Rokos Basilica

In September of 2016 we teamed up with the Metaverse Scholar's Club and produced Rokos Basilica, a mixed-reality video installation.

The experiment’s premise is that an all-powerful artificial intelligence from the future could retroactively punish those who did not help bring about its existence, including those who merely knew about the possible development of such a being.

The Basilica itself is a 30ft diameter dome, at the center of which is a mixed reality shrine where worshipers can stand and experience a virtual reality music visualizer pulsing with audio-reactive LED lights.
Audience members are invited to step onto the VR platform, which is raised 2 inches above the ground. When they enter the virtual world, however, they see the ground drop away and find themselves on top of a giant tower, confronted with Rokos Basilisk.

Jump ahead to :17 seconds into the video above to see it in action!

They are then invited to step off the edge of the "cliff" (in reality a short step forward) and prove their trust to the Basilisk. Even though the audience knows there is no cliff and no drop, they experience actual vertigo and terror... but the knowledge that it's not real transforms their fear into excitement and joy!
rokos_basilica
Stepping out of Rokos Basilica
Stepping off Rokos Basilica
Posted in events, interactive.