1. Find an interesting existing Alt+Ctrl Interface #
Explore the archive from GDC, Shake That Button and beyond:
Find one interesting project/controller from there and write a short description of the project. Include a link to it and even embed a video to your site if there it is available. Why did you choose this? What caught your attention?
2. Come up with a concept for your own Alt+Ctrl Interface #
- Explore at least one sensor in more detail.
- Think of different interactions and/or gestures that could be detected with the sensor you picked.
- Choose an existing video game that could be controlled using the interaction/interface enabled by this sensor. You can also come up with a completely new game/game mechanic.
- You don’t need to make it work yet. Just come up with the idea/concept for your alternative controller.
- Write about your idea on your site.
- You can draw sketches or other ways to illustrate your idea.
- You can also make a prototype if you can, but I am not requiring it.
1)
The project that left a special impression on me is the project Call the Forest. Call the Forest (Haloo, kuuleeko metsä?) is an interactive installation made for a children’s touring exhibition. The installation invites exhibition visitors to call a constructed forest scenery, offering also a possibility to contemplate our relationship with nature and technology.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qp9MdPCt60&t=30s
This project is very complex. It is inspired by the old telephones that were used in the army for communication, but it is actually full of gadgets that tell their own story. However, it seems to me that this project raises the question of how we communicate today, is the natural environment able to communicate without humans and what is for us our natural environment (telephones)? This project consists of a lot of motors, sensors, old Nokia phones, everything that we can mostly found in our home and it was part of our lives. The work is not only visual, it is interactive because we have to discover the code by which it works (calling a proper number) and it is also a sound installation at the same time.
2)
I chose a game called Itsy Bitsy Spider which I created with my colleagues for the Game Jam course held at Aalto University. The theme was “twist“. Inspired by Google Chrome Dinosaur Game, we added a thematic and mechanical twist. The Spider is the protagonist running in the air duct looking for delicious cookies while avoiding scary obstacles like lemon, fire, and slimes. The spider jumps from floor to ceiling to avoid hazards and find cookies.
Video: https://youtu.be/fJ8HjL8meoI
Spider’s movement in the video game will be controlled by spider toy in which the accelerometer is located. The player will have the freedom to move the spider by holding the spider toy. A movement to the left or right could mean the start of the game or make a pause, while a movement up or down would mean the movement of the spider.
The challenges can be in adjusting the accelerometer as players will need to turn the spider in various directions. Several test phases and clear instructions are required. The installation is designed so that in front of the player there will be a stuffed spider, while behind the spider there will be a screen with a game.