What are the best practices for creating immersive virtual environments?

3 Design for user comfort and safety

A third challenge of VR is to design for user comfort and safety. If the user feels uncomfortable or unsafe in the VR environment, they may experience nausea, fatigue, eye strain, or even injury. To avoid these problems, you should follow the guidelines of ergonomics, accessibility, and ethics. Ergonomics is the science of designing for human factors, such as posture, movement, vision, and hearing. Accessibility is the practice of designing for diverse users, such as those with disabilities, impairments, or preferences. Ethics is the discipline of designing for moral and social values, such as privacy, consent, and respect.

4 Incorporate interactivity and feedback

A fourth challenge of VR is to incorporate interactivity and feedback. If the user feels passive or bored in the VR environment, they may lose interest, engagement, or motivation. To avoid these problems, you should follow the strategies of agency, affordance, and reward. Agency is the degree of control and influence that the user has over the VR environment, which depends on the choices, actions, and consequences of the interaction. Affordance is the degree of clarity and intuitiveness that the user has over the VR environment, which depends on the cues, signs, and hints of the interaction. Reward is the degree of satisfaction and enjoyment that the user has over the VR environment, which depends on the goals, challenges, and feedback of the interaction.

5 Test and iterate your VR environment

A fifth challenge of VR is to test and iterate your VR environment. If you do not test and iterate your VR environment, you may miss errors, bugs, or issues that affect the quality and usability of the experience. To avoid these problems, you should follow the methods of prototyping, evaluation, and improvement. Prototyping is the process of creating a low-fidelity or high-fidelity version of the VR environment, which allows you to test the feasibility and functionality of the design. Evaluation is the process of collecting and analyzing data from the users, such as feedback, behavior, or performance, which allows you to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of the design. Improvement is the process of making changes and refinements to the VR environment, which allows you to enhance the quality and usability of the design.

6 Learn from the experts and the community

A sixth challenge of VR is to learn from the experts and the community. If you do not learn from the experts and the community, you may miss opportunities, trends, or innovations that affect the development and advancement of the VR technology. To avoid these problems, you should follow the sources of inspiration, education, and collaboration. Inspiration is the process of finding and exploring examples, cases, or projects of VR environments, which allows you to discover new ideas, techniques, or styles of design. Education is the process of acquiring and updating knowledge, skills, or tools of VR environments, which allows you to learn the theory, practice, or application of design. Collaboration is the process of joining and contributing to networks, groups, or events of VR environments, which allows you to share, discuss, or co-create with other designers, developers, or users.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?