This thesis presents the interactive game installation, Move or Die, created for an exhibit at The Finnish Museum of Natural History. It documents the development of the project by describing ideas behind the concept, detailed components of the installation, and reasons for the design decisions made during the production process. For the theoretical section, the thesis investigates the influence of physical interaction on the players’ experience based on the embodied approach. The museum context is considered a great deal in both the production and theory sections.
Move or Die is a gamified installation in which participants can save endangered species through bodily interaction. As the 'game' is projected onto the floor and Kinect sensors installed on the ceiling register movement, participants can catch and move the graphic animals on the floor by using their arms. Move or Die reflects a research method of the museum called 'assisted migration' and contains their research contents. It is designed to inform people of the situation of the endangered species and to offer participatory experience to the visitors at the same time.
It is the objective of Move or Die to simulate the experience of saving endangered species with the player’s own intention and physical ability. Therefore, to investigate the interaction of Move or Die, it is significant to understand the players’ experience. To analyze this interaction, three representa- tive aspects of the interaction are discussed separately: full- body interaction, social interaction, and reality-based interaction. This thesis tries to uncover comprehensive influences of the interaction beyond its basic functionality
