Case Study

The Challenge

As COVID restrictions lifted but social distancing remained, Carlow Arts Festival faced a unique problem: how to bring back the festival atmosphere without in-person crowds. Festival Director Jo Mangan approached The Immersive Agency to create a virtual experience- not a replica of the physical event, but something that could capture the feeling of being there: connection, energy, and a bit of chaos.

 

The Solution

We developed a social VR experience hosted in AltspaceVR that recreated the festival’s vibe while staying within extreme technical constraints- low polygon budgets, strict texture limits, and accessibility for users on aging hardware like the Quest 1.

 

Key Features & Creative Workarounds

 

Bespoke World Design: Using photos of past festivals, local landmarks, and tents, we built a stylized “cardboard” aesthetic—photo textures on low-poly models with neon grid overlays—to make visual constraints part of the identity.

 

Immersive Audio + Interactive Video: Spatial audio zones recreated key festival experiences (like a virtual orchestra split across tents).

Interactive video installations triggered sound and visuals as users approached.

 

Festival Feel Without Fake Crowds: Rather than add NPCs, we used animated cartoon characters (like dancing wrestlers) and kinetic sculptures to imply movement and energy without breaking immersion.

 

Two Connected Worlds: Budget limitations forced a choice- art gallery or social hub. We did both. By building two separate worlds and linking them via a portal, we doubled the polygon budget while maintaining performance.

 

Artist Collaboration: Artists could either collaborate on optimizations or opt out if they didn't feel the piece would work with the constraints. One reworked her entire sound piece to fit the medium. Another’s video played on a virtual screen with audio proximity triggers.

 

User-Centric Design: Flying was enabled. Custom wings and interactive toys (like sparklers) gave new users a playful, memorable intro to VR. Events included artist talks, flying tours, and an opening night dance.

 

The Results

 

Successful opening night with global visitors- featured on AltspaceVR’s front page

 

Positive feedback from VR newcomers and skeptics

 

International engagement, with spontaneous social interactions and discovery

 

A creative, technical, and cultural win- delivering atmosphere, not just content

 

What We Delivered

A playful, interactive VR experience built under serious constraints- but designed with intent, style, and purpose.

Not a clone of the real world, but something that recaptured its spirit.