Goliath: Playing with Reality

Process

Goliath was developed with Jon, whose voice and experience shape the arc of the piece. The team gathered material through interviews, phone conversations and live recordings of Jon playing online with his gaming community, using the contrast between raw documentary audio and heightened virtual worlds to move between isolation, fear, humour and connection.

During prototyping, we iterated through multiple versions of the narrative, interaction design and headset experience. The work was developed both inside and outside the headset, combining VR with physical space, spatialised sound and live performance elements to create moments where participants question what is real and what is not.

To support this process, the team developed bespoke tools, including a real-time “stagemaker” system, allowing the experience to be designed intuitively across disciplines such as sound, animation and interaction. This enabled rapid testing and refinement of how the story could be felt, not just seen.

Alongside this, we worked with mental health charities, researchers, people with lived experience of psychosis and medical professionals to refine the language, sensitivity and impact of the work. Workshops helped shape both the experience and its wider purpose: to challenge stigma, build empathy and explore how VR could become a meaningful tool for mental health education.

Download GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY on Meta Quest here

Visit goliathvr.io to learn more