Echo of Spores
A Unity world of symbiosis, where ecology meets imagination.
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Project Summary
Project Overview
This project presents a virtual forest inspired by Singapore’s Supertree Grove, where architecture and nature converge. Reimagining this impression, I created a digital ecosystem that blurs the line between humanity and the environment, reflecting on sustainability, coexistence, and ecological storytelling through virtual plants and electronic animals.
This world-building experiment explores the idea of human–plant symbiosis. It began with a vision of a world repeatedly collapsing from human mistakes and restarting, but eventually evolving into a sustainable ecosystem. My interest in how culture and nature intertwine led me to focus on a single forest environment as a metaphor for balance and coexistence. A key inspiration was the mushroom form, echoing the Supertree Grove, where drifting spores became a metaphor for resilience, renewal, and the circulation of life.
The process included sketching possible forest structures, then collecting and organizing 3D assets of plants and animals. I transformed realistic models into “virtual” versions by altering textures and materials so ordinary species gained a futuristic, hybrid character. Animals were categorized into terrestrial and amphibian groups and reimagined as electronic hybrids to extend the idea of a simulated ecology. By gradually assembling these elements, refining compositions, and resolving technical issues such as mismatched model styles, I turned an abstract ecological idea into a detailed virtual forest that reflects on coexistence and environmental care.
"Beautiful, enchanting world design, which feels like architecture visualization for fantasy/imaginary world. The platforms between mushrooms are a really well executed, and innovative fantasy architectural idea. Use of lighting and emissive lighting is very effective, and displays a high level of technical capacity and handle of technical aspect of course such as modelling, lighting, rendering and camera animations."
Sam Hains
Associate Lecturer, Simulation and World Building
Concept Development
The project began by refining the idea of a virtual forest as a metaphor for human–plant symbiosis. At first, I explored a larger concept of a world that collapses and restarts due to human errors, but later focused on the smaller scale of a forest ecosystem. This allowed me to build a contained, balanced environment that symbolizes coexistence and ecological harmony.
I created sketches and moodboards to visualize the atmosphere, experimenting with how plants and animals could take on digital, futuristic traits such as glowing veins or artificial surface patterns to blur the boundary between nature and technology.
Sketches：
Asset Collection & Design
After defining the concept, I focused on gathering and organizing 3D assets for the forest. I sourced trees, plants, rocks, and animals, dividing animals into terrestrial and amphibian categories. Each asset required normalization in Unity: scales were corrected, pivots adjusted, and materials unified under one rendering pipeline.
To strengthen the sense of a “virtual ecology,” I modified textures and shaders, adding subtle emissive effects and patterned surfaces. This process not only improved visual consistency but also gave the plants and creatures an artificial, hybrid presence.
Environment Building
I began by shaping the terrain and painting base layers to define the landscape. Large elements such as canopy trees and rocks were placed first to frame the forest and pond at its center.
“Hero plants” are large mushroom-like structures inspired by the Supertree Grove were positioned along camera paths as symbolic anchors. Their layered forms and glowing textures emphasize the idea of spores, resilience, and renewal.
(Image: Hero plants placed in the scene, glowing structures emerging as focal points)
Mid-level vegetation was added to blend the scene, while procedural tools generated dense background foliage. I integrated luminous shrubs to guide the viewer’s gaze and highlight the contrast between natural and synthetic elements.
(Image: Mid-development shot with glowing shrubs and background foliage filling the forest)
Animated animals were distributed throughout the environment to bring subtle life without distraction, supporting the feeling of a living ecosystem.
(Image: Environment populated with animated creatures, enhancing immersion)
Finally, lighting and atmosphere played a key role. A soft afternoon tone mixed with volumetric fog unified the space, balancing emissive highlights with natural light. To resolve mismatched asset styles, I harmonized color palettes, applied shared decals such as moss, and adjusted global grading for consistency.
(Image: Final rendering with volumetric lighting, glowing flora, and atmospheric cohesion)
Presentation & Reflection
To present the forest, I created a short video sequence using Cinemachine and Timeline. The shots moved from wide establishing views to close-ups of plants and animal interactions, emphasizing the theme of coexistence. Subtle ambient sounds, drifting spores, and firefly-like particles enhanced the atmosphere.
During development, I faced challenges such as mismatched asset styles and the complexity of managing a large library. These were resolved through technical refinements and repeated testing.
The final scene reflects both my technical growth in Unity and my conceptual exploration of how digital art can express ecological awareness and the potential of human–plant symbiosis.