With our attention divided over so many different forms of media, Ian Donegan investigates how immersive amusement is being used to maintain the modern customer’s interest.
GETTING lost in a story is what it’s all about. Most of us have fond memories of being enthralled in a book or watching a film without feeling the need to check a smartphone a dozen times before the credits roll. It’s the immersion that makes these narratives special, but it feels as though we are making less and less time for these kinds of experiences.
Media stacking is the newly formed phrase that refers to the modern habit of spreading our attention over a few different types of media at one time. We’ve all juggled watching TV, with our emails open on a laptop, a half-forgotten game of Candy Crush still blinking on a tablet screen, all the while WhatsApping a friend.
