Novah: An Embodied VR Narrative Experience of Memory, Choice, and Subconscious Escape

Novah is a VR storytelling experience that explores how embodied interaction such as nodding, climbing, and gesturing can deepen user presence in VR storytelling. Players freely explore nonlinear scenes, where their bodily actions actively shape both meaning and story progression.

Project Video

Abstract

Novah is an immersive VR experience that explores how embodied interaction enhances narrative depth by deepening user presence and engagement. The project follows the journey of Novah, a protagonist who wakes up in a subconscious space, having lost all memories of their past. The player takes on Novah’s perspective, navigating through a series of family related scenes in order to recover memories and ultimately escape the subconscious to return to reality.

Rather than following a fixed linear plot, the experience invites players to explore environments freely, using natural gestures such as nodding, shaking the head, waving, reaching, or climbing to interact with characters and objects. Each gesture is not just a mechanic but an integral part of the storytelling language. These bodily movements are tracked and responded to in real time, allowing the story to evolve in response to the player’s physical choices.

The scenes within Novah represent symbolic fragments of Novah’s personal and familial history. All the items reflect memory and identity. The story does not dictate a single meaning or outcome. Instead, it unfolds environmentally and interactively, encouraging players to piece together emotional context through embodied interaction and exploration. This non-linear approach breaks away from conventional cutscene-based storytelling, instead using the body as a narrative interface.

At the core of Novah is a belief that immersive, embodied storytelling can create more personal and resonant experiences in VR. By engaging users on a physical level, the project fosters a deeper sense of presence and narrative agency. Unlike traditional interactive media that rely heavily on button-based inputs and scripted dialogue trees, Novah builds a space where meaning emerges organically from the interplay between body, environment, and memory.

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