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the mystery of hanze

A VR Game for Learning Chinese Characters

Description 

"The Mystery of Hanzi" is a groundbreaking virtual reality (VR) application designed to revolutionize the learning of Mandarin Chinese characters. Developed for the Meta Quest 2 platform, this project seamlessly integrates education with immersive gameplay, offering a captivating journey through the intricate world of Chinese characters.

Role

VR Game Programmer

VR Environment Designer

UX Designer

Video Editor

​date

2023

​tools

Unity

3D Max

Visual Studio 

Premiere Pro

Design Brief Interpretation

Mandarin Chinese, known for its complex characters and tonal nuances, presents significant challenges for non-native learners. Traditional methods of learning, often reliant on rote memorization, fail to engage and motivate students effectively. Our project aims to address these challenges by creating an immersive VR game that transforms the learning process into an interactive and engaging experience.

problem space

Mandarin characters are intricate and impose a heavy cognitive load on learners, making the language difficult to master

Project Goals

01

Enhance Mandarin Learning Experience

02

Integrate Educational Content with Immersive Gameplay

03

 

Cultural Enrichment

04

 

User-Centered Design

design challenge

Learning Mandarin Chinese characters can be daunting due to their complexity and the need for memorization. Traditional methods often fail to engage learners, especially those unfamiliar with the language's cultural context. This project aimed to address these challenges by creating an engaging, interactive, and educational VR experience.

Solution

The solution was to develop a VR game where users navigate through a maze shaped like Chinese characters, collecting fragmented pieces of characters while interacting with culturally enriched elements. This approach not only makes learning more engaging but also provides a deeper understanding of the cultural significance behind each character.

background research insights

VR Potential

VR offers an innovative solution by creating immersive environments where learners can interact with characters, enhancing retention and cultural understanding.

Challenges

Mandarin's complexity and the cognitive burden of learning its characters are significant barriers for non-native speakers.

Evolution of Methods

Traditional and digital methods have tried to simplify learning, but often lack immersive elements essential for retention and understanding.

Market Analysis

Market Growth

Interest in learning Mandarin has grown significantly, driven by China's global influence. However, existing tools often fall short in integrating engaging gameplay with educational content.

Opportunity

A gap exists for a VR solution that combines comprehensive character learning with interactive and enjoyable gameplay.

VR App Design Concept

"The Mystery of Hanzi" is a VR game where players navigate mazes shaped like Chinese characters. This approach not only helps in memorizing the characters but also embeds cultural narratives, making learning a holistic experience. Players encounter historical and cultural elements, enhancing their understanding and retention of the language.

Target User Group

Our primary users are non-native speakers, including university students and professionals, who are motivated to learn Mandarin for personal or professional growth. The game is designed to cater to different learning paces and preferences, ensuring it is engaging and effective for all users.

Persona

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User profile and questionnaire

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We use the data from the interviews to create user profile and a questionnaire to pinpoint our target groups needs.

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Design Process

Storyboarding

We developed initial concepts and user flows to ensure a seamless and engaging user experience

360 Sketching

We also created 360-degree scene of the game. To ensure that our design met our users' expectations and needs

User testing and Iteration

We conducted multiple iterations based on user feedback, improve educational content, and enhance cultural immersion.

Low fidelity Iteration 1

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Based on feedback and group discussions, we decided to bring the play and instructional elements closer together

Low fidelity Iteration 2

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we change the fragments in the game so that they cannot be seen on the map, and the fragments become text fragments with content and meaning.

we add a new weather system, fog, rain and other weather will appear in the scene, reducing the visual range (Fov), thus increasing the game playability

Low fidelity Iteration 3

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we move the UI map in the upper right corner to the smart device on the player's right hand, and the player can look at the map like a watch at any time

we add more decorations related to traditional Chinese culture in the game, such as red lanterns, paper cutting, ink painting

Prototyping

In the development of our final Unity prototype on Oculus Quest 2, we utilized a variety of external resources andtoolkits from the Unity Asset Store to achieve our goals.

Exploring our vr game

Reflection

Situation

The challenge was to address the complexity and memorization difficulties associated with learning Mandarin characters. Traditional methods often fail to engage learners, making it crucial to develop a more interactive and enjoyable learning tool.

 

Task

My role involved leading the research phase, designing interactive elements, and ensuring seamless integration of educational content within the VR environment. I was responsible for creating a user-friendly interface and developing the interactive maze that forms the core of the learning experience.

 

Action

We conducted thorough user research, including interviews and testing sessions, to understand the needs and preferences of our target audience. I designed the maze to be not only a visual representation of Chinese characters but also a narrative journey enriched with cultural and historical contexts. Implementing interactive elements like Elves and storyboards required extensive testing and iteration to ensure they enhanced the learning experience rather than complicate it.

 

Result

The final product successfully combined educational content with immersive gameplay. User feedback highlighted the effectiveness of the VR environment in making learning enjoyable and the cultural narratives embedded within the game. The project demonstrated the potential of VR in education, providing a unique and impactful learning experience that traditional methods cannot match.

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