Human:Level
Documentation; 2 Screens, Sound
2022
Human:Level is an experiment that combines performance, theater, and video games. The player character is replaced by an actor. A mixture of real and projected space creates an augmented reality on stage as well as a game level on the player‘s computer monitor. The question arises of how a computer, whether as a medium or content, alters decisions between people. The player becomes the victim of the players who become perpetrators. The game addresses our actions in climate change and our personal role in it.
Human:Level connects the analog and digital space in new and innovative ways. The avatar/actor/player is connected live to the player‘s activities via an in-ear monitor and implements them within the framework of the scripts. These scripts allow the player to move freely and guide the avatar through the plot. Actions in the real space are followed by reactions in the digital game world. Live streaming is made possible by a mobile camera. By mixing real and projected space, an augmented reality is created live on stage for the audience, as well as game content for the players on their monitor. Through the Twitch broadcast, Human:Level is presented to an online audience that actively influences the players‘ decision-making.
Game content:
As a time traveler, the played person starts a journey on behalf of the player. He travels through seemingly distant worlds, which are influenced by the actions of each individual and turn out to be the possible future of our world at the end. The human player, uncoupled of the events by the screen and the game console, plays a real person through five possible developments of the near future and has to come to terms with the development of man-made climate change from different positions. Thus, not only the player as an active agent, but also the passive audience is involved in a sequence of decisions that directly and immediately influence the avatar/actor. The consequences are visible on the computer screen, but the actual influence is delayed for the acting player and his observers.
Technical information:
On more than 800 sqm of floor space, about 150 sqm of wall surface was covered with projections. The longest projection was about 22m long and 5,5m high. The virtual part of the game runs on several computers. By means of video cameras and editing control, virtual and real world become a closed unit, which is seen by the player and the online audience. The communication between player and played person takes place exclusively by means of key commands of the player. The player receives computer-controlled announcements via headphones as to what task the player is going to give him next. This new one-way communication enables a unique “game” experience for both sides and is an existential component of the aesthetic action in the game.
Time-lapse footage of the setup
About Fabian Kühfuss
Fabian Kühfuß is a freelance media artist who focuses on the development of new technologies and their impact on our everyday lives. His machine objects facilitate the artist’s everyday life internationally and thereby refer to ethical and socially relevant issues.
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