Mixed reality prototype

Mycelium

A Quest 3 mixed reality prototype about regrowing a community of spores.

Meta Quest 3 / Unity 2026 Prototype in development

Mycelium is a Quest 3 mixed reality prototype about regrowing community. The broad concept is that there was once a community of spores living together, but only one remains. The player helps that spore rebuild by growing mycelium networks, creating mushroom clusters, and eventually producing new spores to repopulate the world.

I am the lead developer and assisting designer on the project. I built the prototype in Unity, set up multiple testing versions, and developed the interaction systems around hand tracking, mixed reality room geometry, dynamic growth, and on-device performance.

Challenge

The main design and technical challenge was making the mycelium growth mechanic feel satisfying to play with while still running smoothly on the Quest headset itself. Because the application runs directly on the headset rather than a remote machine, every particle effect, dynamic mesh, hand interaction, and mixed reality overlay had to be treated carefully.

The project also needed reliable hand tracking. We tested interactions around touching physical walls, touching digital objects, interacting with spores, clapping, and different gestures that might become part of the final game. Each mechanic needed to feel responsive without becoming fragile in a real room.

Approach

I built a series of focused test versions so each interaction could be evaluated in isolation. That let us test the physical touch systems, digital object interactions, spore behaviours, clapping, gesture ideas, and room setup without burying the results inside the whole prototype at once.

For the core growth mechanic, I built a vine grower that spawned tubes as dynamic meshes and grew them across existing geometry. Once the mixed reality scene detected and solved for walls, floors, and objects in the space, the vines could use that solved geometry as a surface to spread across.

Outcome

The current prototype demonstrates the central fantasy of Mycelium: entering a mixed reality world, connecting with a lone spore, growing networks through the room, spawning mushroom clusters, and creating new spores. It establishes the technical base for a larger game with multiple levels and additional mechanics.

Future levels are planned to introduce more systems, including watering growing mycelium, mutating mushrooms, and recombining them to create new spores for the community.

The breakdown below shows the current interaction flow and the technical systems behind it.

Mycelium hand centering screen with hands around a glowing sphere
Centering the player The experience begins by asking the player to centre themselves before entering the world. This was part of making the mixed reality setup feel intentional and helping the app establish a reliable starting state.
Mycelium hand tracking instruction screen showing hands expanding and contracting a memory sphere
Hand tracking interaction tests I built a series of testing versions around hand tracking, including touching physical walls, touching digital objects, interacting with spores, clapping, and testing gestures we might need for later mechanics.
Mycelium mixed reality scene with a blue spore being touched by a tracked hand
Meeting the spore The broad concept begins with a memory of a spore community that once lived together, but now only one remains. The player interacts with this spore to begin regrowing mycelium networks and rebuilding the community.
Mixed reality scene showing mycelium vines and small mushroom clusters growing across a room floor
Growing mycelium networks I built a vine grower that spawned tubes as dynamic meshes, allowing mycelium to grow across detected geometry in the physical space. After room setup solved for walls, floors, and objects, the vines could spread across those surfaces.
Mycelium mixed reality scene with a glowing spore cloud in a room
Repopulating the community When enough mushroom clusters are created, they begin producing spores to repopulate the community. The challenge was making the effect feel alive while keeping particles, growth systems, and mixed reality rendering performant on the Quest headset itself.
Mycelium mixed reality end scene with mushrooms and spores in a physical room
Prototype outcome The prototype establishes the core loop: centre yourself, enter the mixed reality world, interact with the spore, grow networks, create mushroom clusters, and generate new spores. Future levels are planned to introduce mechanics such as watering, mutation, and recombining mushrooms into new spores.