effect itself is very simple right now and was sort of created as a placeholder last night when I was far too sleepy to be creative. If I can get the optimization and bug fixes done before the end of today I’ll work on making it much better.

Portal FX

I thought the hub room needed something to indicate which rooms the player had been though, so created a sort of glowy portal that dissapears after that corridor has been traversed. As I’ve been having optimization issues with some particle fx, I decided to do this as a material. I created a cylinder without end faces, and made a sort of striped texture.

In the material editor, I panned this to add some dynamic movment, and multiplied a gradient with the opacity to make it appear more magical.

I then had this flash in and out to give a sort of pulse effect. Multiplying the emissive by a cosine wave did this, but I had the issue that when it wasn’t there it would go black, which was very obvious.

To fix this, I added the pulse to the opacity instead of the emissive.

I then added another cylinder underneath, with a low opacity emissive to act as a sort of fake light.

The code was quite simple, I had to search around a bit to find destory actor, but once I found it it was simple to add it to the end of the orb code.

I think these colour coded fx add to the idea that each room is different, which is great, and give visual cues to the player to move on to the next portal.

Tweaks

After finishing the main bulk of the work on the prototype, I made a couple of tweaks to get the experience right. I did some more informal testing, and was advised to slow down the walk speed to allow the player to look around and take in their surroundings. At first I halved the movement, but found that while this was great in the corridors, it made the hub feel way to big, so upped it slightly as a compromise. I also removed jump and fire, as they are unnecessary.

Set Dressing and Materials

Sorry for being so quiet on here lately, I’ve been getting on with set dressing for the game and sort of ignoring everything else.

Water Corridor

I blogged about my models and ideas in the last post, so I’ll start of with the materials for the water corridor. I started out trying to do a high to low poly normal map here, but as the model is a large and awkward shape, with uvs to match, it turned out very low res and just looked awful.

Instead I hopped on to cgtextures and used a combination of images, as well as adjustment layers and the NVIDIA normal map tools to create my textures. They are pretty basic and lacking in terms of detail and attention, but right now their purpose is to give context to the fx art, which is the centerpiece, rather than be good in their own right, so I’m not too worried. Clearly, in my actual honours project, I will have much more polished models and textures if I go down a route that needs them.

I created the bottom half, used this to generate a collision mesh, then added the top half by mirroring. I then played around with different methods for pouring the water, trying curved spouts, small blocks and eventually settling for these square archways. I’m interested to see how these are reacted to – squares are generally firm and reliable, so I wonder how this will change the experience.

After that I added my previous candle meshes to the scene, with their fx, and added appropriate lighting. I played around with colours a lot before settling – I had originally intended a blue to match the scene and create positive vibes, but greens and blues made the room feel very cold. In response, I changed this to a red, hoping that this would feel homely rather than sinister as I focused on a yellow tint rather than a pillar box type of red.

Abstract Corridor

Adding the fx

Nature Corridor

The nature corridor was simpler than the water one, as, being sort-of outside, it didn’t need any additional models. I wanted to have a sort of overgrown old building feel to this one. I used the same texture pipeline as before.

For the abstract side of things I again used basic shapes and emissive materials, this time drawing from the godrays and dust for shapes. I wonder if the triangular shapes will made the player feel less relaxed. I had originally wanted to remove them as research points to this, but I want to test it myself because after playing I have an incling that this might not be the case.

I then created some foliage out of photos and planes, there’s issues with the join between the grass and the plane but again, environment art is not the focus here so it can be changed at the end if there is time. I really like how everything came together here. I went for a yellow lighting scheme to match with the godrays.

Fire Corridor

For the fire corridor I wanted to create a sort of Morocco meets Volcano look .

I really struggled to get the textures right for this one.

Corridor First Pass

I created a first pass of the models for the water corridor, simple as possible graybox just now to make sure that the idea works before spending time on textures and materials. The extruded parts along the wall are going to become mosaic tiles and the hanging parts will be for the water.

Corridors Revisited

Thanks to a TRASHCLASS error when saving the map (my blueprints were pointing to external references that no longer existed) I lost a lot of the work I did yesterday. Thankfully, the blueprints were easy enough to reproduce, but it got me thinking about my corridors, and how I was going about them wrong.

I wasn’t working modularly for a start, which is really bad game art practice. It also meant that changing scale was going to be very difficult. I did some doodles of what I would like my corridors to look like, and I think I want the realistic part of the corridors to be reminiscent of an actual space, rather than just element themed.

For the water corridor, I looked at some water themed levels in various games, and then decided what I liked about them. Bright blues, roman architecture, stepping stones, shaped waterways and overgrown plants were really coming out at me, so I’ll create something along those lines for the water one.

Modelling wise, I created an arch like shape that can be joined together to create a spiral or curve. I then mirrored it in y to get the roof.

I reconnected my targets and triggers and got a level that’s much nicer than before!