Detours & Deviations
Detours & Deviations is a dynamic world perpetually reshaped by memories. Players traverse a landscape, where their actions give birth to "memories" that, in turn, influence the evolving environment. Different experiences converge and intertwine, creating a collective journey that never ends. The project's ambition is to manifest the evolution of memories through AI-driven, procedural spatial reconstructions, and to allow players the freedom to explore an ever-evolving narrative woven with their own and others' memories.
The perpetual transformation of the space is closely tied to the presence of agents, referred to as "actors," who serve as custodians of various scenes, encapsulating and gathering memories imbued with subconscious behaviors. These actors possess distinctive personalities and methods for shaping their surroundings. Each begins their journey within a designated region but may venture into other territories, either to spark events or influence the inclinations of fellow actors.
m23
As players immerse themselves in m23's "ocean," they observe a dynamic interplay where the seabed continually shifts in response to their movements. Overhead, the diver actor accompanies them, reshaping the topography using displacement maps derived from shadows. When m23 interacts with other actors or explores different territories, expect the topographies to undergo transformative shifts, potentially metamorphosing the surroundings into an underwater-like environment.
Drawings & Diagrams
m23 comes from an experience diving in Aqaba. The actor perceives the space through a diving mask and their visibility is affected by the sand in the water. They learn about topography and depth by reading the various shades of blue. m23 uses displacement maps to generate topography. A movement model helps them predict the player’s location through the best-fit curve and then projects their displacement in relation to the player on the UV tile of the ground.
Portraits of Ahmed, m23, & the Man with Three Names
200 × 124.5 × 10.5 cm (78.5 × 49 × 4 in)
Graphite, charcoal, acrylic, colored pencil, paper, spray paint, mylar
Flowchart of m23
Overlap multi-channel masks to create displacement map
Displacement map UV translation
Displacement mask imprinted from actor level (upper) to player level (lower).
Displacement mask imprinted from actor level (upper) to player level (lower).
