STORY LIVING: 10 Tools from Video Games & Immersive Theater to Make Story Worlds in the Metaverse

As an Interactive Emmy-winning Narrative Director, I’ve spent 25 years creating groundbreaking stories for film, TV, video games, VR, AR and immersive theater. With this talk, I will offer AWE's audience of XR professionals key techniques from both video games and experiential theater that we’ll need to build the future of storytelling in extended realities. Drawing links between classic video games (like GTA, Portal, Last of Us, Destiny, Fortnite) and immersive theater groups, both historical and contemporary, (Punchdrunk, The Living Theater, Odyssey Works, Third Rail Projects, La Fura del Baus), this talk will examine how both mediums leverage player agency and create living worlds. Attendees interested in experiential storytelling will come away with knowledge about tools like emergent narrative, environmental storytelling, sandbox game design, and a responsive world. I’ll discuss the importance of state change tracking, best practices for balancing player choice when using branching story techniques, and the role of AI in the future of story.​​ With the launch of the Vision Pro, we are seeing significant industry momentum in XR and the metaverse. However, as my colleagues often say: “The metaverse is a technology in search of a reason for being.” As such, this talk will provide tangible insights on how to drive human-focused experiences, and provide essential ideas to creators looking to craft XR worlds that go beyond passive consumption into the realm of “story living.”