OVERVIEW
“POLEMO” (which means “war” in Greek) is the first game of its kind.
Polemo was my masters thesis project during my time at the University of Colorado, Boulder and it took me 10+ months to build.
If you were ever a fan of the game Street Fighter growing up then you are going to love this game because street fighter just came to life. It is a real life combat game where two people who are wearing my force responsive designed suit will be fighting each other. The person whose health bar empties first looses.
I have always been someone whose passions and hobbies have
revolved around movement and being active. Martial arts has
been the most pivotal driving force in my life. For me, it has always
been about joy and human expression . For my final thesis
I wanted to do something that captures and encourages human
expression collaboration through movement . Which is what gave
birth to the idea of “Polemo”- An Immersive Combat Game.
PROBLEM STATEMENT
“Fighting video games are one of the most popular games out there .
In recent years immersive/VR games have made significant advances offering users an
immersive experience in various domains. However existing boxing VR games often lack depth,
immersion and realism leading to limited adoption. With Polemo, my goal is to push the boundary and
create a game which gives users a genuine realistic experience which is as immersive as possible.”
RESEARCH
Studies showed that immersive video games boasted
significantly higher user engagement rates compared to
traditional video games. Some reports indicated that VR games achieved 10 times more user engagement than non-VR games.
WORKING
DESIGN ELEMENTS
PLAYER CHARACTERIZATION
BODY SUIT
PROCESS
Week 1-8
The first few weeks were mostly spent in research and development. Figuring out the right kind of sensors for the suit, the right fabric, the hardware and all the wiring. Outweighing the pros and cons of each of those sensors. Figuring out the force dustibtuion and ergonomics of the entire suit.
Week 8-16
The second the was marked by mainly user testing the suit prototype and debugging and fixing all the problems. I did see testing with a vast range of audiences and collected feedback from everyone. This was one of the most usefl hate since I could see them use it and get their iv reactions.
Week 16-24
The third phase was focused more aound the branding and theme of the suit. Fine tuning and improving several aspects of the project. Maximing the efficiency of the sensors and the transmission protocols. Improving the safety features, etc. I also added several new features such as haptics and LED lights.
Week 24-32
The final phase was ensuring that all the components come together and making sure that every aspect is working efficiently and smoothly. Adding some final touches to the software side such as animation, graphics, sound effects, different levels. Also finalize the little things such as the arena size, lighting , ambience, etc.
IMAGES
