Info
SONA explores virtual reality from the perspective of blind and visually impaired people. Since 2023, we have been developing sound-based audio VR games and performances in complete darkness.
Behind SONA stands a co-creation team comprising more than 30 blind and visually impaired game designers from North Rhine-Westphalia, as well as an artistic and technical team responsible for programming, sound design, and the implementation of inclusive co-creation workshops.
Audio-VR Formats
SONA – Seeing Sound is a performative audio VR installation for theater and performance festivals – designed by our co-creation team, which interacts live with visitors.
SONA – Diving in the Dark is an audio VR diving game for smartphones, with characters, voices, and levels currently designed by our co-creation team.
Are you blind or visually impaired and interested in joining us?
Click here for our co-creation workshops.
News
26 - 30 August 2026
SONA @ gamescom, Cologne
We're at the world's biggest games fair! At our booth you can play SONA – Diving in the Dark for yourself and meet the blind and visually impaired game designers who are developing it. On stage, Adriani Botez (co-founder of SONA) and Thomas Meckel (artistic direction) talk about how the project came about — followed by a live session: two players dive through a flooded Cologne of the future, trying to catch one another. You'll find us at the Jugendforum NRW.
Try Diving in the Dark: Wed 1–7 pm, Thu + Fri 10 am–8 pm, Sat + Sun 9 am–8 pm — Booth D020g
SONA on stage: Thu + Fri 3:30 pm — Jugendforum NRW stage
Hall 10.1, Koelnmesse, Messeplatz 1, Cologne
→ Jugendforum NRW
26 August 2026
SONA nominated for the Gaming ohne Grenzen Award
SONA has been shortlisted for the Gaming ohne Grenzen Award 2026 in the „Get Together" category. The award honours a game or project that fosters interpersonal interaction and brings the community together, chosen by an interdisciplinary jury from gaming, research, education, esports and journalism. Now in its fourth year, the award recognises projects working towards more inclusion in gaming. The ceremony takes place on gamescom's trade visitor day at the Jugendforum NRW stand — the same place you'll find us throughout the week. Wed 3 pm, Hall 10.1, Booth D020g, Koelnmesse, Messeplatz 1, Cologne
2 - 4 July 2026
SONA @ Festival der Zukunft, Munich
The first »Diving in the Dark« level is complete! You can play it for three days at Deutsches Museum in Munich: With headphones and motion tracking, you dive through a flooded city, reactivate figures from the past and help them stop an apocalyptic wave. SONA is part of the Munich Beyond programme and the Science Year – Medicine of the Future. Thu + Fri 9am–6pm, Sat 10am–6pm — Experience Area / Munich Beyond, Deutsches Museum, Museumsinsel 1, Munich — Book tickets now:
12 May 2026
SONA @ International Computer Music Conference (ICMC), Hamburg
The ICMC is one of the most renowned gatherings in the international computer music scene. We are giving a public workshop on how VR can be designed using spatial audio without any visual information, with insights into our artistic and technical work. Afterwards you can try the first prototype of Diving in the Dark yourself.
19 April 2026
SONA @ c/o pop Festival, Köln
At the c/o pop Festival you can try out the first prototype of our diving game in the dark: with headphones, you dive into a virtual underwater world and navigate through the flooded Rhineland. One session takes approximately 15 minutes. We look forward to seeing you!
14:00–20:00 Uhr, Eva, Herbrandstraße 10, 50825 Köln
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First SONA Workshop in Spring 2024
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First Steps with Tracking-Sandals
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Talk @ Sommerblut Festival 2025
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Hack the Promise Festival in Basel 2025
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Prototype Test @ c/o Pop Festival 2026
