When human operators locomote actively in virtual environments (VE), the movement range often has to be adapted to the limited dimensions of the physical space. This however might lead to a conflict between sensory information originating from user movements and sensory feedback provided through the virtual locomotion. To investigate whether different locomotion strategies that adapt virtual movement to the limited physical space impact cognitive processes, two experiments were conducted. The first experiment used walking in place, the second study scale of locomotion to investigate the impact of locomotion adaptation on the acquisition of spatial knowledge and user experience. We systematically analyzed body-based sensorial conflicts for the different adaptation strategies and reveal that neither walking in place nor scale of locomotion impacts spatial knowledge acquisition or user experience. We can conclude that visual cues indicating locomotion combined with body-based rotational cues seem to be sufficient for the acquisition of spatial knowledge and that locomotion with controllers seems efficient and preferable for users. The results link system-driven typologies with human-centered factors to guide systematic tests of locomotion techniques in virtual environments for future studies.

Introduction. An increasing number of location-based entertainment centers offers the possibility of entering multi-user virtual reality (VR) scenarios. Until now, neither cognition and emotions of users nor team experience have been scientifically evaluated in such an application. The present study investigated the gain of positive social interdependence while experiencing an adventure on the Immersive Deck of Illusion Walk (Berlin, Germany). Method. The preliminary version of a VR group adventure of the company was enriched by a task establishing social interdependence (IDP condition). The impact of IDP on social presence and cooperation (i.e., mutual importance) was evaluated relative to a control task without interdependence (nIDP condition). Results. Social IDP increased social presence and cooperation among participants. Additionally, behavioral involvement (part of presence), certain aspects of the adventure experience, and the affective evaluation during the experience were positively influenced by IDP. Discussion. The present study showed that interdependence can substantially enhance social presence and cooperation (i.e., mutual importance) in a VR setting already characterized by social co-experience. Thus, it revealed one design option (social IDP) to improve the experience, particularly the social experience, of location-based entertainment. Conclusion. The present research addressed one goal of location-based VR hosts to scientifically established design principles for social and collective adventures by supporting the impact of “collectively mastering an adventurous challenge”. In addition, our evaluation demonstrated that the multi-modal tracking, the free movement, as well as the multi-user features enabled natural interaction with other users and the environment, and thereby engendered a comfortable social experience.