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..2 How it works

User experience

Start a new game and play

The user simply steps on the starting platforms with both feet. The game then starts, and the first step lights up. The user has to step on the lighted step, which, once pressed, enables the next one.

Objectives and errors

  • The objective is to get to the last step without making errors to get a reward.
  • An error is counted every time the user puts one or both feet outside the central line.
  • This event is detected by evaluating the weight distribution along all the step sensors.
  • Timing is also important: if the user does not wait for the next step to be lighted before pressing it it’s an error (too fast).
  • Also if the users takes too much time to make the step. In this case the lighted step starts to blink slowly as a warning, then faster when the error is recorded (too slow).

The outputs

The outputs are displayed using the column and the Gobbo statue itself. Audio and visual feedbacks are provided by small projectors, LED lights and a hidden audio system.

On the column the user can always see his “health” level as a projected light stripe.

This is basically a score counter but works inverted: instead of increasing it can only fall, and works according to the errors and not as a reward for a good performance. This is necessary because we don’t want people to get more drunk just to try to get a higher score. So the user starts with the maximum score and can only lower it by making mistakes.

Depending on the performance of the user, at the end of the path, there will be also a visual and audio feedback. The Gobbo acts like a judge, who glows red a for bad performance or green plus a spoken Venetian proverb about wine for a good performance.



Proverbs

There are several proverbs, and the one pronounced is randomly selected every time a user gets the green Gobbo. To achieve the right mood, the proverbs are recorded by a Venetian actor, and the recording is edited to make it more deep and echoing.

Indirect users

The installation can only be used by one person at a time, but is conceived to be fun also for the people watching it.

Affordances

  • The starting platforms have the shape of a foot, to give a clear idea about the starting position and the direction to take.
  • The timing and order of the steps to make is given by a backlight on the steps.
  • Two lateral LED stripes lights up while a game is running, to inform the people around about the active installation area, avoiding unintentional interference.

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