At The WXO, we want to connect the dots across the Experience Economy and across the globe – so each week, we’ll be bringing you our round-up of the experiential stories that we think reveal something interesting, relevant or transferrable about the Experience Economy.
Welcome to Experience Radar 10, where we’re taking a trip to the Sherwood Forest of the future, getting a preview of the latest VR and AR storytelling launches, and discovering the seven rules of the metaverse.
1. Experience A Slice Of VR Respite
Tickets are now booking for The Severance Theory: Welcome to Respite, a VR adaptation of an IRL immersive theatre show that puts participants at the centre of the action. The psychological thriller “explores the parts of our minds that both help us and haunt us through the lens of a mental illness called Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), formerly known as multiple personality disorder.” One premium ticket holder will be able to step directly into the shoes of the protagonist, Alex, while the remaining audience members will play the role of alternate personalities and be able to interact with and explore the space. Watch the trailer above and head to WXO TV to watch the producers talk about the challenges of directing actors in VR.
2. How XR Is Transforming The Way We Learn
Proving that VR can have applications far beyond just entertainment, this report from HP dives into the ways that extended reality (XR) – a term that encompasses both virtual and augmented reality – is already being used to create more immersive, inclusive learning experiences in higher-education settings. From exploring body parts on a cellular level during anatomy lessons to team-building exercises and live storytelling using motion capture and body data from dancers, the technology is being used to reach and unite students on and off campus, as well as bring difficult concepts to life. (For some practical tips on implementing an immersive learning narrative, read this article by chronyko’s Kerrie Fraser.)
3. The 7 Rules Of The Metaverse
Still not entirely sure what the metaverse actually is, or how best to engage with it? Firstly, get yourself over to Campfire 19: The Metaverse Firestarter, where Meta founder Justin Bolognino explains his Map of Realities framework. Then read this article by “metaverse OG” Tony Parisi, where he sets out his seven rules for engaging with the metaverse, namely:
Rule #1. There is only one Metaverse.
Rule #2: The Metaverse is for everyone.
Rule #3: Nobody controls the Metaverse.
Rule #4: The Metaverse is open.
Rule #5: The Metaverse is hardware-independent.
Rule #6: The Metaverse is a Network.
Rule #7: The Metaverse is the Internet.
Tony Parisi
4. From Robin Hood To Robot Hood
One of the standout Sparks from Campfire 14: The AR Firestarter was when Mat Duerden wondered about the potential for AR to pull us into a real-world experience, rather than alienate us from it:
“I tell my kids that a walk in the woods is great, but the more information we lay on – the names of the plants, the bugs, the history of the indigenous people who used to live here – the more interesting it is. Layers just make life more rich – they pull us into reality. And so being able to use AR to digitally add those layers onto experiences does the same.”
Mat Duerden, co-author, Designing Experiences
It seems that Nottinghamshire County Council were listening, with the news that Robin Hood’s old hood of Sherwood Forest is set for a £10m upgrade trialling robot dogs, internet-controlled drones and a stronger 5G signal that “can be used to offer visitors an augmented reality headset to view an immersive Robin Hood-themed film”, An Arrow In Time. The council see this as not only an experiment, but an investment in the area’s future with the potential to attract “millions” of pounds of tourism trade.
5. Projection Mapping Is On The Menu
Have you read our latest Experience Review of Park Row, the new DC-inspired experiential dining concept at London’s Monarch Theatre? Projection mapping was just one of the tools used to elevate dinner to new heights – so we enjoyed this blast from the past from David Title, a partner at Bravo Media, who produced this private dinner at Le Bernardin. It also reminded us of the projection-mapped Mad Hatter’s Tea Party at the recent Alice in Wonderland exhibition at London’s V&A museum. Curioser and curioser.
6. AR Brings Cultural Context To Museums
Speaking of exhibitions… we already touched in Campfire 14: The AR Firestarter on how AR’s ability to provide “non-zero sum information design” might mean that the museum of the future “will not be a single-channel public broadcaster, but a gateway to multiple perspectives”. So it’s heartening to see how this is already being realised in China, with a Europe-wide cosortium to bring similar AR and VR experiences to museums across the continent also in the works.
7. Step Inside Marvel’s First AR Movie
Marvel Studios’ first immersive story experience, Elements, is an epic Augmented Reality adventure through time and space to discover the truth about humanity. The studio have also created a free prequel that viewers can download for iPhone or iPad before watching the film in theaters, so they can bring characters and spatial elements into their own homes – a nifty bit of marketing that points again to the link between gaming and movies that we previously highlighted in Ubisoft’s transmedia takeover.
