Tube Monkey

Help the monkey avoid distractions and find his spaceship in the center of the planet.

DATE

2010

CONTEXT

Created as a part of "Space Monkey," the final project for Interactive Media 2 (DESMA C152B/252B), taught Eddo Stern

MEDIUM

Unity, Arduino, custom electronics, mixed media

PEOPLE

Monica Harvancik  :  Game Design
Peter Lu  :  Game Design
Max Chang  :  Game Design

This is part of Space Monkey, a collection of games that combine traditional controls and gameplay with physical performance and costume interfaces.

The player’s goal in this game is to direct a tube-shaped monkey towards his spaceship before time runs out. Meanwhile, three costumed actors attempt to hinder his progress. One actor uses a flute-like interface to control in-game dancers which pop up in the foreground, distracting the player; a second actor wears a wired kilt that activates an earthquake when he or she stomps, which drops rocks from the top of the screen, obscuring the game world; the third actor uses a hula-hoop waist interface to control the global rotation of the world, disorienting the player. These costume interfaces use a combination of accelerometers, optical encoders, pressure sensors, and gyroscopes to record the actors’ behaviors.