Google Daydream and other New cool VR stuff

claydough

The Google Daydream Headset is announced at only $79. ( along with the pixel phone )

I was worried that I would need a CB enabler type hack fer my Gear VR but I guess at that price I will probably just use a second HMD.
Was really hoping that after the Daydream dev environment was released with the Android Nougat update that with this Headset...
That the Google Tilt Brush might be introduced to android for tether-less freedom but that does not seem to be the case?
On the other hand,
Google has just made Tilt Brush open source on GitHub! In hope developers will fit Tilt Brush into other applications for artists!
https://github.com/google/tiltbrushtoolkit
http://uploadvr.com/google-tilt-brush-toolkit/

cool multiplayer prototype:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oHykuV9I6I

Is there a beta?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7odRIX6uNI

In general googleVR seems to be offering a lot of support for it's DayDream VR sdk:
https://developers.google.com/vr/daydream/overview
https://developers.google.com/vr/daydream/dev-kit-setup

Also I been checking out the new Limitless VR animation tool supposedly already made available to select developers and artists ( is there a Beta? )
Made by ex-Bungie and Pixar alum to make VR animation intuitive and "in-world" instead of as a guessed second-hand afterthought as is the norm fer pretty much  all of today's stereoscopic asset and level design creation sadly enough. Hopefully tools like this and Unity And Unreal's VR editor become more refined and pervasive.
http://www.geekwire.com/2016/limitless-a-platform-to-create-interactive-characters-to-debut-at-gdc/

http://vrlimitlessltd.com/#info


If you have a GearVR or Oculus you might have checked out the cool VR offerings from "OTOY".
I thought the following tracking proof of concept they are working on was pretty nifty and a hopeful direction.
It shows what they can do to capture interactive lightfields! In the demo they track position using a VIVE controller strapped to the users head mounted GearVR! with the other to track hand movement. 


http://uploadvr.com/otoy-position-tracked-light-field-gear-vr/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okKqsWEU3jY

http://uploadvr.com/otoy-gear-vr-lighthouse-hands-on/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jv-DrdvCI1k

On towards their Holodeck mission! ( part 3 in the series )
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LLHMpbIJNA

Last but not least...
The Spiraloid Workshop is a VR, Film and Game Studio located in Seattle & L.A.
Bay Raitt has ended his Road trip adventure retirement and is on to his new VR venture.
Starting up a new company with a stereoscopic eye towards a undisclosed VR project.
Looks like he is going with Unity and he is asking for help!
( in addition to Zbrush Bay Raitt is an avid fan of 3D Coat  and it is refreshingly listed in the Job req list! )
http://www.spiraloid.net/#jobs

Hopefully the project pulls in high caliber talent.
http://www.spiraloid.net/
http://bleaf.tumblr.com/

 

Needles

Woa, Thats a name i havent heard in ages.  Major inspiration for me when i first started dabbling in 3d Many many many moons ago.

Gaurav Mathur

Are any Polycounters out there doing Daydream development with UE4?  I'm curious about what the experience is like.

low odor

gauravcm  I've been fiddling with  daydream in my sparetime..Both UE4 and Unity are still pretty barebones for the public SDKs

Someone put togethher  a build  of the forward renderer for  UE4 here:  https://www.reddit.com/r/daydream/comments/5exqwy/unreal_engine_forward_rendering_test_w/

a link to the APK is in the thread if you have a Daydream and compatible  device to test it on 

I tested it on my Pixel XL  and it was pretty juttery  - and the AA(MSAA) is turned off, so it looks prettty horrible

Some of the other stuff Epic is working on looks  pretty bad ass https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEoDS__sfWA , so I would reserve judgement till they release something official.

Overall it's a pain in the ass to get everything setup to build in UE4  for daydream.  The   details are here:

https://developers.google.com/vr/daydream/overview

Gaurav Mathur

@low odor, thanks for your post.  

I can't currently test out the tools as I don't own a Pixel phone; I was looking to get user feedback before taking the plunge into VR.  Do you feel limited by the constraints of the hardware and what the game engines can do with it?  Or can you reasonably build what you imagine for the most part?  The tone of your post gives me more of a "it's not quite ready yet, but it could be good one day" feeling rather than a "too limiting -- don't bother" feeling.

low odor

gauravcm  np  

Daydream has the same limitations as most mobile VR- no positional tracking, a bevy  hardware limitations, wild west UX- but the addition of the motion controller adds a new  dimension to the experience. It is not on par with the VIVE, or Touch motion controls as  far as tracking,  but it does add a much needed input  that unbinds a whole set of  UX experiences that you can't achieve with gaze based, or  gamepad  input VR.

I think it has  loads of potential. It is just not in a state where ease of development is as easy as porting to PC based VR systems.  Google is also heavily curating the Daydream store- so there is that barrier if  you are looking to publish a game or experience.  

Gaurav Mathur

As someone with both environment artist and level designer experience who also found the movie TRON hugely influential, I've been dying to build levels and explore spaces in VR since the first Oculus hardware came out.  

Daydream and Rift were the hardware options I wanted to explore further.

I'm not looking to publish games or make money off my work.  A robust toolset and the shortest iteration loop from MODO to Unreal to walking around in VR is important to me.