Sound
There have been slight adjustments to the ambient audio for the experience. We have also alerted Stephan that we are in need of a new speaker system in the GLCR due to the current one being somewhat broken. Once the new speaker system is installed, we will be able to adjust the audio as needed to capture the correct mood of the experience.
Art
This week, we have been pushing our visuals in preparation for playtest day. On Tuesday, we went to the GLCR to test renderings of the tree concept and see how the visuals would look in the actual space. This gave us insight into how different heights affect the way the projectors are viewed, so we have to be careful with how we place the perspective of the camera. We have been developing our concept further as well and refining the tree growing animation.
Tech
We have been working on bug fixing in preparation for playtest day. We want to get the phone to a state where play testers can experience the project without running into major issues while we wait for them outside to complete it. We have also gotten the phone recording functionality working and now can record the stories dictated by our guests. They have the option to have their responses recorded or not, and if they are, they are saved to the database. We will be working on implementing a content moderation system in the upcoming weeks.
Script
There have been no major changes to the script this week as we are waiting on feedback from Saturday’s playtest day. We have started to pick which question we like and have decided we have two to three questions per topic, for a total of ten to fifteen questions. The questions and script will continue to be refined as we move towards having more playtests.
Room Design
We have settled on the furniture and props for the experience. We’ll be taking measurements to confirm that everything will fit and then we will order it.
Client Feedback
The client is happy with the experience so far. We’ve set up the phone in the space, and we will be sharing a playtest feedback form and instructions on running the experience so that the student workers at the GLCR can get feedback from people who visit even when we aren’t there.
Faculty Feedback
This week was our process grade meetings. The faculty are content with where we are in the process and are not worried about being behind schedule. During our advisors meeting we discussed the visual aspect of our experience, talking about better ways to animate the tree growing and color schemes. We will continue to refine our visuals as we move forward. Next week we have meetings with other members of the faculty such as John, Brenda, and Shirley.
Playtest Day Preparations
This Saturday is the ETC playtest day. We have a simulation of the space set up in our current room, and will be testing it with volunteers visiting the ETC. We hope to get lots of valuable feedback.
Conclusion
We feel that we are making lots of progress, especially on the visual and technical side, with the further refinement of our environment and the recording feature being implemented. We are excited to see what we will learn from the playtest on Saturday and during our faculty meetings next week.