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Monster Hunter Iceborne XR Walk


ROLE        Experience Designer
DATE        2019 - 2021
CLIENT    Universal Studios Japan (Licensor: Capcom)
AWARD    2022 Finalist, Best VR Location-Based Entertainment of the Year, AIXR XR Awards


A multiplayer free-walk VR game where players journey to save an injured hunter and end up battling monsters along the way.

The Challenge

To provide an accurate feel of the Monster Hunter Icebourne world and deliver a thrill of battle while maintaining accessibility to park-goers of varying levels of fandom and ability.

The final attraction must include exploration and battle and be able to sustain theme-park viable throughput of X guests per hour.

I led design and testing of all game systems, narrative timing and level designs to integrate with stage and physical effects while accomplishing the required throughput and guest satisfaction.

I reviewed vendor deliveries, presented at licensor meetings, and represented the team in cross-functional meetings with operations, entertainment, etc. to ensure integrated gameplay with the preshow actors, costumes, practical effects, and operations.

https://youtu.be/jV3HhOjsoQs

User Flow
  1. Registration Receive QR code and enter the cue line.

  2. Character Creation Scan QR code at tablet to name and design your hunter.

  3. Pre-show Live actors introduce the story premise and how to battle.

  4. Gear Up Backpack, trackers and headsets are put on

  5. Main Show A veteran hunter meets your group in VR and leads you to find the injured hunter. On the way, you learn to follow trails of scout-flies, grappling hook, climb cliff-sides, collect plants, study monster tracks, and more. Eventually you locate the lost hunter, and borrow weapons from his campsite to fight off a series of monsters while bringing him home.

  6. Gear Down All gear removed and returned

  7. Score card Scan QR code on personal device to see score sheet


Exploration


Capcom was interested in communicating what it is like to enter the world of Monster Hunter, placing importance on interacting with the environments.


Collecting — Plants and Traces 
I drew from the original IP’s “notebook” to support collecting in VR. Players open the notebook by looking at their palm and it reflects their progress. Players can collect plants by grasping them and study monster tracks by running their hand over them. Collectables had to be strategically placed in locations that valid to the game’s lore, able to be reached by players of various height, and not blocking the flow of guest traffic.



Traversal — Grappling and Climbing
To deliver the feeling of a vast environment, we employed techniques to traverse more virtual ground than was available physically. Players could climb to new terrain, use their slingshot to grappling hook onto Wedge Beetles to access far locations, and fall to treacherous caves.



R&D
Shoutout to the endemic life prototypes that were value engineered out:
  • You can entice a bird to perch on your hand, and it will fly away if you move too fast.
  • An insect may land on you.
  • Hot spring monkeys may mimic you when you make eye contact.
  • Penguins slide away on their tummies if you approach too close/fast.


Combat


There were two battles in the experience: a tutorial battle (Velkhana) where the NPC guide reminded guests how and when to fight, and a boss battle (Barioth) where players are rewarded for anticipating attacks on their own. 

Monsters

I assigned each monster a sequence of ground and flying attacks integrated with physical effects on stage. By dealing timed damage throughout the battle, players could stun the monster, send it into an enraged state, break off monster parts. Players hit by attacks are temporarily stunned. Hopefully players will deal enough damage for the best endings!



Weapons

Guests had 5 of Monster Hunter’s iconic weapons to choose from. I had to distill their distinguishing characteristics down to work for a simplified VR experience where guests only have one playthrough to learn, limited battle time, and limited physical capabilities compared to the original PC game.



Scoring & Titles

I assigned battle points based on the hit strength, body-part that was hit, and if the weapon was in a special state. Defending attacks also earned points. Group bonuses were provided for stunning the monster or breaking its parts. Deductions were given for damage taken and missed opportunities.

Since each weapon had unique charging times, points awarded for different hit types, and visual effects. The exact stats were honed over lots of playtests so that no one weapon had a clear advantage over others for achieving a perfect battle score.

At the end of the experience, guests can look at their Hunter Card to see their total points and what title they earned based on their playstyle.


Testing


To ensure an incredible and smooth attraction, two types of testing was key: Design tests and Scale tests. We recorded what testers were seeing, aggregated event based statistics, and issued survey questions.

Design tests were targeted at assessing the usability, balance and success of specific systems, interactions, and environment designs. Results were synthesized and used to iterate designs to work for players of different ages and familiarity with the IP. This process heavily informed all gestures, scoring, and narrative timing.

Scale tests were used to ensure the network, operations, narrative timing and guardian systems were robust enough to support the required theme-park guest throughput at scale and keep groups safe. It was also an opportunity to assess the scoring system to ensure an overall successful guest experience and catch any repeat bottlenecks within the experience.

Ask me about: Practical Effects, Character Creation, Motion Tracking of 50+ people, Operations Toolset