Teleport with orientation

User goals

Move to a specific point in space (A to B) and face a specific direction when you get there

Interaction

1. Users activate teleporting as with the simple teleport interaction
2. When the destination target appears on the ground/ floor the user can control the orientation, usually with the joystick or touchpad on the controller
3. An arrow or other visual indicator shows the user the direction they will be facing when they complete the teleport
4. A useful enhancement is to indicate where the front facing tracking sensors are for systems that use these (e.g. Oculus Rift)
5. Once the user is happy with the location and the orientation they confirm the teleport in the usual way (as described for simple teleport)

Good

• Useful in games or applications where there is an advantage facing a particular direction (e.g. where the action or menu is)
• Useful for front facing tracking such as PSVR or Oculus Rift as it allows the user to be aware of where the sensors are located without leaving the VR experience. This prevents users from rotating their bodies and accidentally facing away from the sensors.
• Improves efficiency of movement

Design challenges

• It needs to be clear that the user can re-orientate during the teleport action. Many users do not realise this is possible, so the visual cues prompting the behaviour need to be very clear.
• If moving up in elevation, showing the orientation arrows on the floor surface is inappropriate as the user may not be able to see this. In this case 3D column or other cue that hovers above the surface may work better.
• In some cases we want the user to face a particular direction when they reach a certain point. This could be because of a specific menu or event that we need the user to see. In this case it may be desirable to indicate this and show positive and negative feedback during the orientation part of the teleport. One example could be the use of colour, where red arrows change to green or blue when oriented correctly, or not even allowing the user to complete the teleport until they orientate in the desired direction. For this latter example, it needs to be absolutely clear in the feedback why the user cannot complete the teleport.

Examples

Oculus Home: Teleport with orientation, showing position of front facing sensors

Robo Recall (Oculus): Teleport with orientation, using vertical column direction indicator, which helps if moving to higher ground

Robo Recall (Oculus): Teleport with orientation indicated required direction user need to be facing at destination point