窪蹋勛圖厙

 

Pong, all night long: Dal CS brings classic video game to the beach for Nocturne

- October 16, 2014

Mohamad Salimian (centre) shows off one of the Beach Pong paddles. (Bruce Bottomley photos)
Mohamad Salimian (centre) shows off one of the Beach Pong paddles. (Bruce Bottomley photos)

For the past two years, Dal Computer Science prof Derek Reilly and his students have brought fun and games to festival, with interactive exhibits that double as hands-on research projects.

And if you enjoyed the award-winning Tweetris two years ago, or last years high-tech mystery game Operation Citadel, get ready to head to the beach and get your Pong on.

Beach Pong is a mash-up of beach volleyball and the classic video game Pong, explains Dr. Reilly, assistant professor in the Faculty of Computer Science, of this years exhibit.

Dr. Reilly and his team of students in the Human-Computer Interaction lab have been working over the past year on their new mixed reality game, which will be unveiled during Halifax and Dartmouths annual nighttime downtown arts festival this Saturday.



Heres how it works: holding a large foam fluorescent paddle, players will shimmy side to side on either end of a sand court in order to hit a virtual ball. This ball is visible to players via a 3D viewfinder embedded in the paddle and visible to the audience on a large projection of a tube TV showcasing a videogame version of the game in progress. A grid of LED lights placed on the sand between the player regions also shows the position and direction of the virtual ball.

Sounds easy enough, right?

Ready, set, serve lava?


Heres where it gets tricky: as players play, they upset the flat sand, causing small or large pockets of uneven sand. Depressions in the sand (below a certain threshold) are detected using a 3D depth camera. Virtual lava is then projected directly onto the sand, giving the appearance of flowing lava. If a player accidentally steps into the lava, a projected flame will erupt and their game is over. The sand is raked and ready for the next players to give it a go.

We are interested in how players divide their attention between the physical environment, the viewfinder and the embedded display elements like the lava, explains Dr. Reilly. Knowing more about how people divide their attention and awareness when engaging in physically-demanding mixed reality games gives us insight into how future systems can integrate fluidly with the physical activities we do in the world around us.


Dr. Reilly (third from left) and his team on the waterfront.

Dr. Reillys Nocturne presentations have been incredibly popular: , which had attendees compete in a massive game of Tetris projected on scaffolding on the side of Dals Medjuck (Architecture) Building, won the festivals first ever audience award.

So if youre heading out to Nocturne this weekend, make sure to drop by the beach and grab a paddle: Dr. Reilly and his team will be at Sands on Salter on the Halifax waterfront between 6 p.m. and midnight.

More Dal at Nocturne

Dr. Reilly's presentation isn't the only Dal-connected Nocturne exhibit this year.

Make sure to include the 窪蹋勛圖厙Art Gallery on your itinerary Saturday night, which is featuring (im)mobile, an exhibit with works by Edith Fl羹ckiger (Lucerne, Switerland) and Germaine Koh (Vancouver, Canada) curated by Mireille Bourgeois and Chantal Molleur. The two artists in (im)mobile present conceptual artwork, comprised of electronic installation, video and digital text pieces, in a conversation exploring mobility and balance.

The Art Gallery is also partnering with Phin for a display titled Incidental Findings, one chapter of a multimedia installation staged in a 26 U-Haul Truck called Trio (Magic House/Magic Ride). Look for it on the Halifax waterfront by Nova Scotia Power (south partking lot)

Then there's Balance, a multimedia project which combines a large projection screen and a live orchestra featuring students from the Fountain School of Performing Arts. Through original video footage by Andrew Coll and Brandon Mott, it explores the contrast between untouched nature and urban landscapes, as well as the ever-changing state of human communication. Check it out at the Cathedral Church of All Saints at 1330 Martello St. (Thanks to commenter "Andrew" for the tip!)