Murder in Miniature: "Crafting Crimes" for Meta Quest Explores True Crime
The interactive true crime documentary "Crafting Crimes" gives famous criminal cases a spatial dimension, leading back to the roots of forensics.
"Crafting Crimes" promises a new look at famous crimes.
(Image: Targo)
In the 1940s, American Frances Glessner Lee created elaborate miniatures of crime scenes based on real criminal cases. She crafted the dioramas with meticulous accuracy to reproduce details such as bloodstains, overturned furniture, and other everyday objects as precisely as possible. From a distance, they look as cute as dollhouses until you look closer.
The replicas served as teaching models with which aspiring investigators and forensic scientists learned to analyze crime scenes methodically, draw conclusions, and secure evidence. Today, Glessner Lee is often referred to as the "mother of forensics," who significantly advanced the discipline's methodology and scientific standards. As her miniatures are still considered extraordinarily detailed today, they continue to be used in forensic seminars.
The true crime documentary "Crafting Crimes" for Meta Quest 3 is inspired by Glessner Lee and reconstructs historical criminal cases using miniature models. The dioramas by contemporary miniature artist and true crime podcaster Carol K. Ras, who is dedicated to continuing Glessner Lee's work, serve as a template. For "Crafting Crimes," her replicas of famous crime scenes were fully scanned and brought into mixed reality.
Iconic Criminal Cases from Three Eras
The true crime documentary consists of three episodes dedicated to iconic criminal cases from different eras: the still unsolved murder case of Lizzie Borden in late 19th-century America, the Wonderland murders in the Hollywood scene of the 1980s, and the spectacular theft of the Mona Lisa in Belle Époque Paris. The first episode has been available to try for free since October, and the second has been available as a paid DLC since last week.
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Each episode is divided into three sections that use mixed reality and hand tracking. The introduction is always by Carol K. Ras, who appears in a large video window in the middle of the room and introduces the respective criminal case in a plastic 3D representation. Then, the crime scene is to be assembled room by room like a puzzle. Through this visualization and Ras's explanations, one gains a precise idea of the spatial conditions. A successful effect: if we move our hand into the 3D model, surrounding walls and furniture become transparent, revealing the miniature. In the last section, we shrink and dive into the completed dollhouse, where the course of events is narrated chronologically by Ras.
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The experience refrains from explicit depictions of violence: victims and perpetrators appear only as shadows, and even where crime scene photos are visible in the background, such as in the Lizzie Borden case, little can be discerned. As a result, the events largely play out in the viewer's mind.
Narratively Exciting, but Little Interaction
Through the change of perspectives and the use of presentation techniques that leverage the strengths of virtual reality, the two criminal cases are conveyed in a gripping manner. As in previous works such as "Surviving 9/11," "JFK Memento," and most recently "D-Day: The Camera Soldier," the production company Targo shows how spatial representation can give historical events a new immediacy.
(Image:Â Targo)
"The room-by-room reconstruction of the crime scene puts the spatial dimension of the crime at the center of understanding, often revealing clues that are easily overlooked in purely auditory or visual formats," says director Chloé Rochereuil. "At the same time, the aesthetic of miniature models creates a necessary distance from the violence. It allows for a reflective approach to disturbing content while still preserving the gravity of the events."
However, we were left wondering what particular insights could be gained from the third dimension and miniatures of this kind from the criminal cases. This is likely due to the short runtime of about 20 minutes per episode, which leaves little room for in-depth content. Furthermore, interactivity is limited to assembling the crime scenes, which is why we classify "Crafting Crimes" as an interactive documentary rather than an investigative game.
An exploration mode is announced for the end of February, in which users can fully enter the miniatures and explore them freely. The mode is intended to sharpen observation skills and allow users to establish their own connections free from narrative constraints – in the spirit of Frances Glessner Lee.
"Crafting Crimes" is available in the Horizon Store for Meta Quest 3 and 3S. Currently, only English and French language versions are available, with more in preparation. The third episode, which deals with the Mona Lisa theft of 1911, will be released in March.
(wpl)
