Road to VR

Kevin Cornish on The Future of Interactive Storytelling

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Apr 26, 2016

Kevin Cornish is a LA-based VR filmmaker who teamed up with AMD to do some interactive narrative experiments using gazed-based content in Believe VR. Depending on which character you look at different moments will triggered up to 32 different variations within this one-minute experience. He’s using Unreal Engine mixed with live-action footage to achieve this, and he hints that there will be additional post-production tools released that will make this type of experience easier. I had a chance to interview Kevin at GDC where he shared with me his ideas about writing interactive narratives, first-person storytelling for mute characters using the reluctant protagonist as a guide, stories where characters empathize with you, and the role of emotion and eye contact in immersive experiences.

Disney Signs Nokia Deal to Use OZO VR Camera

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Apr 25, 2016

Nokia Technologies today announced that it will be providing The Walt Disney Studios with OZO, the company’s 360 degree camera. Disney will use the camera to create ‘special VR content’ for upcoming films.

Valve & Lionsgate Bringing 100 Feature Films to Steam That You Can Watch in a VR Theater

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Apr 25, 2016

steamvr-valve-oculus-rift-support — Image courtesy Valve

In an interesting announcement today which sees Valve’s Steam platform becoming increasingly competitive toward video distribution platforms like Amazon Video, Lionsgate will be making more than 100 films available for purchase through the platform, and you’ll be able to watch them in VR.

President Obama Takes VR for a Spin, Thinks Hand Tracking is “Impressive”

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Apr 25, 2016

Amidst a mounting trade deal between the U.S. and the EU, President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel today visited the Hannover Messe, an annual trade fair for industrial technology, where they donned a VR headset using a depth sensor touted as ‘the smallest 3D camera in the world’.

London’s VRLO 4.0 Event Wrap-Up: Is VR Hype or Hope?

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Apr 25, 2016

VRLO is a London based VR event which celebrated its fourth outing in March, just prior to VR landing (or not) on people’s doorsteps worldwide. Road to VR‘s Jonathan Tustain was there to report from the show armed with a question: Is VR hype or hope?

Zotac Has an Untethered VR PC Solution for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift

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Apr 25, 2016

Small form factor PC specialist Zotac are about to enter the virtual reality hardware race with a nifty solution to your tethered, cable-lugging room-scale VR woes; A portable PC that can be strapped to your back.

Some Oculus Rift Orders Shipping Significantly Ahead of Delay Estimates

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Apr 24, 2016

The Oculus Rift launch saga continues. Following a surprise delay of nearly two months, some orders are now shipping out significantly ahead of the initial delay estimates provided by Oculus. Meanwhile, eager customers seek the fastest way to get their hands on the Rift.

‘HTC Vive’ App Returns to iOS to Keep You (Somewhat) Connected to Your iPhone Inside the Vive

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Apr 24, 2016

While we first saw the HTC Vive iOS app appear at the end of March, it had vanished by the Vive’s April 5th launch day. Now the app has returned to the App Store to keep you connected to your iPhone while inside the Vive.

Getting Ramped up on VR with Microsoft’s Developer Evangelist

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Apr 23, 2016

Liv Erikson was able to to live out one of her dreams when she stepped into the Star Wars universe to battle against a lightsaber training Remote within Sixense’s VR demo. This helped her discover that she has a passion for immersive technologies, and so she started teaching herself Unity and documenting her learning process on her blog called “The Matrix is My Office.” This caught the attention of Microsoft’s developer evangelism team, and they offered her a full-time job where she could explore, learn, and teach about virtual and augmented reality development on her Channel 9 videoblog called “Just A/VR Show.” Liv’s show and blog are some great resources for people who are looking for beginner content for how to get into VR development. I had a chance to catch up with Liv at Microsoft’s Reactor space during the VR Hackathon just before GDC this year to talk about all of her different VR & AR evangelism efforts.

Comparing ‘EVE: Valkyrie’ VR Experiences: Oculus Rift Vs PlayStation VR

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Dominic Brennan

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Apr 23, 2016

This week at Fanfest 2016, CCP Games has announced that EVE: Valkyrie will not only find its way to all three major VR headsets, but will also allow cross-platform play between them. We went hands-on with PC and console versions of the game to see how the experiences will compare.

Transforming Living Rooms into Classrooms with the Virtual World Society

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Apr 22, 2016

Tom Furness has been working in virtual reality longer than anyone else on the planet, and he’s starting a new phase of his legendary career: building a coalition of content creators and financial backers through the Virtual World Society to be able to transform living rooms into classrooms. With the support of a network of subscribers, he wants to build the infrastructure to support the production of educational VR experiences that activate our conscience, enrich our minds, and connect hearts together in order to solve real world problems.

Preview: ‘Pollen’ is ‘Gone Home’ for Hard Sci-Fi Fans, Motion Control Coming Soon

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Apr 22, 2016

It’s 1995. The world looks a little different after the failed assassination of JFK. In a bid to open-source all US and Soviet space patents, the Space Race booms into a new era of long-haul interplanetary travel—spearheaded of course by a friendly mega corporation; RAMA Industries. Something’s happened to one of RAMA’s experimental bases on Titan, and it’s your job to find out.

Hands-on: ‘Project Arena’ Aims for Competitive VR Motion Combat

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Dominic Brennan

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Apr 22, 2016

Project Arena is a competitive ‘full-body’ VR experience from CCP. Using the Oculus Touch controllers, this eSports experiment is far removed from the space simulation themes normally associated with the company, although it retains much of the style and slick presentation.

VR Chief to Explain “Google’s Vision for VR” in Hour-long Session at I/O 2016

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Apr 22, 2016

Google have been floating at the periphery of serious commitment to virtual reality since the launch of their ultra low-cost Android Cardboard VR platform in 2014. But this year’s Google I/O session schedule indicates it’s about to throw some real weight behind the technology in 2016 and beyond.

‘EVE: Valkyrie’ to Receive Carrier Assault Mode with Star Wars-style Trench-run

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Apr 21, 2016

A new objective-based game mode was today announced for EVE: Valkyrie at Fanfest 2016, CCP’s annual gathering in Reykjavik, Iceland. Called ‘Carrier Assault’, it promises to offers what lead designer Andrew Willans calls an “influence from a certain ’70s sci-fi classic moment.” That’s Star Wars (1977). We’re allowed to say it.

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