Inspired by a love of Natural History documentary filmmaking, Life in VR uses a strong narrative voice to tell a core story, with an open world design which provides agency and rewards exploration.
BBC Earth: Life in VR is a groundbreaking VR format that moves the user from being a passive viewer to being an active participant, providing VR-only moments which have never been experienced by audiences before.
The format is engineered around offering face-to-face animal encounters, bringing closer access than ever to their behaviour and characteristics. The animals also provide the primary method of locomotion, allowing the user to catch and lock-to the animals and witness first-hand their behaviours and habitats.
Just like a traditional documentary, the experience is set across a variety of locations and focuses on the animals that live there. A core story runs through the experience and connects the animals, revealing the behaviours and relationships, which sustain this ocean’s rich and diverse ecosystems.
Whilst this core story can be experienced seamlessly and delivers a strong narrative arc, the player is also free to explore the world in their own way. As they explore, they can discover side-stories, complementing the core story and deepening comprehension. There is also a ‘discovery’ system which rewards the inquisitive and drives replayability.
The experience is divided into chapters, mirroring the narrative, and comprising a journey through key environments and animal encounters whilst also providing a quick way to return to or share the user’s favourite moments.