Mint Virtual Reality

One of the first steps for a prospective real estate buyer or tenant is to get an accurate sense of the unbuilt property they are interested in. Specifically, what will it look like, of course. But also, at a deeper, subconscious level, whether or not it connects with them emotionally. They want to imagine how it will feel to actually occupy the property.

For the longest time, watercolor paintings were the primary means for property developers and brokers to showcase their new development properties.

Paintings can be incredibly powerful and versatile, which is why they are representative of some of the most impressive artistic works of humankind. A well drawn painting or sketch inherently makes an emotional connection with the viewer that can be quite powerful. Yet, a painting also has an inherent limitation because it is ultimately the painter’s interpretation of the vision for the property, and is static from a single point of view, leaving much to the imagination. Paintings are also time consuming, expensive, and are difficult to iterate onto a matchbuilder’s vision.

Then, in the 90s, computers had advanced enough that we began a gradual shift from paintings to 3D computer generated (CG) renderings. And this is essentially how all unbuilt real estate developments are showcased today. They are much more true to the the builder’s vision due to accurate 3D modeling, photo realistic materials and lighting simulation, and the ability to iterate via CG software.

This of course also made it possible to overwhelm prospective buyers with a sea of similar images that has made it harder and harder to stand out. Additionally, such 2D and 3D renderings on a 2D screen just don’t have the emotional contact with a potential buyer. Furthermore, they give no sense for scale, and scale is important in how humans relate to their environment. Everything in the real world is understood from that first-person, human perspective. Lastly, renderings can easily be “cheated” to exaggerate the spaciousness of a property by using wide angle lenses.

But all that is changing.

Today we are at the cusp of yet another revolution in the way new development properties can be showcased in a way that is true to the builder’s vision and yet offers a never-before-possible emotional experience for the buyer. This is the promise of room scale, immersive Virtual Reality (VR) experiences of an unbuilt property.

VR has often been described as an empathy engine. By wearing a VR headset, one can be completely immersed into an environment as though it were happening in real-life, and thus connect with that virtual environment in an emotional, empathetic way that was never possible before

Additionally, since the VR property is computer generated, it can be easily modified to match the design vision as closely as possible. Even better, once built out, it is possible to try out different palettes, view angles, lighting solutions, furniture layouts and styles, and other such options through user control within the VR environment.

As an example, my company Outer Realm recently implemented room scale VR tours for high-end luxury properties in Aspen Colorado, with broker Andrew Ernemann and developer Aspen Starwood properties.This has been a huge success with prospective buyers and has translated into real business value. You can check out their virtual reality showroom here here. And also get a virtual tour of one of their properties here, although the best experience is through an actual VR headset.

The benefits to brokers and developers is that by showcasing homes virtually they can list their properties earlier, sell faster, and decrease development risk. And potential buyers and tenants can have a rationally informed and yet emotionally compelling experience of the property before making a decision. For brokers looking to win more exclusive listings, offering Virtual Reality tours as part of their services is a no-brainer way to differentiate.

Using VR to showcase unbuilt properties is undoubtedly a game changer.

We have come a long way from low resolution screens and clunky headsets of the past. The promise of Virtual Reality is finally becoming true. A whole generation of younger clientele comfortable with using VR and other technology is now of home buying or apartment leasing age, and real estate brokers and developer who move early to satisfy them will gain a huge competitive advantage. As a bonus, such brokers and developers will stand out as thought leaders, further opening up business opportunities.

The use of VR across industries and society is inevitable. And just as 2D renderings replaced watercolor images, 2D renderings will be steadily replaced by VR over the coming 2-3 years.

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David Gull, the CEO of Outer Realm, has experience delivering over 500 New Development​ Virtual Tours to date. He has a unique combination of Design & Technical Expertise as a Licensed Architect and Technology Executive.

Outer Realm LLC is an LA-based startup that specializes in building customized immersive VR tours of unbuilt/under-development real estate properties. To explore Outer Realm’s suite of VR services for the real estate industry, visit the official company website.

Disclosure: This is an unpaid guest contribution from David Gull of Outer Realm. Additionally, Upload is listed as a “key customer and partner” on the Outer Realms website, but that capacity exists entirely separate from the editorial website.

Tagged with: enterprise, real estate

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As it comes up towards the ‘events season’ part of the year, many people involved or interested in the technology sector are planning how to fit in as many possible events while still remaining on-budget and within the laws of space and time. While we cannot change the laws of physics, we can help your balance the budget with a discount to the FutureTech Expo.

The FutureTech Expo is due to take place on 14th-16th September, 2018 at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Centre in Dallas, Texas. A key theme of the event is blockchain and cryptocurrency, something which has begun to become very relevant in the immersive technology sector.

New technologies is the focus of the FutureTech Expo, examining where emerging technologies might be headed and how they will change existing sectors and industries. With so much coverage in the media being given to blockchain and cryptocurrency at the moment it makes sense for this area to receive attention.

Given the development of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) experiences such as Reality Clash, which uses cryptocurrency to power its in-game economy, and Gaze Coin which allows for the monetisation of VR and AR content using eye tracking, the focus of the event will be of interest to many immersive technology professionals.

Speakers including Randi Zuckerberg of Zuckerberg Media, Tim Draper of Draper University and Nick Spanos of Bitcoin Center will be at the event, delivering talks on their areas of interest and expertise.

VRFocus readers who are interested in attending can get a 10% discount on tickets by going to the FutureTech Expo registration page and applying the code VRF10.

VRFocus is a media partner for the event, so any future announcements about the event will be sure to be right here, so keep checking back for updates.

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One of the areas where virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are becoming increasingly popular is for previewing products prior to a sale. This is especially valuable for high-ticket items such as cars, and even more so when buying real estate.

Japanese real estate firm AtHome Co, Ltd has recently introduced VR previews and panoramas for properties listed under its estate agent service AtHome Business Base.

AtHome Co, Ltd was originally formed in 1967, and currently hosts over 1.8 million listings for second-hand apartments and renovated mansions both for rent and sale. Customers who visit one of the 54,618 AtHome stores looking for a new home or investment properties will be able to don a VR headset to look around the available properties.

VR and AR are becoming popular methods to view properties, with companies such as Matterport producing VR software designed for use by real estate agencies and an increasing number of architects, designers and real estate agents engaging with VR as a means to offer a better service to customers.

A poll of consumers in America showed that 77% of US consumers were interested in a VR tour of a potential new home, and 62% said they would be more likely to use a real estate agent who could offer VR tours as part of the service.

With augmented reality (AR) customers have been interested in using the technology to design the perfect home, and see how furniture might look in a potential new home, or even test out different paint colours. Companies such as IKEA have begun offering this kind of feature as demand for AR increases.

As the required equipment cost for high-quality decreases, and demands for services such as VR tours an AR furniture increase, it is possible that the next house you buy might be first viewed through virtual reality. VRFocus will continue to keep you updated on VR use in business and retail.

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It wasn’t long after Microsoft launched the Windows Mixed Reality headset system that the company integrated Valve’s SteamVR platform, allowing users access to more content. When that arrived in November 2017 it was only in a beta form, today however Microsoft has now confirmed integration will be leaving its ‘early access’ phase with the latest Windows April 2018 update.

In a blog posting today, Microsoft has detailed that not only is full SteamVR compatibility on its way but also that it’s “improved our integration with haptic motion controller feedback.” So any of those virtual reality (VR) titles you’ve been playing that seemed to have weak or none existent haptic feedback should now be noticeable.   

Also on the mixed reality (MR) headset front, the company has now ensured it’s easier to take photos of your favourite mixed reality experiences, all you need to do is hold the Windows button and tap the trigger. Additionally, for those who love their personal VR space, it’s now simpler to personalise and manipulate content inside of Cliff House, or choose the new location Skyloft to make your own.

If you don’t have one of the Windows Mixed Reality headsets from Dell, Samsung, Lenovo, HP, Acer or Asus, you can still get in on the MR fun with animations in Mixed Reality Viewer. Using the Remix 3D button you can find animated objects that can then be dropped into your video, or find one click animations to make static 3D objects come to life.

While Microsoft states that the update is available today that’s only partially true. If you’re an advanced PC user and know what you’re doing then you can manually check for updates which should add the update right away. Generally Windows will actually do this anyway, it just takes a bit longer with a worldwide user roll-out from 8th May onwards.

The lineup of videogames has for Windows Mixed Reality headsets has steadily improved in recent months, with the likes of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR now available plus new titles such as Beat Saber on their way. As further updates are released, VRFocus will keep you informed.

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Mobile virtual reality (VR) users who want to experience high-end VR have been able to do so since 2016 via RiftCat’s HTC Vive emulation software VRidge. Having released the 2.0 update for VRidge back in January, RiftCat has now rolled out the 2.1 version, adding greater language support on top of several other additions.

The software works in tandem with the PC-based RiftCat client, but users were having issues with the connection screen on the 2.0 version, with poor information being relayed to users. The update addresses this, improving the handshake between VRidge and RiftCat client as well as keeping users better informed. Additionally, it will also tell them when the mobile app has a different version to that of the desktop client – both apps need to be updated to see each other.

The new version will now support 13 different languages in total: Czech, Chinese (Traditional), Chinese (Simplified), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese (Brazilian), Russian and Turkish.

And for NOLO VR users the improved version now includes wireless support. They’ll now be provided with an option to connect it to VRidge wirelessly, so a combination of both systems allows for a full wireless room-scale VR experience.

In addition to the above improvements RiftCat has created a “Discover” tab in the RiftCat client so everyone will be able to find videos detailing what they can do with VRidge, the LIVE settings concept has now been expanded upon, and USB tethering has now been made easier alongside numerous bug fixes.

Available through the RiftCat website, both pieces of software are free to download. The free version of VRidge still supports SteamVR, Oculus Rift (with Revive), Gear VR and Google Cardboard but sessions only last ten minutes. The full version of VRidge retails for €14.99 EUR. For further updates on VRidge from RiftCat, keep reading VRFocus.

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VR headsets from Acer, Lenovo, Samsung, HP, ASUS and Dell might be easier to set up than Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, but integration with Valve’s SteamVR is what makes these headsets worth consideration.  Without it, owners can visit some nice virtual worlds from the Windows Store, but they’d be missing the much wider and deeper library available from Steam.

With its latest April update to Windows today, Microsoft is also taking this integration out of “early access” — meaning it should provide an overall smoother and more stable experience compared with when the software first launched late last year.

“Windows Mixed Reality for SteamVR will remain in Early Access until consumers and developers have had a chance to test titles and the experience is stable for the majority of games and apps,” Microsoft originally wrote when releasing the software early.

According to a blog post, haptic feedback is improved with the controllers in the latest updates. I’ve asked Microsoft for details about why the company chose today to have the software graduate from early access.  At the time of this writing, the software is still listed as being in early access, with the minimum specification listing the need for an NVIDIA GTX 970 or better and the recommended specification listing an NVIDIA GTX 1070 or better. Though, of course, specific experiences you want to try from Steam in these Windows-based “Mixed Reality” headsets may have different requirements.

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When you consider an open world videogame adventure what do you imagine? Sprawling countryside maybe? Or how about something a little more metropolitan, a bustling cityscape that’s alive with the sounds of people going about their everyday lives, cars whizzing about, possibly the odd siren or two. For most this will conjurer up images of Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto (GTA) for example, with plenty to see and do. For virtual reality (VR) players there’s U24 Solutions Early Access title Wild Downtown, unfortunately this is not what you might expect.

While Wild Downtown might be billed as an open world city where you can run amok, driving cars and shooting up the place like some mad gangster, the truth is you’ll probably get bored or confused quite quickly.

There’s no storyline, goals or objectives to speak of in this small cityscape, you’re free to wander as you please, jumping into cars or onto bikes to explore what is essentially an oval of buildings. Littered around are several venues to pop inside, including a bank, casino, café, and the apartment in which the experience starts. Yet from the word go Wild Downtown is just bizarre, and not in a good way.

Movement is purely direct locomotion, yet it’s painfully slow. While items can be picked up, very few actually have any use. And then the experience does this weird thing where if you lean into something to take a look you’ll automatically be pushed backwards like there’s an invisible wall in front of everything, and that’s before you leave the apartment.

Driving a vehicle is a necessity as walking anywhere would take forever, yet the steering is so twitchy that this becomes a lesson in perseverance – the bikes are even worse. Once you get to these other locations interactive elements are somewhat thin on the ground. The casino has several slot machines to spend some coin in, whilst the café was completely devoid of life. In fact at points so was the city, stepping out of one area onto the street it felt like there should be some tumbleweed rolling along as there was literally no traffic or people to speak of. When there were, pedestrians would amble along in an orderly queue, following the same pre-set path over and over again.

There’s supposedly a gun element to Wild Downtown allowing you to shoot up the place, massacring everyone in sight. To be honest, VRFocus didn’t get this far – or actually find it – yet it couldn’t have made much of a difference as while guns can be fun in VR, the general implementation of items in the experience is poor.

Even as an Early Access title Wild Downtown still has some way to go before it should even be considered. While the internal location graphics are of a high quality, the city is not, with the actual characters looking strange, as if the proportions are askew. If U24 Solutions can increase the size and scope of the experience then there might be hope, currently a lot of polishing is still needed.

via Mint VR

Developers of hacking tools for use in the game PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds have been arrested in China and fined more than $5 million. Their programs were found to have contained Trojan horse software.

The post ‘PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds’ hacking tool developers arrested in China appeared first on Digital Trends.

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A new virtual reality (VR) film called My Africa produced by Conservation International aims to create an immersive portrait of Kenya and the efforts to allow humans and wildlife to leave peacefully side-by-side.

The VR film opens on vivid 360-degree footage of wildebeest as the migrate across the Mara River and a lioness who lies in wait to capture prey. This is taken in a community-led sanctuary in northern Kenya.

My Africa is narrated by Academy Award-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o, who helps guide the viewer through the life of a Samburu woman named Naltwasha Leripe as she and her community tend to livestock, dig ‘singing’ wells deep into dry river banks and rescue a baby elephant who has been left orphaned by ivory poachers.

The footage for My Africa was captured at the Namunyak Wildlife Conservancy in Samburu County of northern Kenya at the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, where its supporting conservation organisation Northern Rangelands Trust, offers a different model of conservation which is grounded in local leadership and community.

“My Africa is about a path forward for saving the miracle that is Africa — the last place on Earth where significant numbers of the world’s largest land animals still roam,” said project Executive Producer and Conservation International CEO Dr. M. Sanjayan. “If we are going to save nature in a crowded world we need to entirely rethink how we go about it. This film shows a new way, one that unites, rather than divides, people from wildlife. Today, conservation is not about building fences but rather breaking down barriers, so that local communities benefit when nature thrives.”

“Tiffany is proud to continue our support of Conservation International and further our wildlife conservation efforts with the release of My Africa,” said Anisa Kamadoli Costa, Chairman and President of The Tiffany & Co. Foundation. “We believe people need to experience what is at risk of being lost in order to understand what needs to be protected. By transporting viewers to the majestic wildlife and natural landscapes of Kenya, we hope to inspire audiences to become more passionate advocates for conservation.”

Further information on My Africa can be found on the Conservation International website. The VR film can be found on the WITHIN app, and the trailer is available to view below. VRFocus will continue to report on new and upcoming VR content.

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Last week saw developer Wolf & Wood release the next chapter in its horror franchise The Exorcist: Legion VR. Aiming to bring the episodic experience to more players, whilst further immersing them in these demonic tales, publisher Fun Train has partnered with omni-directional treadmill manufacturer Virtuix which will see the videogame head to virtual reality (VR) centres worldwide.

The collaboration between Virtuix and Fun Train will see The Exorcist: Legion VR rolled out to entertainment centers in nearly 500 locations worldwide via the Omniverse platform beginning tomorrow, 1st May in English, Spanish and Chinese.

“We explore every opportunity to reach the widest possible audience, which includes location-based venues,” said Douglas Nabors, CEO of Fun Train in a statement. “The Omni motion platform allows users to walk or backpedal in the real world and have it translate into our virtual ones. If an episode gets too intense, players can literally run away. Real world VR locomotion is one step closer to that Ready Player One vision that we all share and our goal of what “true VR” should be.”

Having been in development for a number of years – VRFocus first came across the Virtuix Omni in 2014 – the company has taken a more location-based approach, focusing on the growing number of VR arcades and entertainment centres looking to offer immersive VR experiences. Which is why it launched Omniverse in 2017, a content delivery and arcade management platform for use by commercial Omni operators.

“We are honoured and excited to be working with the talented teams at Fun Train and Wolf & Wood to bring this top VR title to our Omniverse content platform,” added Jan Goetgeluk, CEO of Virtuix. “The Exorcist: Legion VR is the best VR horror game we’ve played, and it’s a great fit for natural movement with the Omni. Wolf & Wood did an excellent job optimizing the game for both the Omni and for location-based entertainment. We can’t wait for our customers to play it, if they dare!”

The Exorcist: Legion VR is based on the events of The Exorcist III, with players able to experience a stand-alone story untold in the movies across five chapters. Mixing horror and puzzle dynamics, each episode is about uncovering and defeating a different demonic entity using a specific weapon. Chapters are around 20-25 minutes long allowing players to complete a full exorcism in one session. The experience is available for the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and will soon release on PlayStation VR.

There’s still one more episode to go Chapter 5 – The Tomb, as details emerge VRFocus will keep you updated.

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With Unity being one of the most popular videogame engines in the world, and one of the most commonly used for virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) development, its not surprising that Unity events such as Unite Europe attract a great deal of attention. This year’s event is coming up fast, and some of the planned sessions have begun to be announced.

With a great deal of attention currently being devoted towards standalone wireless VR, one of the most anticipated talks will be delivered on the topic of the Oculus Go.

Ryan Payton, CEO of Camouflaj will be speaking at the event regarding how to make videogames look good when developing for the Oculus Go. Camouflaj previously worked on a stealth title République VR, which was released in 2017 for the Samsung Gear VR.

With the Oculus Go being a standalone unit lacking the computing power of a VR-capable PC rig, though exceeding the capabilities of most smartphones, developing for these new devices will in many cases involve breaking new ground for developers.

A related talk will be delivered by Adam Myhill, Head of Cinematics at Unity, who will be discussing how mobile videogames can be brought up to the level of AAA videogame titles.

At last year’s event in Amsterdam, attendees got a sneak peek at the latest build of Unity 2017.1, including a live demonstration of some of its key features. Microsoft hosted a presentation on how mixed reality (MR) could change the future of immersive technology, and the ‘Made with Unity’ showcase provided a look at some upcoming titles for PC, console, mobile, VR and AR.

Unite Europe 2018 will take place in Berlin from 19th-21st June. Further information and tickets for the event can be found on the Unite Europe website. Further news on what is happening at Unite Europe 2018 will be covered here on VRFocus

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Sega’s beloved Dreamcast rhythm game Space Channel 5 is coming to virtual reality, and a tweet now confirms that a U.S. version — “Space Channel 5 VR Kinda Funky News Flash!” — will see its debut at the Los Angeles VR event VRLA.

Developer Grounding says that it will offer 15 minute demos of the VR experience on May 5 and May 6.

Space Channel 5 was one of music game impresario Tetsuya Mizuguchi’s groundbreaking titles for Sega’s UGA (United Game Artists) division, offering a sleek, retro-futuristic alternative to Sony’s cartoony Parappa the Rapper series. Backed by music inspired by 1960s spy movies, it starred Ulala, a reporter seeking to rescue people from alien captors. Pressing buttons like “up, down, shoot, shoot, shoot” made Ulala dance and fire her ray gun, freeing hostages — and aliens — to join her roving dance squad.

Beyond giving players a shoulder-level view of the action from directly behind Ulala, the VR version of Space Channel 5 uses arm tracking, so players can actually dance to the music. Thus far, Grounding has shown footage of a reworked version of the original game’s first level, where all of the originally pre-rendered background art appears to be real-time 3D. It’s unclear at this point whether the finished game will be a remake of the original game, contain elements from its Part 2 sequel, and/or include brand new content.

Along with Mizuguchi’s pioneering shooter Rez, the Space Channel 5 series was one of Sega’s most noteworthy franchises during the Dreamcast era. Michael Jackson made multiple cameo appearances in the games, which won 2000 GDC awards for original game character of the year and excellence in audio. But as it became clear that the Dreamcast would be Sega’s last console, the franchise transitioned to the PlayStation 2, and UGA disbanded, ending the series.

So far, Space Channel 5 VR Kinda Funky News Flash! has only been announced for the HTC Vive, and neither a price nor a release date have been confirmed. The new U.S. site for the game mentions that there will be a “VR Arcade Version” running on the Vive, with “game hardware for console version” listed as “TBD.”

This post by Jeremy Horwitz originally appeared on VentureBeat. 

Tagged with: Space Channel 5

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The development team behind robotics-based virtual reality (VR) education title VRobot: Robotics in VR (not to be confused with the similarly-named title about smashing cities as a giant robot) has a date for when it will be leaving early Access for its 1.0 release.

VRobot: Robotics in VR released the title on to Steam’s Early Access program on 5th April, 2018, where it was made available for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift users to begin experimenting with.

Robotics is a fascinating field for many, but unless you are fortunate enough to belong to an academic institution with access to the required equipment, it can be difficult to get involved with. Ukraine-based publisher ProLego Ltd and developer VRobot are tackling this by providing a virtual engineering workspace with all the tools and educational materials needed.

The creators behind VRobot: Robotics in VR were inspired by the work they had previously done with providing educational institutions in the Ukraine with tools and technologies to assist with engaging children with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects.

It was noticed that one of the particularly successes was the LEGO Robotics program, which helps children between the ages of 3 to 16 grasp the basic concepts of robotics, which had the added benefit of letting children solve problems and gain new skills and knowledge in the process. As a result, the developers set out to create an affordable and informative product that would be available anywhere, without need for expensive tools and parts.

The developers plan to use the time in early access to gather feedback and solve various issues within the title, with the aim of completing version 1.0 by October, 2018. For the full version, the development team are planning to add new robots called Dragster and Colossus along with new locations, assignments, a multiplayer mode and several tweaks to add better programming functionality.

The Early access version of VRobot: Robotics in VR is available now on Steam for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, priced at £7.19 (GBP). VRFocus will bring you further information as it becomes available.

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Optis are a leading simulation company that have worked with various companies and brands to create high-fidelity simulations to simulate a product so its design can be previewed in full before it is built.

Nina speaks to Claire Pietu, Application Engineer for Optis World about the company’s working virtual reality (VR) and how this technology can help companies develop new products more cheaply and efficiently.

Pietu said that one of the advantages of the Optis system is that it can scan different materials for inclusion into the simulation, allowing companies to test out different types of materials without having to build a large, expensive prototype.

Optis aim to produce simulations that are true, and accurate, properly corresponding to how an object would react in the real world according to lighting, material properties and so on. Pietu says this is particularly important when people are making decisions based on a simulation model instead of a physical prototype.

One of the largest customers for the Optis VR software is the automotive industry, where almost every major automotive manufacturer uses Optis software to design new models, decide on interior lighting, headlight design, and more recently, the heads-up display. The company also works with producing simulations for military applications and in the electronics industry.

Pietu commented that VR allows for a more complete picture, due to its immersive nature. She said that some decisions are possible when simply looking at a scree, but the ‘presence’ of being in VR gives a much clearer picture of the reality of the simulation model and how it would be in real life.

In other contexts, Optis can use more interactive VR simulations that are not restricted to just visuals. Optis have produced demonstrations in VR featuring things like a production line where manufacturing businesses can pick up different parts to see if they will fit together smoothly.

The full interview is available to view below. Keep watching VRFocus for more news from the VR industry.

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The augmented reality experience Terminal 3 tells the stories of Muslims who face additional screenings whenever they want to enter the United States. Players take the role of a U.S. customs officer who must interrogate people at an airport. Creator Asad Malik developed it in partnership with RYOT, and it debuted at the start of Tribeca Film Festival in New York.

Terminal 3’s event setup is unique. It takes place across two rooms. In one, players don a Microsoft HoloLens headset and use voice commands to ask one of six holographic characters increasingly personal questions. Once they’re finished, they step out into another room — where they meet the actual people the characters are based on.

“It’s not about ideology. Islam itself can be an ideology, but Muslims are people. What we’re trying to showcase are people and their stories,” said Malik in a phone call with GamesBeat. “We have people who are outspoken atheists. We have other people who are much more religious and follow the path a lot more seriously. We also have a lot of diversity in terms of gender and age among these six people. We’ve found them through personal connections in one place or another.”

It’s also based on Malik’s personal experiences. He’s working on an undergraduate degree at a university in Vermont, but he is from Pakistan. The title comes from Terminal 3 in Abu Dhabi International Airport, which he went through before visiting the U.S. for the first time. It was also where Malik had a terrible experience with a customs officer, though he notes that not all his encounters have been as unpleasant.

“If you strip away all the institutional agenda, it’s really just two people with an absurd power dynamic sitting down, how the conversation goes while one person tries to figure out the other person,” said Malik. “It’s a weird, rich way to get to know someone, if you desire to. That’s kind of what we’re trying to enable with the experience. You can ask questions that would lead you to a rich story, or you can ask questions that may not.”

Why augmented reality

Air travel is often an ordeal for folks who are or simply look like they might be Muslim. Islamophobia continues to rise year after year. And Terminal 3’s Tribeca debut is especially timely, as the U.S.’s controversial immigration policy heads to the United States Supreme Court later this week.

Putting these experiences into a context is part of the reason why Malik chose to create it in AR instead of VR. He describes much of virtual reality as “a dreamlike experience, removed from reality.”

“AR is all about your context. I think Terminal 3 could not be displayed in China. It wouldn’t work. It has to be here. It’s in the context of this space,” said Malik. “It’s all about bringing another person to your place, rather than you imagining that you’re in someone else’s place. Someone else’s place is too dreamlike. It’s too easy to ignore it almost as fantasy. However, if someone else enters your space, as an unexpected addition, and you engage with them as if they’re real—when there’s a hologram in your space, you look around and everything you see is reality except the hologram.”

RYOT director of immersive development Jake Sally says that it’s crucial for creators to ask themselves why they’re making something in VR and AR instead of just shoehorning something into those new mediums. The company has a long history of developing documentaries using VR and 360-degree video, like 10 Shots Across the Border.

In the case of Terminal 3, Sally points to the voice commands and the perspective as unique characteristics that bring the experience to life. It necessitates that people engage with it in AR.

“But the power of voice, it does this thing to your brain where it adds that extra layer of trickery. As soon as I start talking to something, suddenly it becomes infinitely more real,” said Sally in an interview with GamesBeat. “In this project specifically, looking at immigration from two perspectives simultaneously, both as someone interrogating and as the person being interrogated, is really interesting.”

Malik says that he’s seen festival goers react differently to the experience. A lot of them have had strong emotional responses — particularly once they exit the first room and meet the flesh-and-blood person whom they’ve been “talking to.”

“Now that people are trying it, I see how different people treat it differently. It’s interesting,” said Malik. “Some people are afraid. Some people are there thinking, wow, I’m a target, or I don’t want to say something stupid, but I have to ask these questions. They kind of whisper it and get through it. Other people really get into the character and kind of demand these questions of the hologram. I feel like a lot of people’s political views on immigration and things like that come through how they talk to the hologram.”

Part of the experience, as well, is its “dynamic aesthetic.” When you sit down to interrogate someone in Terminal 3, you’re presented with two dialogue options that you select by speaking it aloud. The person you’re talking to appears at first like a sketched-out glitch, but once you start getting to know them, they start blooming in full color.

“At a high level you’re embodying someone who’s passing through so many people day in and day out, and everyone becomes just this abstract object that you’re pushing through the mill. But once you start getting into these real, deep, emotional moments, they become more human,” said Sally. “You don’t really see that in a lot of experiences. To me, again, it helps to justify the, ‘Why AR?’ In this setting, there’s a relatively complex branching narrative to it, depending on the choices you make. It’s cool to see that there’s direct one-to-one impact based on what you’re saying. It’s changing not only the craft of the story but also the aesthetic of the entire world that’s being inhabited.”

Telling unique stories

To further Terminal 3’s development, Malik received the Unity for Humanity grant, which is an annual award of $25,000 for projects that “[deal] with issues of humanitarian, social, environmental, educational, health care, science issues and themes.” It’s the first time Unity has offered the grant.

“Asad was in the midst of creating it, and in order to finish it, he was looking for some support,” said Unity producer Amy Zimmerman in a phone call with GamesBeat. “The grant program came along at the same time as we learned about Asad and his project. His project really maps back to what we’re trying to achieve with this grant – to enable our creators to tell their stories using these tools, and tell sometimes tough stories using our tools.”

Zimmerman is a producer on the Made with Unity team, which promotes projects made with that game engine. According to the company’s numbers, 60 percent of AR and VR projects are developed using Unity. And she says, she sees more diverse perspectives than ever when she’s looking through projects.

“We’re giving tools to all types of creators, whether they’re veterans or new users of the technology,” said Zimmerman. “It’s allowing for people who’ve never had the chance before to tell these stories, to show their perspectives. People who are really passionate about things that are happening in our world.”

The stories in Terminal 3 are each unique because they’re the lived experiences of individuals. But they’re not so unique in that many people have to deal with this kind of situation every time they travel. And this happens all the time — like when Malik tried to fly his parents to the Tribeca world premiere so they could see his project.

“But that didn’t quite work out, because both of their visas got rejected,” said Malik. “Both of them were interrogated in Pakistan by U.S. customs. The U.S. customs went into their last 50 years of family history – where are your step-siblings, is this relevant, where did you travel on this date – and eventually they had their visas rejected for no apparent reason. So they couldn’t make it. That’s as ironic as it gets.”

This post by Stephanie Chan originally appeared on VentureBeat.

Tagged with: Terminal 3

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Teaching is about exciting the imagination of students, opening the door for further exploration and developing their understanding of the world around. It’s a journey each of us go on from a young age and an experience that can leave an indelible mark on us as we move forward throughout our lives. The methods used to facilitate this process of discovery vary from teacher to teacher, from class to class. However, what is ubiquitous across all forms of education, is the desire to impart wisdom, to intrigue young minds and send them off on their own voyages of discovery.

Technology has always played a part in this process but now, with the proliferation of low cost virtual reality (VR) solutions, the classroom experience is beginning to enter a whole new realm of interactivity, crafting experiences never seen before. VR technology allows for a complete reconceptualization of the relationship between the student and what he or she is taught. No longer do teachers have to simply describe what life was like on say, the Titanic; now students can explore it for themselves. No longer do teachers have to rely solely on description and video media to explain the inner workings of the human body; simply put on a headset and you’re off swimming alongside red blood cells.

Ever since the inception of VR technology in its current form, some have been doubtful if headsets could get into the hands of students on a truly large scale. VR units have historically come at a high cost – with products such as the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive coming in at the steepest sum – hindering the ability for VR newcomers to fully understand the impact it could have on the teaching process. For headsets to move out of gaming space and truly find the mass audience required to influence other aspects of everyday life, developers have created lower cost solutions i.e. headsets able to work with compatible smartphones. In the context of education, this small but significant step spells the difference between one VR unit per class and one per student, opening the possibility for shared classroom experiences using low cost solutions and creating a culture of VR use. (Rather than individual cases, unable to maintain the adoption rate needed to foster belief in new technologies.)

There are ways significant effects VR could have on teaching. First, as has been established, the realm of possibility for the types of experience offered within the classroom environment would grow exponentially. The exploration of distant planets would become commonplace; an exciting safari just before lunch would become the norm. But another aspect could be even more significant: students may connect with otherwise “stale” subjects, in ways they never thought possible, through the implementation of technology. Now, we all had subjects we liked and didn’t like back in school but imagine the implications of a young student today, using VR to explore the wonders of say, chemistry. The form of that experience could excite his/her mind in new ways, precisely because VR goes beyond mere words, facilitating interactivity and creativity by drawing upon a growing range of software programs.

Low cost apps such as Unimersiv allow for a range of experiences, from a fully animated journey into the human brain to an exploration of Ancient Rome, whilst Google Expeditions allows for VR field trips to over one hundred locations worldwide from the comfort of your average classroom.

Experiences such as these are changing the nature of education, allowing for greater freedom, creative expression and immersion, opening whole new avenues for students to explore.

via Mint VR

The Sci-Fi London Film Festival will be showing a virtual reality (VR) film that explores the consequences of immersive violence and censorship in a dark cyberpunk future.

The film exists in a potential future where some violent crimes have been linked to videogamers. As a result, a new censorship bureau is created who employees are tasked with trying to take the sex and violence depicted to the utmost extreme.

Director Konsantin Shelepov spoke about the film as a warning, both of the consequences of censorship and of what exposure to violence of that level could potentially do to children. Shelepov says he chose a deliberately gritty, realistic style to emphasise the disturbing nature of the violence being depicted.

“What we did was a literalization of this artificial brutality,” Shelepov said, “There are so much murders on screen that we don’t even take those as murders. One character kills another is just a line in a script. Sometimes people even find ‘bodycount’ funny, but it is not. That’s why our approach was to emphasize each stab and each drop of blood so that the audience literally felt the idea.”

The film also explores the idea of what exposure to this kind of immersive violence might do to the people whose job it is to censor this content. The filmmakers decided to look at the idea of ‘Who watches the watchmen?’.

Shelepov continues: “Just like bookprinting, firearms, cars and the Internet required the legislation to change, AR and VR will also affect the way we live. Our movie shows some of the dangerous perspective. But we are not politicians or activists, we are just filmmakers, we ask questions that probably nobody can answer for now. But soon there will be answers, for sure.”

Censor will be shown at the Sci-Fi London film festival at 9pm on Sat 5th of May. Further information and tickets can be found on the Sci-Fi London website. For continued coverage of new an upcoming VR content, keep checking back with VRFocus.

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For many people the idea of being a professional football player is a childhood dream. Developer Dodo4Story Games have tried to make that dream a reality in Turbo Soccer VR, and have recruited a professional football player to help them realise their goal.

Professional footballer Kamil Grosicki is regarded as one of the best players in the Polish national soccer team, and has been lending his expertise of the beautiful game to the development team to create a new virtual reality (VR) football title.

Players in Turbo Soccer VR can done a HTC Vive headset and e transported to a football stadium. A variety of game modes means that players can score goals, pass the ball to teammates or take on the role of goalkeeper.

“My first interaction with Turbo Soccer VR was very impressive,” says Kamil Grosicki, “I put on the headset and suddenly I was at a stadium. Once I got used to what was surrounding me, I scored a couple of nice goals.”

The title uses HTC Vive trackers attached to the user’s feet to allow them to kick or pass the ball accurately. Users can shoot free kicks or penalties using just their feet, thanks to the wireless HTC Vive trackers.

Players can pick their preferred position on the pitch, as a midfielder helping out other teammates, a promising striker launching goals from the penalty area or a goalie saving your team those crucial points. There are options to recreate famous moments from matches in history, or you can engage in tournament mode to take on national teams from around the world with the aim of lifting a trophy.

The development team are also working on a mobile version for iOS and Android, though this will lack the VR elements. A release date for Turbo Soccer VR has yet to be confirmed.

The teaser trailer is available to view below. VRFocus will bring you further news on Turbo Soccer VR as it becomes available.

via Mint VR

When it comes to using virtual reality (VR), and 360 degree video in particular, one of the trends that seems to be developing is using it to create a public service announcement, or PSA. Not that long ago on Life In 360° we spent a couple of days looking over some examples of arguably such videos that were made by Network Rail and made to encourage railway awareness and safety.

Today’s video comes from global drinks manufacturer Diageo, which has produced a new first-person experience called Decisions: Party’s Over that focuses on the dangers and consequences of binge drinking. It’s not the first time that Diageo have used immersive technology as a way to warn people off unnecessarily large consumption of alcohol. As they put it in the press release for the experience Diageo want to encourage people to “drink better, not more”.  Party’s Over is a follow up to a similar campaign (Decisions) that was launched in 2016 and is unusual in that Diageo actually announced this video was coming back in September last year.

In this video, partly produced by Jaunt – a name no doubt very familiar to regular readers of VRFocus – users are able to directly interact with the story, with it taking on a different tone depending on what you are seeing through the eyes of each character as the amount of alcohol consumed increases through the night. The view switches between the viewpoints of four people: Steph, who throws a going away party for friend Greg – but his drinking goes to extremes. There’s also other consequences shown, such as Jasmine, who is sexually assaulted by a fellow partygoer – Luke.

So please note, there is graphic content you may find upsetting.

“We’re excited to be a part of Decisions: Party’s Over, the latest instalment in Diageo’s virtual reality film series and offer our technology to bring the content to life,” Explained Jaunt’s Co-Head of Studio, Tom Vance. “Binge drinking can have very serious consequences, and by combining our tools with Diageo’s creative vision, we are able to create an experience that will leave a lasting impact on consumers as they navigate decisions in their lives around drinking responsibly.”

“We’re continuing to use virtual reality technology for social responsibility initiatives because the immersive experience brings to life the terrifying realities and dangers associated with binge drinking,” added James Thompson, Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer of Diageo North America. “While drunk driving and underage drinking are at historic lows, binge drinking rates have remained stable. Diageo has long been recognized as an industry leader in responsible drinking programming, and our hope is to build on our previous successes with virtual reality to reach our audience on an emotional level and prevent future detrimental impaired decisions associated with binge drinking.”

The interactive version can be found on the Jaunt app, however a non-interactive version can be found by visiting bingedrinkingvr.com. Some, but not all of the videos (at the time of writing) are also on YouTube. You can find Steph’s viewpoint of proceedings below.

 

via Mint VR

As a Disney character said in a certain incredibly successful film ‘I like warm hugs’. The company responsible for the creation of that character seem to share the sentiment, and are working on a way to make hugs in virtual reality (VR) feel a lot more real.

Disney has a fairly substantial research team, many of whom have been involved with VR and mixed reality (MR) applications previously. The latest effort involves a force-feedback jacket that allows VR users to feel the sensations presented in VR.

Part of the appeal of VR is its ability to make you feel you are truly part of the VR environment, but this illusion is broken down somewhat when your only tactile feedback is a week buzz from the vibration motor in your controller.

A special jacket has been designed to tackle this problem, which uses inflatable compartments to give a feeling of pressure to the wearer. Different pressure levels and areas of the body can be affected to produce different effects.

One example involves a virtual scenario in while a giant green snake slithers up the user’s body and wraps around the torso, squeezing you in its grip. Disney are hoping that this can add to the VR experience in new ways.

“The primary motivation of this research was to enhance the entertainment value of [head-mounted display]-based visual VR experiences in games and movies, by providing on-body force feedback,” the researchers wrote in a paper

The special jacket, dubbed The Force Jacket, has 26 inflatable compartments which can produce more than a dozen ‘feel effects’. These sensations are created by changing the speed, force and duration of the inflation and deflation of the airbags, all controlled by software synced with the head-mounted display (HMD).

As this is primary a research project, there is no telling if the Force Jacket will ever become a commercial product. Various methods of haptic force-feedback for VR are being experimented with, and VRFocus will continue to bring you the latest news on them.

via Mint VR

Starbreeze publishing, more commonly known for their work on the popular PAYDAY series of videogames, have announced their “Hero” virtual reality (VR) experience developed in partnership with iNK Stories was awarded the prestigious Storyscapes award at the ongoing Tribeca Film Festival in New York.

Hero puts the audience in the center of an air raid in a Syrian city, stepping into the shoes of a civilian where choices shape one’s own experience. The title is a combination of interactive virtual story telling with a documentary style film approach, complete with numerous sensor’s that help create a more immersive experience for the user. By utilizing 56 tracking cameras and a 32 audio DTS channel solution featuring DTSX tools, the team were able to achieve groundbreaking, haptic sound design.

The whole experience is power by the HP Z VR Backpack PC allowing for full body movement and freedom within the moment, giving users an astonishingly immersive experience that takes experiential storytelling and documentary film to a whole new level.

Mikael Nermark, Head of Starbreeze Publishing commented on the award saying: ““We’re pleased that the jury chose to recognize Hero as we feel it’s not only an important story that was deserved to be told, but it also represents a huge advancement in the way VR will enable content creators to amaze and tell immersive stories in the future”

The award winning iNK Stories, a visionary studio known for bringing authentic and impactful stories to immersive entertainment, worked on Hero to ensure that high level of immersion could be achieved. They have also worked on the BAFTA nominated and Facebook’s Game of the Year Winner, ​1979 Revolution. At Tribeca Film Festival 2018, iNK Stories were proud to present the premiere of Hero, which is the latest in their Vérité VR Series. Its exhibit at Tribeca Film Festival 2018 was one of five immersive experience that were in competition for the prestigious Tribeca Storyscapes Award which recognizes groundbreaking approaches in storytelling and technology.

The jurors, Myriam Achard, Marcie Jastrow, and Nicholas Thompson, commented on the award being given to Hero by saying: “Texture. Beauty. Heat. Life. Hero is an extraordinary story of life in a country under siege. It uses ambitious technology, and pushes viewers right up to, but not past, what one’s senses can bear. It will help you understand where VR is going, but also, viscerally, in some ways where this world is going.”

VRFocus will be sure to bring you all the latest from Starbreeze Publishing and iNK Stories in the future so stay tuned for more.

via Mint VR

The recent update to the popular virtual reality (VR) multiplayer title Echo Arena, patch v9.0, was home to a small tease of the upcoming Echo Combat expansion. The new update brings a social lobby system into Echo Arena which featured a sectioned off area that featured the text “Echo Combat: Under Construction“.

Announced back in October of last year, Echo Combat was said to be the first big expansion for Echo Arena with the news coming from developer Ready at Dawn themselves. This was revealed alongside the news that the story of Lone Echo would be continuing as well. Echo Combat is expected to bring a number of new features to the title with the promise of zero-G first-person shooter style gameplay. Since the reveal of Echo Combat there has not been much in the way of news which has left many fans asking what it happening to the expansion.

The inclusion of the door, even if it is remaining shut for now, is the first big update on the project since it was revealed. This confirms that the expansion is still on its way and once more, that it will be accessible directly from the new lobby system included in patch v9.0. This lobby is a open air, shared space where players can float around, explore and take part in a number of activities. This includes a space for training, mini-games, mini-arenas, customization and plenty more. The next big update to the lobby is expected to be the Echo Combat expansion.

Road to VR has been informed that Echo Combat will act as an expansion to Echo Arena using the same lobby system, with more news to come at E3.

Ready at Dawn ended up winning not one but two DICE Awards back in February of this year for both Lone Echo and Echo Arena, claiming the awards for Immersive Reality Technical Achievement and Immersive Reality Game of the Year. These, along with the continued voices of their players shows that people want more from developer Ready at Dawn and their VR titles. With more on Echo Combat hopefully being revealed in the coming months, players should not have to wait to much longer to know more about the expansion and what it will bring to the table.

VRFocus will be sure to bring you all the latest on Echo Combat in future, so make sure to stay tuned for more.

via Mint VR

Following the announcement Beat Saber, the neon filled virtual reality (VR) title about swinging swords to the beat of music would be releasing in Early Access next week, developer Hyperbolic Magnetism have released a number of new screenshots.

The Czech Republic based team have been hard at work on Beat Saber for sometime now, building a title that allows players to slice up boxes in time with music in a style of videogame similar in core concept to the likes of Guitar Hero. Boxes fly towards the player and visual cues tell which colour sword they should use to slice said box along with what direction they need to hit it. With plenty of ways to earn points, including building up combos, Beat Saber will reward those who stay on beat and rank up the highest combo possible for each level.

The screenshots, which you can view below, feature a number of different action shots which feature different levels, colours and sword placement. As the title will require users to pay close attention to the rhythm of the level and react accordingly it is refreshing to known that the visual noise from the levels is not to overwhelming. Looking at the screenshots it is clear that the team at Hyperbolic Magnetism have worked hard to maintain a gameplay environment that is fitting to the title but also does not become to much for the players, taking them away from the action.

Beat Saber will be releasing on Early Access this coming Tuesday, 1st May at 2018 at 9:00 PDT (5pm GMT) and is going to cost around $20 (USD). Including within the Early Access release will be all the mechanics for an “arcade mode” with content designed for both casual and competitive players. Hyperbolic Magnetism plan to bring a lot of content to the title before it leaves Early Access with more songs, a single player mode with missions and challenges planned and a possible level editor. Beat Saber will support the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality (MR) head-mounted displays (HMD) on release thanks to Steam VR.

In case you missed it, VRFocus got hands on with Beat Saber at both Gamescom 2017 and Unite Europe 2017 along with naming it one of the best Oculus Rift videogames coming in 2018. For all the latest on Beat Saber in the future, keep reading VRFocus.

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VRstudios has made location-based entertainment virtual reality arcades for big commercial venues in the past, but now the company revealed the VRcade Atom, a more compact VR booth with a smaller footprint that doesn’t require an expensive facility.

The VRcade Atom is a commercial wireless VR system built for location-based entertainment (LBE) arcades, and it costs less compared to previous systems. It’s a turnkey system that includes everything a VR arcade business needs to add room-scale, free-roaming, multiplayer VR attractions.

Built on the VRcade Attraction Management Platform (AMP), the Atom is the first VR arcade solution integrating best-in-class computing power, head-mounted display technology, wireless transmission, and positional tracking from industry leaders including Hewlett-Packard, HTC, and TPCAST.

Utilizing AMP’s content management features, the Atom runs experiences from the company’s portfolio of VRcade wireless, multiplayer attractions expressly built for commercial arcade operations. This includes: VRcade’s classic Time Zombies, Barking Irons, planktOs and Drone Storm.

“Many of our customers are just beginning to consider competitively priced options that will allow them to easily install, with a smaller footprint, a commercial level attraction that can be expanded as LBE VR becomes more popular,” said Ron Davis, chief marketing officer at VRstudios, in an email. “The Atom has been designed to meet all of those objectives.”

In addition, arcade companies can augment the VRcade commercial attractions with curated titles licensed from Valve Corporation’s Steam store, all centrally managed through AMP. Atoms can be easily installed as individual systems or in combination with other Atoms, VRcade Zones, or VRcade Arena systems. Utilizing AMP, multiple Atoms can be networked together to increase the virtual player count in attraction titles that support the feature.

The Atom is easy to set up, take down, relocate, or reconfigure. Installations can be done quickly with no special facility requirements or additional infrastructure, such as rigid truss systems. The standard configuration requires only a 10 foot x 10 foot footprint for a multiplayer system, making it an efficient use of floorspace and driving a very favorable return on investment over single-player, wired options.

“The VRcade Atom is another significant addition to our growing family of turnkey solutions built expressly for the LBE operators. It demonstrates our ongoing focus and strategy to integrate the latest and best technology available, utilizing our AMP platform to make it easy and efficient for LBEs to operate on a daily basis,” said Kevin Vitale, VRstudios’ CEO, in a statement. “Atom is a true commercial-grade, wireless free-roaming system, and its price point makes it compelling for LBEs to drop the wires and add VR attractions to their business.”

The VRcade Atom is available to demonstrate and order directly from VRstudios. VRstudios launched in 2014, and it has 55 VRcade installations in 14 countries. The company has 24 employees.

This post by Dean Takahashi originally appeared on VentureBeat.

Tagged with: VRcade

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