[Workshop] Diegetic User Interfaces

Hi All,

angelsin​ here, and I want to talk to you about Diegetic User Interfaces. I hosted a workshop about the topic for Start members, and you can watch the recording here:

If text is more your speed, here's a summary of what we talked about:

Diegetic User Interfaces in Virtual Spaces

User Interface (UI): The interface features through which users interact with hardware and software.
Diegetic: Existing within the fiction of the story.
Spatial: Existing within the virtual space.
Game UI to gameplay spectrum: How integrated into the play is the UI.

Traditional UIs are the most straightforward to make, and the tools available are designed to build this type of UI. In flat applications these are typically overlay menus. 

Spatial UIs are the bread and butter of VR/AR applications, they are traditional UIs brought off the overlay plane and into the virtual space, these are your typical laser pointer wall menus, or floating player menus. The key here is that they do not exist in the game's fiction. Even if themed to match the game's art style if the UI does not exist in the fiction then it is not diegetic.

A diegetic UI both exists spatially AND exists within the fiction. Diegetic UIs enhance immersion by making the interface feel like part of the virtual world rather than an external tool. They can be particularly useful in immersive attractions and VR/AR applications where users need to interact directly within a simulated environment. These require some amount of buy-in from the player in the form of belief, and tend to be bespoke to the application they are made for thus requiring a larger development and design effort.

Meta UIs exist in a weird space because they largely exist due to limitations of the technology. These UIs exist within the fiction, but are not accurately represented within the virtual space, the best example of this would be something like a ScrollView on a sign, the sign exists in the virtual space, and the information exists in the fiction, but the ScrollView only exists for the player, and moreover only exists due to the need to enlarge text due to resolution.

Benefits of Diegetic UI

• Increase Immersion: Users feel more immersed as they interact with the simulated environment.
• Increase Embodiment: The interface feels like part of the virtual world, enhancing the user's sense of being present in the simulation.
• Reduce Obstruction to the Narrative: Diegetic UIs can help keep the narrative flow smooth by not interrupting the immersive experience.
• Reduce Menu Time: Users spend less time navigating menus and more time engaging with gameplay.

Diegetic UIs blend seamlessly into the gameplay, making it feel like part of the virtual world rather than an external tool. This can enhance user engagement and immersion by reducing the need for separate interfaces during gameplay.

Exploring Virtual Spaces, some ideas of ways to go further

• Multi-modal Hands: Users can put down their weapons or use controllers to define a surface or window.
  Mixed Reality:
  • Bring UI into the user’s physical space
  • Align UI with virtual representations from physical space
  • Designed environments that blend seamlessly with the simulated environment.

Diegetic user interfaces are an essential tool for enhancing immersion and engagement in virtual spaces. By making the interface feel like part of the fictional space, users can have a more immersive experience without being interrupted by separate tools during gameplay.

As always I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments. What are some interesting examples of UI that made an impact on you? Were they Traditional, Spatial, Meta, or Diegetic?