My initial proposal was to create a bird that gave the player a sense of flight, and the feeling of being a bird. Flex sensors would be attached to the bird, and the user would have the ability to fly by flapping the bird’s wings. I wanted the user to have the thoughts of a bird, and to receive information about the bird’s agency, but it proved difficult to accomplish.
In my final version of the bird, the flight feels like taking flight; flapping produces movement and the bird accelerates and decelerates based on the amount of flaps that occur over time. As a result, it takes more flapping initially to begin moving, and then the user can control the left and right movement of the bird by gliding using one wing or the other. As the user flaps the bird’s wings, the bird increases in altitude and speed. When the user stops flapping, the bird decreases in altitude and speed.
Here is a video of the bird in action:
Additionally, here is the code for the processing and arduino:
Processing: http://pastie.org/879521
Ardunio: http://pastie.org/879522
Where to go from here: If I were to continue working on the bird, I would like to provide an outlet for the bird’s agency to act on the player. This would have the player receive information about various bird related tasks, in order to make the play experience more like being a bird.