At 40 Minutes, ‘Miyubi’ is Felix & Paul’s Longest VR Film Yet – Available Now
Felix & Paul Studios, among the top VR video production companies out there, today launch their longest film to date on the Oculus Rift and Gear VR. Miyubi transports viewers back to 1982 where they see the world through the eyes of an eponymous Japanese robot toy. The studio may point to the film’s length as its leading achievement, but Miyubi is visually some of the best looking VR film we’ve seen to date, but is that enough to warrant 40 minutes inside?
‘Take on Me’ Built With ARKit Opens a Portal to ’80s Nostalgia
The mantra goes: If it’s possible, someone will eventually build it. That statement rings true for everything from the weird and spastic games like Mosh Pit Simulator or hardware add-ons like the pulsating haptic skin from Omnipulse, and while I’m just not sure why ’80s Norwegian synthpop band A-ha really needed to be realized in AR, I feel so much better about the world now that I’ve seen it.
Models of Consciousness Transformation & Unlocking Latent Human Potentials with VR
The Institute of Noetic Sciences was founded by Apollo 14 Astronaut Edgar Mitchell after he had a mystical experience on the way back from being the sixth man to walk on the moon. After finding a description of his spiritual awakening experience as a “samadhi” within the ancient Vedas, he decided to start a science institution dedicated to studying the nature of consciousness. Consciousness is the “hard problem” in that there’s no widely accepted theory for how the mind is connected to the body, but IONS has been on the frontiers of researching this mind-body connection over the past 44 years.
‘Rec Room’ Update Adds Hundreds of New Items, Increases Level Cap, Squashes Bugs
The impressively popular social VR game Rec Room recently received a ‘Fancy Pants’ update, adding more than 100 new items for players to customize their avatars. As detailed on the game’s Steam news page, the update fixes a number of bugs, increases the level cap along with retuned XP rewards and level curves, and adds new community event features.
HTC to Launch Standalone Vive Headset in China Tied to Viveport Content Store
HTC today announced a new variant of its Vive standalone VR headset which is aimed specifically at the Chinese VR market and will tap the company’s Viveport content platform as the official app store for the headset. Meanwhile, in the US & EU markets, the standalone Vive headset is backed by Google’s Daydream ecosystem.
Rave in VR at Tonight’s Free HEAVYGRINDER Show in ‘TheWaveVR’
TheWaveVR, a social music platform for VR performances, debuts its third major show, this time bringing EDM duo HEAVYGRINDER into VR for a live and interactive virtual reality concert. You can join the fun for free tonight, July 26th, at 7PM PT (find your timezone here).
‘The Wizards’ Spellcasting Combat Game Launches in Early Access Friday – Launch Trailer
The Wizards is a single-player spellcasting combat game from Carbon Studio, the makers of Alice VR. The game is set to launch in Early Access on Steam for the Vive and Rift this Friday, July 28th. A new Early Access launch trailer shows what’s in store for aspiring spellcasters.
Sony Announces 4 Asia-Developed PSVR Titles Are Coming West
Sony today announced four new titles for PlayStation VR at the annual ChinaJoy Expo in Shanghai—all of which have been confirmed to make it over to Western audiences. The games come as a result of a partnership between Sony Interactive Entertainment and what they call “some of Asia’s most exciting developers.”
Oculus 1.17 Update Will Let You Launch SteamVR Apps From Oculus Home
Until recently, Oculus Rift owners have had to maintain two separate repositories for games; Steam and Oculus Home. And depending on where you bought a game, that’s usually where you’d launch it from. Revealed in a forum post, Oculus will be pushing a general update soon that will allow you to launch SteamVR apps (provided they have Rift support) directly from Home. A public pre-release build is already available however if you want to start creating your ‘one library to rule them all’.
Magic Leap Researchers Reveal “Deep SLAM” Tracking Algorithm
Magic Leap, the mysterious AR startup with a multiple-billion dollar valuation, still doesn’t have a headset to show the world, but in a recent paper published by Magic Leap researchers entitled Toward Geometric Deep SLAM, we get a peek into a novel machine vision technique that aims to bring the company closer to their goal of creating a robust standalone AR headset.
New York City Invests in AR/VR Incubator to Bolster City’s Jobs, Tech Talent
New York City’s Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development, Alicia Glen, recently announced the selection of NYU Tandon School of Engineering to “develop and operate” the “first government-funded” VR/AR hub for education, training, research, investment and business creation at a 15,000 square foot space in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. In the Bronx, CUNY (City University of New York) Lehman College’s VR/AR Training Academy and Development Lab will prepare students for careers in the virtual and augmented reality sectors.
Google Expects 11 Daydream Ready Phones Available by Year’s End
In a few years’ time Google expects to operate Daydream on “Android scale,” one day opening the VR door to “hundreds of millions of users.” But in order to get there, the company needs a much wider selection of Daydream ready Android smartphones. This week Google said they expect 11 Daydream ready phones on the market by the end of 2017.
Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus Daydream VR Update Begins Rolling Out
Announced back in May, an update bringing Google Daydream support to the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus has begun rolling out, making those phones the only two to support both Daydream VR and Gear VR.
‘Smashbox Arena’ Now Available on PSVR – Launch Trailer
Smashbox Arena, one of SteamVR’s best rated titles, today launches on Playstation VR. The game plays like a mashup of a first person shooter and a game of dodgeball.
