Obstacles and conflicts are crucial for creating engaging and impactful VR training scenarios that captivate users and enhance their learning experience.
The Essence of Storytelling
The power of impactful, immersive training comes from its ability to engage users deeply. Two key elements that drive this engagement are obstacles and conflicts.
Obstacle (external challenge): An immediate challenge that blocks progress. It’s like a locked door in your path. Find the key, and you move forward.
Conflict (internal or ethical dilemma): A deeper emotional or ethical struggle that drives the narrative. Often, it’s the internal debate about whether or not you should enter the door, even with the key in hand.
Adding a conflict to your story is a great way to get learners emotionally involved in your VR training. It makes the experience more challenging and provides a basis for discussion with peers after the training.
Adding a conflict to your story is a great way to get learners emotionally involved in your VR training.
Ingredients of a Conflict
A compelling conflict typically involves several key ingredients:
Stakes: The importance of what is at risk or what could be lost or gained.
Example: The player's job, someone’s safety, or achieving a significant goal.
Explanation: High stakes make the conflict feel important and urgent, compelling the audience to care about the outcome.
Time Pressure: A limited timeframe within which the player must act.
Example: A bomb will explode in one hour, a patient needs immediate surgery, or a deal must be closed by the end of the day.
Explanation: Time constraints add urgency and intensify the conflict, forcing the protagonist to make quick decisions under pressure.
Consequences: Significant outcomes resulting from the player’s decisions, regardless of the choice made.
Example: If they choose one path, they may save someone but lose their trust; if they choose another, they might protect their integrity but face a setback.
Explanation: Meaningful consequences ensure that every choice has a significant impact, reflecting real-world complexities and making the narrative more engaging.
Resource Constraints (Optional): Limitations on the tools, information, or support available to the player.
Example: A key team member is unavailable, there are limited supplies, or crucial information is missing.
Explanation: Constraints force the protagonist to be resourceful and creative, adding depth to the conflict.
The MedTech Crisis
To illustrate the power of obstacles and conflicts, let’s use the following scenario:
Scenario: MedTech Crisis
MedTech Solutions, a company specializing in medical software, faces a critical situation. A recently updated software used in hospitals worldwide has a critical bug that could endanger patients’ lives. The lead developer, Alex, needs to resolve this issue urgently. The fix requires input from a key team member, Sam, who is currently unavailable due to personal reasons.
Obstacle: The software bug is a significant obstacle. Alex needs to fix it immediately to prevent potential harm to patients.
Conflict: We introduce Alex to the moral dilemma by putting something at stake, “patients’ lives.” We add some time pressure and a resource constraint by making Sam unavailable. Now, Alex needs to decide. Should he bypass standard protocols and attempt a quick fix on his own, risking potential errors? Or should he respect the process, wait for Sam’s input, and risk more time being wasted, potentially putting more patients at risk? Either decision has significant consequences.
Crafting Your Narrative: Obstacles vs. Conflicts
Understanding the distinction between obstacles and conflicts is crucial when crafting your narrative. Obstacles provide external challenges that drive the story forward, while conflicts introduce deeper emotional and ethical struggles that add complexity and depth to the story. The choice of starting with either element often depends on the learning objectives of your VR training: Are you aiming for skill mastery or decision-making?
Conclusion
Drawing from the expertise of seasoned scenario writers and our experiences at Warp VR, obstacles and conflicts prove to be powerful storytelling tools. Whether you’re an experienced creator or a budding storyteller, the immersive world of VR training awaits your unique touch. Eager to master the art of immersive storytelling? At Warp VR, we offer specialized workshops to help you create impactful narratives for training. Learn directly from our experts, gain hands-on experience, and transform the way you engage with your audience in virtual reality.
