Alf Engen’s Take Flight!
An immersive and captivating interactive game.
- Event Design Awards - Gold Award for Best Museum Environment
Capabilities
Creative, Design, Fabrication, Engineering, Electronics, Game Development, Programming
Objective
Flattery comes in many forms and our favorite is repeat business! As soon as the install of the award winning Ski Experience wrapped up, Alf Engen Ski Museum began collaborating with us on their next interactive exhibit. The objective was to update otherwise aging exhibits and bring them into the digital age, offering more dynamic experiences to entice new and returning visitors to the museum.
Solution
Alf Engen’s Take Flight! was the solution; an interactive ski jump experience that recreates the speed, adrenalin and fun that a professional athlete experiences on the K120 jump at the Utah Olympic Park.
Standing on a gimbaled platform we engineered in-house, the player moves their body just as an Olympic Ski Jumper would, which directly manipulates a digital avatar within a virtual world. This in-game world is projected in real-time onto a large screen that curves around the player. After an initial test run the player has two chances to master the jump and compete with friends in achieving a high score based on official rules and judging. Wind generators, tactile sound effects and social media integration make it a truly connected experience.
But it’s not all fun and games. We set out to not only create a ski-jumping experience, but to also tell the ski jumping story, which was accomplished through historical memorabilia, trophies, and infographics, all seamlessly incorporated around the experience.
The game itself featured touch screen interaction, customizable avatars, virtual wind and snow, rag doll physics, and social media integration. The players can opt-in for the Facebook photo feature where during gameplay they are photographed mid-flight. Their score is then overlaid on their photo and posted to the Alf Engen’s Take Flight! Facebook Page for them to share with their friends and family, adding to the level of competition.
Alf Engen’s Take Flight is now open to the public at the Alf Engen Ski Museum in Park City, Utah. It is a one-of-a-kind ski jump experience that keeps visitors coming back for more soaring action!
“After trying out the new virtual ‘Alf Engen’s Take Flight’ ski jumping experience exhibit, I can say that it far exceeds my initial expectations. I am certain that my father would feel the same way about it. He was always supportive of anything offering the general public a safe and enjoyable way to participate in the ski jumping sport he loved. In my opinion, this exhibit accomplishes that… and more.”
Alan K. Engen (son of Alf Engen)