Alice’s Adventure’s in New Media: An Exploration of Interactive Narratives in Augmented Reality

Alice’s Adventures in New Media is an Augmented Reality (AR) experience based on A Mad Tea Party, a chapter from Lewis Carroll’s book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The user assumes the role of Alice and sits at the tea party with three interactive characters: the Mad Hatter, the Dormouse, and the March Hare. The video-based characters are presented through a head-mounted display, and appear to be seated at the same physical table as the user. As a developing medium, AR has yet to establish itself as a narrative form. By comparing the unique characteristics of AR with established media, the project explores AR as a storytelling medium. Innovations include the refashioning of older media (such as film) for the development of an AR narrative, the use of simple procedural characters to create an immersive interactive experience, and the development of tools that enable the production of AR experiences.