Sure, androids might dream of electric sheep, but when an unmanned aircraft soars over a city, what does it see? One new surreal simulation game wants players to imagine just that; part of the Barbican Digital Revolution Exhibition, Loop 60hz: City of Dronesallows players to pilot virtual crafts through a generative geometric environment. A collaboration betweenexperimental music legend John Cale and speculative architect Liam Young, Loop 60hz: City of Drones charts "the story of a lost drone drifting through an abstract cityscape," in which, "players pilot a virtual craft to explore an infinite urban landscape."
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Produced by the Barbican and co-commissioned by The Space, with the online project developed in collaboration with digital artistsFIELD—the Creators behind Energy Flow, which we made a documentary about, viewable here—it's part-ontological exploration into the "inner lives" of these seemingly thoughtless flying machines, part-experimental art-gaming experience, and all-immersive.From the website, "Typically associated with militarized applications, each drone is repurposed here as both disembodied instrument and dynamic audio infrastructure." Using original samples from soundscape compositions by Cale, juxtaposed against Young's cold, sleek architectures, the project is an effort in reimagining the oft-maligned aircraft technologies.On September 12 and 13,Loop 60hz: Transmissions From The Drone Orchestra, Cale and Young's "immersive live music and drone performance," will take center stage at the Barbican Theatre whilst City of Drones provides its online visual narrative.
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