Something that is applicable to all XR wearables that use waveguide lenses is the inability to render darker colors. You would think that this would be a big issue for an escape room experience with a spooky setting.
Fortunately, there is a solution - we can trick our eyes into thinking something is darker than it really is. By surrounding an area with brighter visuals, we can make that area appear relatively darker to the human eye.
In practice, this means leaning into bright highlights and glowing accents around shapes so that shadows and dim areas feel deeper and darker than they actually are.
Choosing the right look and shade of the redwood we use across our mansion's furniture was tedious, but it ultimately paid off in making the entire space feel cohesive, visible, and still properly spooky on waveguide displays.
We really wanted to design objects and puzzles that you would want to actually touch and poke around - objects you can alter, or throw around.
The vases and book stacks are a perfect example of objects with these characteristics. When designing such objects, it's great to make them fun, but it's also important to not let them get in your way.
For example, we had to make the shattered pieces of broken vases and toppled books semi-transparent, so they do not fully cover important puzzle elements, such as keys and notes.
The procedural aspect of the experience is very important to us. It's what drives you to open up the experience again and see if it can offer more.
Of course we could've always easily just left it at the same 5 objects, with notes & keys having random locations and values. But if we're being honest, that would make you want to complete the game three times.
One time to see what's available, a second time to see if there's anything else available, besides randomized keys and notes. And a third time to confirm that you've seen all the content there is to see.
We do not want that. So we designed 10 room objects that randomly get selected, creating 70+ different base room layouts. Then we place decorations and key puzzle items in randomized locations, increasing the variety in rooms even more.
Additionally some of these objects you will only see after your 1/2/3rd completed room, making subsequent play sessions feel fresh.
Where am I? What is this place? Who locked the door?
You can find the answers to all of these questions and more in the pages scattered throughout the manor. We've always believed that context can help immersion a ton, so we've designed some collectibles that let you delve deeper and learn more about Hexenfurt and the mystery that surrounds it.
Once you've completed your first escape room, you will be able to explore your collection of found lore through the main menu.
So by now we've established immersion is visual, contextual. But it's also audible. Spatial sound effects are cool, but the background sound is very important to convey a setting, which is exactly why we have some objects that play different ambient sounds - a ticking clock, a chandelier with flickering candles, a ceiling fan... All of these objects, randomly combined together can drastically change the ambience - which in turn, will make you think you've just stepped into a brand new room, even if you did so with your eyes closed.
We're definitely keen on exploring the limits of the Spectacles, and cannot wait to see what's waiting for us next year. Hexenfurt was just a rough prototype, so our plans for the future include adding new objects, revamping and even further optimizing the current models and code, as well as potentially turning this into a shared experience.
We certainly hope you enjoy it one way or the other. :)
