Developing in VR for the First Time

Before my second semester of Junior year, I was invited to take part in an experimental version of an upcoming VR Interaction class that would teach students how to make their own VR narrative experience in Unity – to be played on Android-based VR systems like the Oculus Rift/Quest. Over the course of the semester, I designed, programmed and wrote the story for what eventually became my first VR game: Worm Exodus.

The experience – about 10 minutes long for the average player – is a humorous and strange tale of a worm colony’s quest to migrate their society from living in one piece of fruit to another – going from living in a rotting apple to a (soon to be) rotting pear. During the development process I learned how employ various VR interactions – such grabbing, throwing, using doors, and using various tools like crowbars and switches. I also got experience in writing a cohesive narrative with several characters told through gameplay, in a similar style to first person narrative games I enjoy like Half-Life, Portal and Prey.

Designing Environments

I used the lessons I learned in my previous 3D level design efforts to inform the designs in this project. I worked predominantly with Pro Builder to craft spaces that felt lived-in and similar to our reality, while also being fantastical and strange. Techniques such as forced perspective and uses of ‘frames’ in level design (where your eyes are directed through an opening in the geometry to look at another space in the level) make exploring this world always engaging.

The Story/World

To take full advantage of VR as a medium, I decided to play with scale and set the game in a world much tinier than our own. Giving the worms a nomadic living situation made the most sense to me – and having them live in a world that can rot (a fruit) gave a natural source of conflict.