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Your XR Garden Center
XR Design | Serious Game | Group Work
Team:
My Role: Product Designer
1 Product Designer
1 Programmer
Tools:
Figma,
Unity,
Adobe Creative Suite
Marketing Research,
User Research,
Concept Design,
UI Design,
Unity Scene Building
XR Prototyping
Floraverse is an immersive XR game created in collaboration with a friend to address a challenge inspired by my father, who wanted a more efficient way to practice gardening without wasting time or money on the wrong plant seeds. The project combines interactive technology with expert gardening tips, enabling users to plant, manage, and interact with their real-world home gardens in a cost-effective and engaging way.


This is my home's backyard. My dad spent hundreds of hours here, planting, fertilizing, and mowing.
And it's not just my dad; all of my neighbors are doing the same thing, spending time and money on their gardens.

Problem Statement
As the gardening market grows rapidly, more casual gardeners of all ages are seeking time-saving and cost-effective solutions to manage their home gardens.
Marketing Research

The North American Garden market is set to reach $142.6 billion in 2024.

Customer Segmentation By Age Groups:
The gardening market appeals to all age groups, with younger generations starting gardening during the pandemic and older adults engaging in home gardening as a source of enjoyment and relaxation.
Market Trends:
Shift to Native Plants
For sustainability, lower maintenance needs, and the benefits to local ecosystems
Augmented Reality in Planning
Visualize how plants will
look in their garden
before planting
Data-Driven Gardening
Track garden metrics,
to help gardeners make
data-driven decisions
Facts about people who GARDEN at home:





Primary Research
To reach a broader audience and understand their pain points, I conducted an online questionnaire and shared it widely on popular online forums like Reddit and Facebook. The survey was designed to collect quantitative data on the target audience's specific interests in gardening, their experiences, and how they want to improve their experiences.



Among the 55 survey responses I collected online:





Interview with my dad:
Persona


Primary Research Insights
Pain Points

Time and Maintenance Constraints
To balance a busy professional life, people need gardening solutions that are time-efficient and low-maintenance.
Solutions

Collection of Information
A database that collects information about gardening, convenient for research

Limited Knowledge & Experience
Lack of knowledge often leads to unnecessary purchases of gardening tools, resulting in extra expenses and wasted time on learning.
Real-World Simulation
Simulation and interaction with the real world for trial and error to avoid wasting time and money

Lack of Personalized Guidance
Without personalized guidance, people face the risk of being overwhelmed by a vast amount of information and making ineffective decisions.

Virtual Guidance
A personalized generative AI virtual guidance system that is tailored to the user's preferences
Ideation

Format
XR Game
FloraVerse is an XR game where users interact with their real-world gardens and customize them. Using a headset, controllers, and hand gestures, they learn gardening from scratch with the help of a virtual AI gardener, plant in their garden, and play mini-games to protect plants from wildlife and identify invasive species.

The virtual AI gardener, Ivy, serves as the user's mentor in the game. With extensive knowledge in planting and garden maintenance, she acts as an intelligent, experienced guide. Users can ask her questions in the game, and she will offer relevant knowledge and advice, making the gardening experience more personalized and practical for efficient learning.
Assistant
Virtual AI Avatar

Scenario
Home Garden
FloraVerse is a home XR game designed for all ages. With just a headset, users can experience professional gardening training at home while planning and planting in their real-world garden. This greatly saves beginners time and money spent on trial and error, while also allowing experienced gardeners to quickly learn new skills and fill any knowledge gaps.
Game Interaction


User Flow

Virtual AI Gardener
Avatar Design:

1. Create Avatar
2. Character Description
Name: Ivy Green
Voice: Middle-aged US Female
Backstory: Highly experienced gardener and lawn care expert based in North America, with over 15 years of hands-on experience in the gardening industry.
3. Knowledge Bank
Teach the character about common home gardening plants and flowers, including everything needed to grow them successfully, along with details on common invasive and native plants in North America.

Wireframes

Final UI Design

Landing

Tutorial

Modes Intro

Garden Scan

Plant List

Plant Info

Game Mode

Game 1

Game 2
Hand UI

Development
Unity Prototyping
Real-World XR w/Meta Quest






Testing


UI Distance:
My dad trying out the prototype with a Meta Quest headset in our garden.
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