If you want a great example of the power of creative VR platforms like Google’s Tilt Brush, look no further than A Show Of Kindness.
Though brief, this project (built by concept artist Peter Chan under Google’s Tilt Brush Artist in Residence Program) is a touching, thoughtful bit of VR storytelling to liven up the day. It consists of three environments, leading you from the entrance of a circus into its main tent and beyond, with a young homeless girl at its core.
It’s the VR equivalent of silent cinema; there’s a spritely bit of background music but the lack of dialogue leads Chan to tell the piece’s story through character expressions and body language. This works to marvelous effect, rooting you right inside the largely monochrome world and making this a story to be discovered rather than simply told. By the time you reach the end you’ll have been hard-pressed not to smile with delight, a feat many other apps don’t achieve within hours.
But A Show of Kindness is worth visiting just for Chan’s artwork alone. No detail has been spared in each of the three environments and even the corridors that connect them, leaving something to admire at every turn be it a fiery sword-eating performer or simple a flock of birds that squawk at you as you emerge onto a skyline scene.
A wonderful, bite-sized display of VR’s storytelling prowess, then. If you’re ever looking for something to quickly and efficiently communicate the power of VR to someone that’s never tried it before, don’t pass up A Show of Kindness.
Final Say: Worth Watching
A Show of Kindness is available now on SteamVR for free with official support for Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.
