Nomad follows the story of Kid, a lonely narrator who has opted out of society and who is making a video game to connect with the society she has left behind. Hers is a video game travelogue that explores isolation and the paradox of longing to escape society while simultaneously striving to build authentic human connections through creativity and technology.

A game created on the road using 360 video and photography, photogrammetry, and LIDAR techniques to capture environments and translate them into virtual spaces as the setting for a narrative that comments on the intersection of American mobility, cultural mythology, and personal isolation.

Nomad critically examines our collective regard for place, mobility, and the allure of digital, physical, and personal frontiers. Additionally, Nomad invites a discussion on the blurring of distinction between physical and digital space and the artistic endeavor to re-convey the geographic world through technology. Parallel to this examination is the tension between one's role and responsibilities within society and the individualist urge to leave these roles behind and explore the unknown. This urge for exploration is embodied in the metaphor of the early expeditions of American settlers moving westward. Romanticized in literature and film, this American concept of leaving an old world to conquer the unknown is echoed in the goal structure of video games which are organized into levels of increasing, and unknown, challenge.

Environment Art: Given Borthwick

Narrative Support: Michael Thomet

Programming Support: Trinidad Sibajas

Coming in 2020
Nomad