Phoby
VR application to help people overcome phobias
2019
Note: This project is quite sentimental to me—it was the first real VR project I ever worked on. I remember sleeping on the floor of Harvard, amazed that I made it there in the first place. I was dirt poor and stressed. I didn't understand Unity, I didn't understand 3D modelling, I didn't understand much of anything. Sometimes I go back and look at this little notch in the mural of my life just to see how far I've come. I will never forget those pleasant times.
Phoby is a VR application designed to help users confront and manage common phobias through controlled exposure therapy. We developed this concept across two hackathons—first at HackHarvard 2019, then refined at HackDuke 2019—iterating on the same core idea with Ines Said.
Users enter virtual environments where they can experience various levels of intensity of exposure to phobias including spiders and heights. We also built a meditation scene inspired by the serenity of Morikami Park in Fort Lauderdale, and a warm cabin home screen designed to feel accessible and safe.
The project was informed by conversations with Ryley Mancine, a researcher in Psychiatric Science at Michigan State University, whose theoretical knowledge shaped our approach to adapting psychological treatment methods for VR.
We built nearly all of the models from scratch in Blender—only using the asset store for a couch and chair—and textured them in Unity with Quixel. Working with the Oculus Quest presented challenges due to limited documentation and buggy templates, but we managed to create something that could genuinely help people in just two days at each event.
Built at HackHarvard 2019 and HackDuke 2019 with Ines Said.
key features
- Multiple phobia modules including heights and spiders
- Graduated intensity levels for controlled exposure
- Meditation scene for relaxation and grounding
- Warm cabin home environment for user comfort
- Custom 3D models and environments built from scratch
technical details
Built in Unity with C# for Oculus Quest. 3D models created in Blender and textured with Quixel. Implemented Quest controller tracking and custom UI elements.