Serious Storytelling in Virtual Reality: The Role of Digital Narrative to Trigger Mediated Presence and Behavioral Responses

Abstract

Virtual Reality (VR) can administer a narrative rich, high-fidelity environment that provides a fully immersive and interactive experience for use in serious games. VR serious games are increasingly used in training and evacuation preparedness for natural hazards. Understanding players' behavior is critical to improving the experience of these VR serious games. Incorporating narrative in SG has proven to make them more effective; however, its influence on mediated presence and players' behavioral response is not studied extensively. This preliminary study investigates digital narratives' role on mediated presence, cognitive behavior, and engagement in an evacuation training VR serious game. Participants (N=32) were exposed to virtual flooding in a virtual environment designed for evacuation training with and without a serious storytelling context. Quantitative analysis of players' experience revealed that VR implemented with digital narrative improved the sense of mediated presence and players' behavioral response.