Schlagwort: virtual reality

  • Undead summer fun with Arizona Sunshine: The Damned DLC

    Undead summer fun with Arizona Sunshine: The Damned DLC

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Put your VR survival skills to the test as the zombie apocalypse expands in the largest Arizona Sunshine mission to date: The Damned DLC

    by Vertigo Games

    We are excited to let you know that Arizona Sunshine – The Damned DLC, a brand-new chapter featuring Arizona Sunshine’s largest mission yet, is coming to Viveport this summer!

    In Arizona Sunshine – The Damned DLC, you get to discover a brand-new chapter preceding the Arizona Sunshine story so far, crawl into the skin of an all-new protagonist (who has seen better days — really) and explore an iconic megastructure infested by undead as you put their VR zombie survival skills to the test in the largest Arizona Sunshine mission to date.

    Set before the events of Arizona Sunshine and Dead Man DLC, in The Damned DLC you and your team of US Special Forces are sent on a daunting mission; reactivating the generators of a massive Arizonan hydroelectric dam to restore power to the military’s nuclear missile systems. Far from an easy task when it’s overrun by hundreds of hangry undead!

    Setting out as a team, soon terrifying events unfold that leave you to complete your mission on your own. Make your way up, over and inside the massive structure in an effort to stop the spread of the apocalypse in its tracks with no more than your commander’s voice over the radio to keep you company. Your relationship could use some work, and crippled with a fear of heights and a healthy dread of flesh-eating undead crawling away in the depths of a dark, damp megastructure, you have seen better days…

    The Damned DLC features a large and completely new environment with a unique feeling of scale – from looking a few hundred feet down the side of the massive dam, to cramped hallways and dodgy, makeshift paths down creaking stair shafts – that is sure to push your VR zombie survival skills to the limit.

    We’ll need all the help we can get to try and contain the spread of the undead, so we hope to see you all in this exciting new chapter of Arizona Sunshine this summer!

    To stay up to date and for more information follow Vertigo Games on Facebook and Twitter.

    Website: LINK

  • Crafting comicbook VR heroism with Hatrabbit Entertainment

    Crafting comicbook VR heroism with Hatrabbit Entertainment

    Reading Time: 9 minutes

    Everyone dreams of being a superhero: cool costumes, awesome superpowers, colorful worlds to protect against dastardly villains. In Slightly Heroes, players strap on their capes and cowls and duke it out in hilarious one on one superbashes with other heroes in colorful comic book worlds. We spoke with the developers to find out their VR origin story.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTPTu9jMaqA?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    For those unfamiliar, tell us a bit about yourself and the team at Hatrabbit Entertainment.

    The Founders of Hatrabbit – Andreas, Joakim and Urban – have been working together for nearly 20 years within game development, first meeting at DICE in the early 2000s, before Battlefield was ever created. At DICE they each pursued their passions in both management and in the creative field. Both Andreas and Joakim worked their way in similar roles as Art Directors and Technical Art Directors, driving the visual style and vision for the studio’s portfolio, including the Battlefield franchise. Besides developing lots of games, Urban was one of the first developers on the Frostbite engine and a crucial part of the core team building an engine that is used throughout EA today.

    After more than a decade at DICE they were given the opportunity to be some of the first to join Rovio’s new office in Stockholm. Besides being in the management team shaping and driving the vision for that studio, they took on the job to define the next chapter of Angry Birds 2 and helped lead that project from first concept until global launch. Angry Birds 2 is Rovio’s most successful game to date and is still growing! With the experience from two different worlds of game development in the backpack they felt they had what it takes to shape their own studio, and left to found Hatrabbit in 2016.

    That year was an exciting year for VR, with the VIVE headset finally in the hands of the consumers and the prospects of VR being endless. Having already developed PC, console and mobile games for many years, VR brought a magic new opportunity ready to be explored!

    Where did the idea behind Slightly Heroes come from?

    Slightly Heroes was a spiritual successor to Merry Snowballs. Google had reached out to us in regards to an opportunity to collaborate on a multiplayer game for VR. We loved what we created with Merry Snowballs, but felt that the seasonal theme really restricted the year-round appeal of the game. We also wanted to create a game that was more inclusive and more social. We loved the core mechanics of Merry Snowballs, so it was simply finding a new theme, setting, and characters to take the game to the next level. At some point in one’s life, everyone has imagined what superhero they would be, so we felt this would be a great fit for an inclusive action game!

    The game feels steeped in a love for classic action and comedy cartoons and superhero media. Did the project start out with those influences in mind or did it evolve over the course of development?

    We decided on the superhero theme very early and knew it would draw a lot of inspiration from classic superhero cartoons and comics. We grew up with these worlds, so it felt very natural for us to design the Slightly Heroes characters with those references in mind. At Hatrabbit we want to make games for the entire family, so it was important for us to píck a visual style that wasn’t violent and could be enjoyed by players of all ages and backgrounds.

    What were the biggest superhero inspirations on the project?

    It’s hard to point to a specific superhero, or even superhero universe that inspired us. A lot of people naturally assume we were inspired by Pixar’s The Incredibles, but we only actually realized after the initial characters were designed. The character designs came quite naturally to us as we always loved bold and memorable characters, and needed to design characters that were visually different from each other.  portray the story of everyday people, that when the weekend comes, dress up as the imaginary superhero versions of themselves and go into friendly battles in familiar places. The familiarity and relatability is a cornerstone in everything we make.

    Your previous VR title, Merry Snowballs, also is a hilarious and colorful competitive experience, pitting players against each other in epic snowball fights. How did the lessons learned making that title inform the direction of Slightly Heroes?

    A lot of the strong elements of Merry Snowballs – the charming characters, colorful world, and funny themes – all come natural to us at Hatrabbit. This is how we like to make games! What we saw from our players of Merry Snowballs is that they loved the snowball firing mechanics, but wanted to do more with it. The projectiles are slower in Slightly Heroes than you’d expect from a shooter of this kind, just like in Merry Snowballs. It helps toning down the violence aspect of the game but also adds a lot of fun gameplay when you can react and dodge incoming balls using your controller or your body.

    Merry Snowballs was great, but it was very immobile – so with Slightly Heroes we wanted to give you more freedom with movement.

    Crafting a competitive experience that is balanced and satisfying, especially in a 1v1 combat situation that supports cross-platform play, is no easy task. Have there been any particular challenges you’ve encountered in the course of development?

    One of the early challenges we faced while developing Slightly Heroes was making sure players were able to move freely without feeling motion sickness. We had to work around the traditional “teleport” mechanic for movement in VR and instead draw from research Google had done in the space to implement a “vignette” system that blurs the peripheral vision of the player if they are moving. That part has been done before but not in combination with a static grid outside the vignette. A very simple thing that made the whole difference. This is a great solution for motion sickness and allowed players to increase / decrease the effect depending on how the player feels in VR.

    The second challenge we faced, as any VR developer would that is making a multiplayer game, is making sure there is a solid playerbase playing at all times of day. No one wants to play a multiplayer game where they can only compete against bots! To solve this, we made sure that Slightly Heroes would be cross-platform from day one. This meant making sure the game runs the same on all platforms (Slightly Heroes is currently live on Viveport, Steam, Oculus Rift, Oculus Go, Gear VR, and Google Daydream) and that there is no major competitive advantage for any particular platform. We initially soft-launched Slightly Heroes on Daydream, which made sure the game was equally as fun and competitive with the Daydream controller as it would be when playing on the Vive.

    To increase the overall player base, we also released the Slightly Heroes VR Companion App on the Play Store and the App Store. This version of the game lets players play against their friends online from their phone – a way to make the experience more inclusive for players who only have one VR device and want their friends to play against them. This has really helped make sure there are always more players online to play against!

    Were there any surprises revealed through observing player behavior and getting fan feedback upon release? Any elements that people particularly responded to that you didn’t predict?

    We launched the game in two steps. First we launched for Google Daydream which was great because this way we could find and fix important bugs and get to know what worked well and not. A few months later we shipped the game with more content and features on multiple platforms. This helped us avoid the worst kind of problems. People really enjoyed the first release and the biggest problem for us at that time was that they wanted more content and features than we could deliver. This is obviously a good sign and we’ve continuously been pushing out updates since then.

    Were there any particular design ideas or features that ended up on the cutting room floor that players might expect to see with a future update?

    We have a long list with hundreds of interesting ideas for this game provided by the community and ourselves. Most of them are placed in the wine cellar for us to bring up at a later point. The most requested feature is about being able to play more than two players in the same game. That one has been pushed forward many times because of the complexity that comes with and also due to the limited bandwidth that we currently have as a small studio. It’s still a personal favorite and something we’d like to see happen one day. 

    What do you envision for the future of Slightly Heroes?

    We see Slightly Heroes as being a significant IP within the VR universe. It’s unique, relatable, and can be picked up and played by gamers of all ages. As the VR market grows we want Slightly Heroes to grow with it too. To that respect, we hope to expand the multiplayer offerings of the game, giving new ways for more players to play and compete against each other. We can’t share any details yet, but we see great things for the future of Slightly Heroes!

    Talk a bit about your thoughts regarding the future of VR and the role it can/should play in the competitive multiplayer scene.

    Competitive VR is definitely already a thing, and will only grow as devices get more powerful and accessible. Competition and total immersion is a marriage made in heaven, and VR helps you be right there in the action or watch it as a spectator. We hope to see more titles tapping into the world of e-sports, really bending what’s possible. The movie Ready Player One displays this in an interesting fashion. It might not be the most fitting theme for everyone but it shows what could happen when you combine crazy imagination and competition.

    There have already been some really great competitive experiences in VR and we look forward to hopefully contributing to the future of that scene.

    Recently you announced a collaboration with Fast Travel Games to bring a spider robot enemy from Apex Construct over into the world of Slightly Heroes (on April 1st no less!). Tell us about how that partnership came to be?

    Many of the founders and employees at Fast Travel Games and Hatrabbit have known each other for a very long time, so the two studios have always been quite close – both physically (we’re both based in Stockholm, Sweden) but also because we’re both developing high quality VR games. When looking for fun ideas on how we could eventually collaborate, the idea was presented that we could include one of Fast Travel’s characters in our game. It didn’t take long before we had the Mothr Spider in the game wreaking havoc in multiplayer matches!

    How many people were on the team during the development, and how long did it take to make?

    Slightly Heroes took around five months to build for three to five developers. As a lot of the core gameplay was inspired by Merry Snowballs, we were not starting completely from scratch, but we still were able to achieve a lot very quickly, even with such a small team. Hatrabbit is now a team of eight, with two interns.

    Is there a roadmap of updates for Slightly Heroes? If so, are there any juicy morsels of info you’d like to share regarding exciting content coming soon?

    Today we are releasing a new character that we designed with Slightly Heroes’ most decorated player, Kia. The new character is a superhero witch, called Kia De Hex. Kia De Hex is out now and can be unlocked in the game for 50,000 coins. 

    What’s next on the horizon for Hatrabbit?

    We’ve been busy at Hatrabbit working on a few ideas for the future. We’re not ready to share what we’re building, but we’re excited to try something new and create even more inclusive games for the masses!

    Sounds great! Thanks for taking the time to chat with us

    Check out Slightly Heroes on Viveport and as part of your Viveport Infinity membership today. Not a member? Start your free trial and get ready for unlimited superhero fun for one monthly fee!

    Website: LINK

  • Compatibility issue causes BSOD/Freeze on select AMD systems

    Compatibility issue causes BSOD/Freeze on select AMD systems

    Reading Time: < 1 minute

    We are continuing to investigate compatibility issues with VIVE Wireless Adapter and certain computers running AMD processors.

    BSOD/Freezing issues may be encountered when the PCIe card is installed and setup. We have partnered with Intel and AMD to develop and test a hotfix for this issue that will be deployed to the VIVE Wireless Adapter Connection Utility on April 25.

    To ensure you have the latest 1.20190410.0 update, click on the “Update now” button in your VIVE Wireless Adapter Connection Utility. This will walk through updating the software, including the hotfix for this issue.

    Website: LINK

  • VR and Storytelling at Tribeca Film Festival 2019

    VR and Storytelling at Tribeca Film Festival 2019

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    The 18th annual Tribeca Film Festival is now taking place in New York City, celebrating independent filmmaking and artists. This year, at Tribeca Immersive, the festival is showcasing an impressive lineup of 30 AR/VR titles. With leading VR creators in the industry premiering their latest titles at Tribeca, the festival highlights how some of the best experiences are created at the intersection of storytelling and technology.

    At Vive, we are dedicated to championing immersive cinematic VR experiences and delight in seeing the industry continue to grow and evolve. We are supporting five partners at Tribeca this year, all who are elevating the genre with their outstanding new content:

    Mr. Buddha – HTC VIVE

    A collaboration between HTC VIVE and Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee, 5×1 is a cinematic VR series comprised of five short films. Directors Hou Hsiao Hsien and Liao Ching-Sung served as executive producers of this project, providing guidance to five up-and-coming directors. Mr. Buddha, directed by Lee Chung, is one part of the five-part series.

    “The short crime story takes place in a car, following Dong-Tzu, Ching-Tsai, and Ni-Sang, who get their hands on a valuable antique only to have the fruits of their labor shared with the newcomer, A-Che.”

    Doctor Who: The Runaway – BBC/Passion Animation Studios

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9BuKcNVKPY]

    From the team behind Doctor Who Series 11, Doctor Who: The Runaway is a beautiful, animated, interactive story that brings you inside the TARDIS. The new immersive experience features Jodie Whittaker and Richard Elfyn.

    “You’ve been in a collision. You wake inside the TARDIS. The Doctor introduces you to the person, or thing, you collided with. He’s a strange and magnificent ball of living energy called Volta. Part surly teenager, part bomb, Volta is very unstable. In fact, he’s primed to explode. Big time. Unless he can be returned to his home planet, sharpish. The problem is, a squad of galactic busybodies has other plans for Volta. Bad ones. Drawn into a frantic chase, you become the Doctor’s unlikely assistant as she races against time to get Volta home to his parents. Armed with a sonic screwdriver, it is down to you to help the Doctor as she faces the forces of evil, and teenage angst, in this animated 13-minute VR adventure from the team behind Doctor Who Series 11.”

    Future Dreaming – Directed by Sutu

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fq9xAk1CuZY]

    Future Dreaming was inspired by the ancient Australian Aboriginal practice of Dreamtime, the visualization technique where you can see your spirit move through the past, present and future. Over the course of a few months the young protagonists – Ali Lockyer, Maverick Eaton, Nelson and Maxie Coppin – collaborated with VR artist Sutu to design their Future Dreaming in the limitless creation space of Virtual Reality. Once their worlds were designed, they employed motion capture technology to animate their avatars to tell their story and guide visitors through their creation.

    “In this immersive VR experience, you will step into a time-warping dream bubble as four young Aboriginal Australians guide you through their futures. Be ready for an intergalactic adventure. Look out for the space emus!”

    Ayahuasca: Kosmik Journey directed by Jan Kounen – Atlas V, a_BAHN and Small Studio

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcpCo]

    Making its world premiere at Tribeca,  Ayahuasca: Kosmik Journey is an 18-minute immersive voyage through one of the most mysterious spiritual practices on the planet. Using the headset’s tracking capabilities, the interactive experience will keep track of a user’s movement and react accordingly.

    “Participants are immersed in visions triggered by a dose of ayahuasca. The spectator lives this through director Jan Kounen’s eyes as he travels on a spiritual voyage.”

    7 Lives directed by Jan Kounen – Red Corner Production, France Télévisions, a_BAHN and Frakas Productions

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY4YrJgnWlk]

    7 Lives is a 20-25 minute interactive experience that explores shared emotional connections and memories in VR.

    “An afternoon in June. Tokyo. 5 p.m. A girl jumps in front of the subway. Her soul rises from the rails. On the platform, the witnesses of the scene are in shock. It revived a trauma in them, painful memories they never overcame.”

    All of these experiences can be seen at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival, taking place from April 24 – May 5 in lower Manhattan. Make sure to stay tuned as these immersive, cinematic experiences head to Viveport soon!

    Website: LINK

  • Vive Studios Releases Feature-Length Cinematic VR Experience, ‘7 Miracles’

    Vive Studios Releases Feature-Length Cinematic VR Experience, ‘7 Miracles’

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Award-winning VR film now available on Viveport for HTC VIVE and Google Play Store for Android devices

    VIVE Studios today released 7 Miracles, the award-winning VR film, in partnership with Panogramma and Film Production Consultants. The feature-length VR film is now available on VIVEPORT for the HTC VIVE as well as on Android devices via the Google Play store.

    7 Miracles is an immersive VR adaptation of the seven miracles of Jesus Christ based on the Gospel of John. Combining award-winning storytelling and the latest technology in virtual reality, the 360-degree experience immerses and connects the audience to these storied events in a novel and stirring way. Harnessing state-of-the-art VR capture technology, the film was created using photogrammetry and volumetric video capture, producing images in 8K. The seven-part episodic feature runs over 70 minutes, making it the first feature-length cinematic experience from Vive Studios.

    “This celebrated story has been retold over and over, yet through VR, we’ve developed an experience that allows the audience to connect with this epic in a brand new way,” said Chris Chin, Vice President & General Manager of Vive Studios. “HTC VIVE has engaged the newest methods in VR filmmaking and editing for 7 Miracles, pioneering the next generation of cinematic content.”

    7 Miracles was directed by Rodrigo Cerqueira (Jesus VR: The Story of Christ) and co-directed by Marco Spagnoli (Hollywood Invasion, Hollywood on Tiber, Walt Disney and Italy – A Love Story). The VR film was produced by Enzo Sisti (Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Passion of the Christ) and Vive Studios’ Joel Breton (Pirates of the Caribbean video game, Unreal video game, Anno 1602 video game, Terrarria video game) and Rodrigo Cerqueira. 7 Miracles was shot in Rome and in Matera where blockbusters such as The Passion of the Christ and Ben Hur were filmed.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUgBv_V6ZB0?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    Available globally in English, 7 Miracles can now be purchased on Viveport, HTC VIVE’s global platform and app store, for $19.99 while Android owners can purchase the mobile version of the film for $9.99 through the Google Play Store. Additional headsets and platforms, including iOS and the VIVE WaveTM platform, will be compatible at a later date. New 3D room-scale scenes to be added in future updates to further immerse viewers in the PC-VR experience. More information on 7 Miracles and Vive Studios can be found here: http://www.7miraclesvr.com/

    Website: LINK

  • 8 Key Takeaways from Developers on the Virtual Reality Industry Today

    8 Key Takeaways from Developers on the Virtual Reality Industry Today

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    In October 2018, HTC Vive asked developers to complete a survey about the current landscape of Virtual Reality. With over 1,800 respondents, the results are in, providing a look at how developers view the industry.

    Understanding how developers are thinking about the VR industry, applications and the future of VR is important as the space continues to grow and application trends emerge. The survey insights help drive how Vive approaches the developer community providing the resources and tools that developers need the most.

    Below are some key insights we found about the world of developers and VR.

    1. Audience

    When it comes to who developers are targeting, 55% of respondents stated consumers as their main audience followed by 32% who listed enterprise.

    HTC’s store for VR apps, Viveport, offers a variety of games, non-gaming apps, and videos for users to interact with. With Viveport, developers can reach both Vive and Oculus owners. Vive Wave allows developers to gain access to the all-in-one (AIO) audience – Wave is available on Vive products, but also on five additional hardware partners. Both of the platforms offer consumer and enterprise content while targeting both audiences.

    1. Creative Exploration

    Creativity is at the core of developers. When respondents were asked why they develop content for VR, 78% stated for creative exploration.

    Vive encourages developer creativity through an interactive forum for developers to collaborate. The Viveport Community Forum is a place where developers can share ideas, ask questions, get feedback, get inspiration for current/future projects and bounce ideas off people.

    1. Future Forward

    There’s something about being a part of new and innovative technology. 40% of respondents stated they are developing VR-based apps because they are excited to be at the forefront of new technology. This was followed by 29% of respondents who stated they are using it as an opportunity to explore a wide variety of industries such as product design, healthcare, and education. An additional 20% are developing to learn new techniques and expand their knowledge base.

    1. Challenges with VR-based apps

    Developers are concerned about audience adoption with 40% indicating that it is their biggest challenge when it comes to developing VR-based apps. The lack of hardware available is another deterrent for developers, with 27% of respondents listing it as the biggest challenge they face.

    As a company that listens to their community, Vive knows developers not only want access but early access to hardware, which is why we strive to offer developer kits for our newest headsets and upcoming hardware before it’s out.

    As a technology company, we are constantly iterating on our hardware to bring the latest innovative solutions to market. The evolution from Vive to Vive Pro to Vive Pro Eye has been over the course of 3 years. We strive to put out minimum viable products (MVPs), then get developer feedback to improve and create better products. The progression of Vive to Vive Pro Eye has all been asks from developers and commercial consumers.

    1. Excitement and Growth

    When respondents were asked about what industries they were most excited about and what they felt had the most potential for growth, the rankings were identical. The top five industries that respondents are most excited about and believe have the most potential for growth are as follows:

    • Industries respondents are most excited about
      • Gaming: 79%
      • Training and simulation: 65%
      • Education: 59%
      • Film and entertainment: 45%
      • AEC: 36%

    • Industries with the most potential for growth
      • Gaming: 69%
      • Training and simulation: 65%
      • Education: 57%
      • Film and entertainment: 39%
      • AEC: 38%

    1. PC versus AIO

    Developers were asked what their next VR project would involve, with the option of submitting multiple answers. 80% of respondents said their next VR project would involve PC powered headsets such as HTC Vive, HTC Vive Pro, Oculus Rift, etc. Additionally, 43% said that their project would use AIO headsets – wireless headsets such as Vive Focus and Oculus Go.  

    HTC Vive offers a variety of headsets, both AIO and PC-based to fit the needs of consumers and enterprise users, allowing developers to create experiences for either. With Viveport, developers can create experiences for PC-based VR headset owners and with Wave, developers can create experiences for the AIO user.

    1. Mass Adoption of VR

    Looking ahead to adoption of VR, 59% of respondents believe in three to four years VR will reach mass adoption.

    Vive continues to offer programs, initiatives and support across a variety of areas to allow for the increased adoption of VR in a variety of segments. Vive X, the company’s global AR/VR accelerator helps cultivate, foster and grow the global VR ecosystem by supporting startups and providing them with operational expertise and funding. VR/AR For Impact is a program to drive VR and AR content and technologies that will create positive impact and change in support of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. HTC launched Vive Arts, a global VR program set to change the way the world creates and engages with the arts, leveraging VR’s potential to share and engage with art in a new and exciting way. Vive Studios, HTC’s development and publishing initiative, works with 3rd party developers and within Vive to publish content that pushes the boundaries in VR.

    1. VR Education & Guidance

    This brings us to our last highlight – the top places developers go for VR education and guidance.  Professional communities rank #1 on the list with 77% of respondents stating communities such as Unreal and Unity are where they go for VR education or guidance. Additionally, 66% of respondents listed forums, and 36% listed personal communities such as friends who work in the same industry.

    Vive is committed to listening to the developer community and offering programs that support development – all with a common goal of providing the best VR experience on Vive.  We encourage developers to connect with us on our Developer Community Forums where we encourage developers to share feedback, ask questions, talk to other developers about developing for Vive, and gain inspiration. Vive and Viveport team members are active in these forums, helping facilitate discussions, helping to answer questions, and gathering feedback from developers to consider for making improvements.  Additionally,  our Developer Portal allows users to register, get on our mailing list for the Vive developer newsletter, learn about and access our SDKs, read about important and updates related to developing for Vive, and also submit their apps to be published on Viveport.

    Website: LINK

  • SUPERHOT VR Gets An Arcade Upgrade

    SUPERHOT VR Gets An Arcade Upgrade

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    Blurring the lines between cautious strategy and unbridled mayhem, combined with the latest points-earning and quality of life features, SUPERHOT VR: Arcade Edition is the critically acclaimed VR experience revamped, remixed and specifically crafted for VR arcade and LBE use.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHjWDgh4E-8?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    Months of design, development and testing have ensured that SUPERHOT VR: Arcade Edition is the best experience for those looking to deploy SUPERHOT VR in a public setting. Play SUPERHOT VR in full arcade style and earn points to take your place on the leaderboard, moving smoothly between levels without the need to ever touch floppy disks or stop the gameplay! Easily choose the exact level you want to play, try out the latest time modes including custom session length setting – and experience all of this in one of the 11 supported languages.

    Optimized specifically for Arcades

    The original SUPERHOT VR has gained a massive following with LBE and VR Arcade operators. We felt that it could be redesigned to fill the specific needs of arcades even better, so we took SUPERHOT VR for a spin and remixed it into SUPERHOT VR: Arcade Edition – a sleek, streamlined and VR Arcade friendly game that puts focus on pure gameplay while helping make arcade operators lives way easier.

    Scoring your gameplay into greatness

    One of the key and most obvious changes is the new points and leaderboard system. Slash, dodge and headshot your way through levels. Each action you take and each stunt you manage to pull off will be scored. After completing a playthrough, everyone will be able to compare their efforts on the leaderboards. Want to brag about your score? Now everyone will see it and you’ll get an objective proof of your awesome skills! Leaderboards provide that healthy dose of friendly rivalry which in turn encourages players to return for a third, fifth and even hundredth session.

    To streamline the flow of gameplay even further, we removed all the additional fluff that might get in the way of setting new high scores – no more floppy disks, hacker rooms or other distractions. Thanks to that, the game is more accessible. Getting directly into action a breeze! It’s pure, uninterrupted gameplay designed for the best, most streamlined experience.

    Showing some love for the VR Arcade operators

    Operators receive a sleek, new Admin Panel to easily change game settings and ensure players can devote all their focus to the game itself.  Now operators can select default modes and settings. Should a player experience any difficulties with a particular level, just reload it, go to the next one, or skip to the end of the game. All of this can be done without the need to reset the game.

    The new custom second screen lets spectators watch the action closer, stay immersed in the experience, preparing them for their own attempt. If the game has not been interacted with for some time, you can automatically roll the Attract Mode video – just enable this feature in the settings.

    Speaking of game modes – you can now pick and choose between new and optional time limited modes with 5, 15, and 30 minute session lengths. If that doesn’t suit your fancy, you can customize it to a specific session length. Additionally, returning players will be able to pick the exact level they want to play.

    Fun for all

    The team is super excited by the new features and fun things in SUPERHOT VR: Arcade Edition. We really want to make sure everyone can try them out and we’re thinking hard on how to do this. Our goal is to make sure our existing players can try out the best bits at home while ensuring arcades still have something cool just for them. We haven’t figured out how to do this best just yet, but when we do, we’ll let everyone know.

    SUPERHOT VR: Arcade Edition takes all the goodness of the original SUPERHOT VR gameplay, sprinkling it with new features and game modes while streamlining everything that might interrupt the gameplay itself. Empowering both the player and the operator to let them achieve the greatest VR arcade experience the game could offer was our pivotal goal in this project. When all is said and done, what we really want is to let you have unspoiled, uninterrupted fun that you will remember as a true, immersive, frantic experience. We cannot wait to see the high scores of people all over the world and check if we ourselves can beat them! Give us a challenge! Have fun!

    Cheers!

    Website: LINK

  • Conservation comes alive on Viveport with these Earth Day experiences

    Conservation comes alive on Viveport with these Earth Day experiences

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Earth Day is a worldwide celebration of our environment, and a movement that calls for action in preserving our planet and its ecosystems. Started in 1970, this global initiative unites efforts from groups everywhere to reaffirm our commitment to preserve and improve our planet for the future. At Vive, we’re committed to supporting content that raises awareness regarding climate change as part of our VR for Impact program.

    This Earth Day, we recommend checking out these powerful and awe-inspiring Viveport experiences that illustrate the importance of conservation and how important it is to the beauty of the world we live in. Afterall, there is no Plan(et) B.

    The Curse of Palm Oil

    This immersive film chronicles the lives of the indigenous people of Peninsular Malaysia and their connection to their forests. Alarming deforestation rates threaten their very way of life, as they rely on it as their source of food, medicine and other vital materials. Experience the sounds and sights of the clash between the natural world of the rainforest with the machines involved with deforestation as this experience hammers home the tragic conflict between the indigenous people and logging companies.

    theBlu

    An essential and critically acclaimed VR experience, theBlu brings the vibrant world of our oceans to life in the most immersive way possible. Get up close and personal with the denizens of the deep, and interact with them using your Vive wands. This awe inspiring undersea journey will give you a whole new appreciation of our complex and beautiful ecosystem and why we must do everything in our power to preserve it.

    Tree

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=be7VobvjXnM?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    In this award-winning VR experience, you’re transformed into a majestic rainforest tree. Live the life of a vital part of the forest ecosystem from seedling to full growth and feel the impact this important flora has on the environment. Utilizing the immersiveness of virtual reality, Tree helps illustrate the importance of preserving our natural world. Viveport passionately believes in this cause, and funds from paid purchases of Tree are donated to the Rainforest Alliance, an organization dedicated to preserving our forests.

    Oil in our Creeks

    Oil in our Creeks is a powerful cinematic VR experience that shows the effect of a devastating oil spill in Bodo City, Nigeria. Hand-painted animation fuses with 360 video to show the community’s past and how they’ve been impacted by such a terrible calamity. Having premiered on the Vancouver Film Festival to rave reviews, this immersive VR film will touch your heart and stir you to get involved to help make a difference.

    The Disappearing Oasis

    Climate change is one of the main causes of many risks to our environment. In The Disappearing Oasis, see first hand its impact in the form of desertification’s effect on the 2 million people living in the fertile regions of Morocco. Follow Halim Sbai as he works tirelessly to inform the world of what is happening, and the local efforts to push back against desertification (including the yearly planting of new palm trees).

    Website: LINK

  • Blast off into Viveport Infinity with these top downloaded Oculus Rift compatible titles

    Blast off into Viveport Infinity with these top downloaded Oculus Rift compatible titles

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Attention Oculus Rift users: Viveport Infinity – your virtual passport to a galaxy of VR awesomeness – has arrived! Granting unlimited access to over 600 apps and games, as well as member exclusive discounts, offers and free to keep titles, Infinity provides a VIP virtual reality experience for Rift users. Start your free trial today and get ready to explore the Infinity with these top downloaded Viveport titles through your new membership!

    Seeking Dawn

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O19J_pRFtOY?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    In this jaw dropping AAA sci-fi shooter, you’ll step into the shoes of a soldier on a hostile alien planet, tasked with tracking down an allied recon squad that went missing. You’ll need to master the elements as well as your combat skills to survive against deadly adversaries in both the single player campaign as well as multiplayer co-op modes.

    Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs 

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuX7DSa-rZE?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    The feathers will fly in this immersive and addictive new version of the hit mobile phenomenon! Grab your slingshot and get ready to make these greedy pigs pay, flinging a variety of avian ammo to take down your porcine foes and take back the eggs they’ve stolen. You’ll need to lean and twist to find just the right angle for maximum damage as you bust up these piggy formations to achieve the highest score through 50+ levels. Don’t worry, though, you’ll have awesome character power-ups at your disposal to get the job done explosively!

    Apex Construct

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CN1RsJkUvwk?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    In this critically acclaimed sci-fi experience, you’ll navigate the ruins of humanity as you take on the robot menace with awesome archery skills on your quest to take back the world from the mechanical scourge. Featuring fluid bow combat and free locomotion and teleportation, you’ll move around the world with swiftness and ease as you tackle a wide variety of challenging enemies.

    Tilt Brush

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODHec1lCwew?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    Unleash your inner Van Gogh (and keep your ears in tact) with this powerful art experience from Google! Use your Oculus controllers to paint in a 3D space with ease, crafting your virtual masterpieces with a variety of tools in a huge living canvas. The possibilities are endless, and the only limit is your imagination.

    Knockout League

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfPpdH-WvNI?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    Get ready to rumble and face off against boxing’s greatest champions, like… an octopus?? Take on hilarious and colorful enemies in an intuitive virtual fisticuffs experience. Dodge and weave and find the right opening to land that perfect jab or uppercut against hilarious cartoon champions.

    Witching Tower VR

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-5R7GSr7bk?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    In this darkly beautiful fantasy adventure, you’ll ascend a bewitched tower filled with puzzles and dangers on your quest to defeat its evil Queen and save the land from spire’s poisonous influence. Take on enemies with blade or ranged weapons, solve devious environment puzzles, and climb to the top in order to save the world.  

    Tribe XR DJ School

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liG0c__b5pQ?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    Ever wish you could be the next daft punk or deadmau5 but lacked the hardware or the knowhow? With Tribe XR DJ school, you can pick up the tools of the digital trade and learn how to craft the next great club banger. Take interactive courses to learn the basics, mix your own custom playlists, and put on live performances of your next set online. You’ll be dropping the beat in no time!

    Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzUl4u4mBlw?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    It’s time to duel! With this addictive and intuitive card battler from the developers of Arizona Sunshine, you’ll take on local and online opponents in fast-paced tabletop games of skill and strategy. Draw cards from your customized decks and place them on the battlefield to annihilate your opponents, and summon spells to push back your enemy’s forces. Easy to learn but tough to master, you’ll be telling yourself ‘just one more match’ time and time again.

    Transpose

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_jkNOgKMkQ?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    You know the saying: imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Well, prepare to flatter yourself big time in this mind bending clone puzzler. You’ll explore trippy, dreamlike environments and solve challenging physics puzzles in a place where space and time no longer apply. Create copies of yourself and work together with those echoes to progress your way through 35 unique levels and learn more about the wild yet familiar world you find yourself in.

    These are just a few examples of the amazing experiences at your unlimited disposal with your Viveport Infinity membership. Start your free trial today and blast off into the Infinity!

    Website: LINK

  • HTC Adds FaZe Clan To Growing Esports and Gaming Division; Continues Strategic Partnership With TSM

    HTC Adds FaZe Clan To Growing Esports and Gaming Division; Continues Strategic Partnership With TSM

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    HTC Gaming, HTC’s gaming and esports division, today announced a new sponsorship of FaZe Clan. FaZe Clan has become one of the most prominent professional gaming teams in the industry, best known for their “trickshot” videos from the “Call of Duty” days. With powerhouse lineups in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Fortnite, Call of Duty, and more, FaZe Clan packs an impressive roster of streamers, esports athletes, and content creators. United Talent Agency (UTA) brokered the deal between HTC and FaZe.

    VR is an exciting part of the next frontier in gaming and FaZe Clan couldn’t be more excited to kick off a partnership with HTC as leaders in this space,” says Lee Trink, CEO of FaZe Clan. “We look forward to creating a compelling partnership and welcome HTC as a new sponsor.”

    HTC Gaming also announced the continued partnership with professional gaming organization, TSM. Since 2015, this robust partnership has seen the TSM organization enjoy meteoric success and growth as an organization, becoming one of the most recognized teams in gaming and Fortnite. In addition, the company has seen rapid growth and expansion into the digital space with its platform and an impressive roster of influential streamers and content creators.

    “HTC and TSM share a vision of building around innovation and new technologies such as VR,” says Brad Sive, Chief Revenue Officer of TSM. “With the support and long-term commitment from HTC, we are able to engage the marketplace in revolutionary new ways. Having such a future-focused partner has been a major factor in TSM’s continued success.”

    With the explosive growth of the streaming market, these partnerships present a tremendous opportunity for HTC to connect with the community through live-streamed broadcasts featuring the HTC Vive. Look for exciting upcoming streams on Vive Showcases presented by various HTC-featured live streamers.

    With HTC’s foray into the gaming and influencer world, HTC Esports is expanding and evolving to become HTC Gaming. UTA has also been instrumental in advising on HTC’s shift toward Twitch lifestyle and influencers.

    “HTC Esports will be expanding its brand to encompass all aspects of gaming,” Says Andrew Wu, Partner Marketing Manager for Gaming at HTC, “Gaming, to us, is a larger umbrella that includes esports. With our team working with more and more gaming influencers, especially on Twitch and YouTube platforms, we’re excited to work together with TSM and FaZe Clan’s amazing members to bring VR into the spotlight.”

    To kick off the partnerships, TSM and FaZe Clan team members will participate in only the second ever Vive Summit, a live-streamed showcase of select VR games. The event, scheduled for April 10th, 2019, will be hosted by Alexia Raye, the popular content creator and Twitch streamer. Raye will also serve as the new host of Season 2 of HTC Gaming’s YouTube series, “IRL.”

    “I am incredibly excited to be the host for HTC IRL. On top of getting to work with a prestigious brand and an array of amazing esports players, I look forward to the variety of activities and showcasing these players’ lives in real life!” says Raye. “I’ve been a fan of VR and the Vive for quite a while now, and own one at home to play Beat Saber all the time. I’m excited to host the HTC Vive Summit and bring together some of my best friends in the Twitch community to play Vive in person, and show how much fun VR is to everyone at home.”

    To check out the Vive Summit and enjoy the VR action, tune in to the live stream at https://twitch.tv/htc at 2 PM on April 10th, 2019.

    Make sure to follow HTC Gaming and its partners for updates and details:

    https://twitter.com/htcgaming

    https://twitter.com/TSM

    https://twitter.com/FaZeClan

    Website: LINK

  • Upgraded Viveport Video Launches with Premium Content for Viveport Infinity Members

    Upgraded Viveport Video Launches with Premium Content for Viveport Infinity Members

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Viveport Video gives content developers an avenue to monetize their premium VR video content

    Celebrations of the third annual “VIVE Day” include Viveport content giveaways

    HTC VIVE® celebrates “VIVE Day”, the third anniversary of VIVE’s commercial launch, with the release of Viveport Video. Viveport Video is coming to major PC-VR hardware platforms, in addition to VIVE Wave devices, and showcases a broad range of content in an immersive and intuitive VR setting. To further celebrate VIVE Day, Viveport Infinity members can redeem five free titles from VIVE Studios and take advantage of other great deals available through this weekend.

    Viveport Video provides access to a growing library of 2D, 180 and 360-degree videos in a native VR environment. Available as a free download on Viveport, Steam, and soon on the Oculus store, the new offering gives PC VR and VIVE WaveTM powered headsets the ability to access premium and free media content optimized for VR. A Viveport Infinity membership will provide access to select premium content in addition to the collection of free videos available to all.

    Viewers can experience unique video content from their favorite sports such as Major League Baseball, Red Bull TV, and McLaren Racing. Meanwhile, music fans can enjoy popular music videos and concert footage of their favorite artists from Red Bull Records, 1Culture and Ceek VR. Cinematic and TV experiences like Everest: the VR Film Experience, Dark Corner and FRONTLINE PBS round out Viveport Video’s offering as it continues to expand, providing some of the most compelling 2D and 360 content available in VR.

    “Immersive VR video experiences are an exciting and captivating way for users to connect with the things that interest them the most and with Viveport Video, they now have access to premium content across a variety of lifestyle genres,” said Rikard Steiber, President of Viveport. “Through Viveport Video, we’re enabling the developer community to finally be able to monetize their premium video content and share these experiences with a large audience.”

    “With Viveport Video, we can now easily share our immersive video content with users of all major VR platforms to further reach into our global fanbase,” said Rob Bloom, McLaren Group Digital Director. “We’re looking forward to connecting with new and existing fans as they experience McLaren Racing through the lens of VR video experiences, bringing fans virtually into our world.”

    Powered by Secret Location’s Vusr Publisher, Viveport Video is now available as a free download on ViveportTM and Steam. New users can try a two-week free trial of Viveport Infinity, Viveport’s unlimited subscription service, and access the exclusive premium content on Viveport Video in addition to over 600 VR apps and games.

    VIVE Day Promotions

    To continue the birthday celebrations, Viveport is gifting Infinity members five free VIVE Studios titles along with some great deals. Starting today and running through April 7th, Viveport Infinity members can claim their free copies of Virtual Sports, Front Defense, Arcade Saga, Knockout League and AWAKE: Episode One: https://vprt.co/viveday2019

    In addition, through April 7th, Viveport is also offering up to 90% off select games and apps for all customers while new purchases of VIVE or VIVE Pro headsets through April 8th comes with a 12-month Viveport Infinity membership.

    Website: LINK

  • Summoning card battler fun with Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl

    Summoning card battler fun with Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    Developer Vertigo Games is no stranger to bringing unique and addictive experiences to VR. With such hits as Arizona Sunshine and the original Skyworld VR under their belts, they’ve harnessed the immersiveness of virtual reality to create thrilling and polished genre-defining experiences previously underutilized in the VR space.

    Their latest release, Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl – out now on Viveport and Viveport Infinity, seeks to bring fast-paced one-on-one card battling mayhem to players in a colorful and addictive tabletop experience. We sat down with the team at Vertigo to find out what went into crafting this simple to learn yet deep card combat game we just can’t put down.

    By Nathan Allen Ortega, Viveport Staff

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzUl4u4mBlw?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    Tell us a bit about yourself and the Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl team

    My name’s Nick and I’m a game designer over at Vertigo Games. We’re a studio that focuses exclusively on VR game development and we’re probably best known for Arizona Sunshine. Our team spans 20+ developers of various disciplines. That includes artists, designers, programmers and even an in-house publishing team who also help out other VR developers!

    Talk a bit about your previous experience developing titles for VR, especially Arizona Sunshine and the original Skyworld

    I joined Vertigo about a year ago. Before being put on Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl. I was responsible for designing the Dead Man DLC for Arizona Sunshine and also helped design the Dead Man story mission for the free-roam, multiplayer experience Arizona Sunshine – LB VR Edition that is available for VR arcades.

    What inspired you and your team to create a fast-paced competitive card battle experience within the universe of Skyworld?

    Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl takes the real-time combat element of the original Skyworld VR game as a basis and reimagines it into a standalone, competitive VR card-battler. During the development of the original game we found the real-time part to have a lot of potential, especially to welcome a wider group of players to the Skyworld universe. We spent close 9 months building and balancing this new competitive experience, which allows you to build a persistent card deck from and go head to head with other players in fast-paced matches.

    Skyworld and Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl are very authentic tabletop experiences that tap into the satisfying feel of strategic card and board gaming. Was bringing that authenticity to VR a big priority for you and the team?

    Absolutely. It really makes for a different experience to see the entire ‘map’ so to say. In a more traditional RTS your view would be more confined to an area on the battlefield. While seeing the entire board may seem easier at first, there’s a lot going on! Brawl is a very fast-paced game and you’ll be flinging cards all over the place in no time. In addition, being in VR, it’s freakin’ sweet seeing your units come to life on the battlefield, watching the battle unfold and trying to turn its tide with your own spells and attacks.

    What were some of the biggest challenges you encountered when crafting a rich multiplayer experience with a competitive scene in mind?

    A big goal for us with competitive multiplayer in mind was supporting crossplay between entirely different devices: the HTC Vive Focus and a PC using a Vive or other PC VR headset. All platforms have their own way of managing users, their own peripherals and most importantly, their own hardware specs. So this meant we had to build an entire system which could support all and bring them together. Our programing team deserves some special praise for a brilliant feat.

    How did the process of creating a fast-paced, 1v1 card battler differ from working on the turn-based strategy of the original Skyworld?

    With the visual elements and game universe foundation there, it was more a case of figuring out what needed to happen from a design and technical perspective what was needed to elevate the real-time element of the base game into its own, PvP-heavy fast-paced battler. For instance, in Kingdom Brawl we played around with things like the mana regeneration rate as it allowed for more tactical depth: you can easily deploy a small army of different units, each squad countering the weaknesses of others. It’s quite a spectacle to see it all unfold!

    What has the feedback been like from players who have had hands on time with Kingdom Brawl? Were there any particular reactions that surprised you?

    It was great to see how different types of players go about their battles. Those with more experience may choose to wait for their mana to build up and then send out what seems to be an impressive force of units. Example, some Swordsmen followed by a Flying Fortress. You’ll counter this with what you think will be an impressive finisher: Fire Crossbowmen and a Sniper. So your mini army is on its way and – bam! – Fireball. Everyone dead. You fell right in your opponent’s trap and just lost 7 mana worth of units – while your opponent’s army marches on – with the added support of a Knight, now that he knows what your deck is…

    How many people were on the team throughout the development process? How long did it take to make?

    The development process took about 9 months, and during this time many on our team have been involved to some degree. On average, it was about 4-5 people working on it throughout.

    Are there content updates planned that you can share with us to give an idea of where you see the game going competitively speaking?

    All I can say is that we’ve got plans, and that we’ll make them known soon 😉

    Great to hear! We can’t wait to see what’s to come with this awesome experience. Thanks for your time!

    Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl is now available on Viveport and as part of your Viveport Infinity subscription. Not a member? Start your free trial today and get ready for fierce 1v1 card battle goodness!

    Once you’ve quenched your thirst for tabletop gaming victory, head to our forums to talk strategy with the rest of the Viveport Community on our forums!

    Website: LINK

  • Viveport Infinity Blasts Off!

    Viveport Infinity Blasts Off!

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    Viveport celebrates the launch of Infinity with an out-of-this-world sale, limited-time hardware bundles and the release of ‘Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl’ and ‘Rhythm Boxing’

    VIVEPORT brings the first unlimited gaming subscription to VR with today’s launch of Viveport Infinity! Over 600 apps and games are ready to be explored through Infinity, allowing you to experience the best that VR has to offer. From current favorites to new discoveries, your Viveport mission is about to reach new heights!

    If you are a current Viveport subscriber, your account has been automatically upgraded to Viveport Infinity, so you can start enjoying the new service today. No longer restricted to five titles a month, you can begin exploring and downloading any and all titles on Viveport Infinity. Start your Infinity journey with popular hits like Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs and Apex Construct along with some of our favorite indies like Slightly Heroes.

    Viveport Infinity memberships are now available for $12.99 a month, or just $99 for a year, and are currently compatible on the HTC VIVE, Oculus Rift and all VIVE WAVE powered standalone devices. Your Infinity membership also grants you exclusive benefits and perks year round, such as weekend deals, free title giveaways and monthly coupons.

    To further celebrate this major Viveport milestone, we’ve got more exciting news to share:

    Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl

    Vertigo Studios and VIVE Studios have launched Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl, the competitive, cross-platform VR card-battler. Available today in Viveport Infinity, you can jump right into fast-paced, real-time PvP gameplay, and challenge friends to a best-out-of-three brawl. The first DLC pack for the game, adding a range of unique units and new battle arenas for VR brawlers to enjoy, will be available later in Q2 2019.

    Friends turn foes as players step into Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl’s merciless VR battlegrounds. Unlock, collect and upgrade dozens of cards to build a powerful deck, and watch your cards come to life as you cast spells and summon forces to wipe your enemy off the map. Join a clan, take on opponents from around the globe in regular online tournaments, and claim your place on the global leaderboards.

    In addition to Viveport Infinity, Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl is now available to purchase for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality headsets at an SRP of $9.99/€9.99 with a 15% launch week discount.

    Rhythm Boxing  

    Also launching in Viveport Infinity today is Rhythm Boxing! From Vive Studios’ first-party studio, Fantahorn Studio – the team that brought you Front Defense and Front Defense: Heroes – Rhythm Boxing is a music-based boxing game set to unique songs.

    In Rhythm Boxing you’ll off against your personal trainers, Thomas and Emma, as they teach you how to rhythm box! Quickly follow the circles and throw out jabs and hooks to build up a combo while dodging your trainer’s attacks. With each challenging level set to their own unique soundtrack, you’ll be sure to have fun while burning calories and building up a sweat.

    The new title will be exclusive on Viveport through April 30th and is compatible for VIVE and the Oculus Rift. Rhythm Boxing is now available on Viveport Infinity and can be purchased for $7.99 on the Viveport store.

    Viveport Infinity Promotions 

    Viveport Infinity is the biggest upgrade to Viveport’s subscription service, and we’re celebrating  with the entire Viveport community! Starting today, over 150 additional titles are now on sale for all Viveport users. You can get a steal on top games like Arizona Sunshine, Hotel Transylvania Popstic and Fruit Ninja VR through April 7th (11:59pm PT) at a deep discount of up to 90%.

    Viveport is also inviting new users to join in on the festivities with a limited time hardware bundle; through April 8th, all PC-based VIVE headsets come bundled with a 12-month Viveport Infinity code. You can purchase this special hardware bundle from Vive.com, Amazon, GameStop, Microsoft, BestBuy, and all other retailers where VIVE headsets are available. 

    If you’re new to Viveport and Viveport Infinity make sure to sign up for a two-week free trial today to explore all that Infinity has to offer and take advantage of these great Launch Day deals: https://www.campaign.viveport.com/en-infinity-viveport

    Website: LINK

  • First Gameplay Trailer of Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl Shared Ahead of Launch

    First Gameplay Trailer of Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl Shared Ahead of Launch

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl Global Arcade Tournament Kicking Off in April

    Vertigo Games and VIVE Studios just revealed a new gameplay video for the highly competitive, cross-platform VR card-battler Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl. Uniting a wide cross-platform VR player base in battle across the HTC VIVE, the VIVE Focus, Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality, Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl shows off its fast-paced, real-time PvP gameplay in a best-out-of-three brawl. Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl will launch April 2nd in Viveport Infinity, allowing members to download the title as part of their unlimited subscription and battle against friends regardless of their hardware.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD9NF19s2GI]

    Shoutcasted by former Machinima producer & eSports ambassador Shayan Tamayo, the gameplay video shows two players going head to head in a best-out-of-three brawl for the glorious title of first Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl Champion. Take an early look at the game’s highly competitive gameplay as two evenly matched players explore and deploy their own intense, real-time tactics. Discover a beautiful selection of 20+ available maps and see in action some of the 50+ available units, from Siege Tanks, Flying Fortresses and Knights to Dragons and Hellbeasts in this exhilarating brawl full of twists.

    A new challenge will kick off for brawlers worldwide next month as Vertigo Games has joined forces with Virtual Athletics League to roll out a global Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl arcade tournament in late April. A slew of prizes, including an HTC Vive Pro, will be up for grabs for the new champion. Leading up to the events, arcades will be able to participate in a free week from launch day until April 8, allowing them to operate the new PvP game at no cost. Additional details about the tournament and free weekend will be announced soon.

    Read our last blog on Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl to find out more about the upcoming Vertigo Games and Vive Studios title here: http://bit.ly/SKWBrawl 

    Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl launches April 2, 2019, for the HTC VIVE portfolio, Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality headsets at an SRP of $9.99/€9.99 with a 15% launch discount available in launch week only. Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl will also be available in Viveport Infinity at launch, new members can start their free trial today and lock in their current Subscription price through April 1.

    To stay up to date and for more information, visit the official website and continue to check out the VIVE blog for the newest updates.

    Website: LINK

  • Computer-Aided Design, VR/XR Reality Solutions Shine at SOLIDWORKS World 2019

    Computer-Aided Design, VR/XR Reality Solutions Shine at SOLIDWORKS World 2019

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    The future of design, collaboration, visualization—business itself—is immersive.

    SOLIDWORKS World 2019 has come and gone, but the business world has only just begun to use the tools it revealed to the world. For the next generation of makers, doers, and innovators that want to create things and create them well, there has been incredible advancements in computer-aided design (CAD) and virtual/extended reality (VR/XR) solutions to bring their ideas to life.

    At SOLIDWORKS World 2019’s XR Zone, designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, and visualization professionals got to experience those advancements firsthand in augmented (AR) and virtual reality. Working in conjunction with VIVE Virtual Reality’s enterprise-class hardware and software, participants;

    • trained users in the assembly, interaction, and operation of products;
    • improved collaborative internal and external design reviews;
    • sold designs more effectively with immersive experiences.

    Those who attended the XR Partners Panel Discussion were treated to an even deeper XR dive with David Randle, Sr. Manager Strategy & Business Development at Dassault Systèmes and David Weinstein, Director of VR, NVIDIA and learned how to address the ideal use cases with the current scope of available technology and capitalize in the new era of business.

    Didn’t have a chance to attend? Don’t fret: SOLIDWORKS World returns again next year as 3D EXPERIENCE World.

    Feeling a little left out of all the XR action, SOLIDWORKers? Not to worry: we’ve compiled a summary of VIVE’s collaborations and partnerships with NVIDIA, Tsunami XR, and Silverdraft so you can stay up-to-date on the latest tools of your trade.

    NVIDIA

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHqzH2KBLpc?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    So, you have a detailed CAD model built in SOLIDWORKS, you created some beautiful renderings using SOLIDWORKS Visualize, and now, you need a fast way to review your model in VR with your colleagues. There’s no time to prep the CAD model in another application, and definitely no time to reduce down hundreds of surfaces so a VR app can display them without your boss getting motion sick. What do you do?

    At SOLIDWORKS World 2019, NVIDIA exhibited the CFH Telescope model—a 27-million-polygon model that went from SOLIDWORKS to SOLIDWORKS Visualize to NVIDIA’s Holodeck with the power of RTX6000. With “Export to Holodeck” in Visualize 2019, your model and materials export to Holodeck ready for VR viewing—no model editing or geometry reduction required. Even better, you can view your Visualize materials or reassign them with 1300 vMaterials in Holodeck. To share the efficient Holodeck workflow, users can collaborate, talk, record, and see their colleague’s avatars in the same experience whether in the same room or across the globe.

    For more information about Holodeck, please visit the official site.

    Tsunami XR

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ1xombHlYE]

    Tsunami XR is revolutionizing the way people communicate and collaborate in business. Launched in 2012, Tsunami XR Workspaces, a spatial computing platform offered by the company, enables customers to build immersive 3D environments such as virtual conference rooms, virtual workshops, and virtual classrooms. Multiple users can join the virtual environments from any location and interact through a variety of devices, including tablets, laptops, desktops, augmented reality devices, and virtual reality headsets. Tsunami XR Workspaces platform supports SOLIDWORKS as well as most of the other popular CAD formats.

    To further allow designers and engineers to share and engage around spatial content, Tsunami XR is also launching Meet.com, a new service that enables simple, drag-and-drop collaboration experiences to any device via a web browser. We’ll keep you posted on this exciting development that allows people to widely share their work and ideas, spanning all device types, whether desktop, mobile, virtual, or augmented reality.

    Here’s a taste of what was showcased at SOLIDWORKS World 2019:

    The SOLIDWORKS-provided model of the CFH Telescope through Tsunami XR on VIVE Pro.
    Visitors will be able to teleport around the full-scale model and play an animation. In addition, they’ll enjoy the full collaboration and annotation tools offered in Tsunami XR Workspaces.

    Simple Tsunami XR demo collaboration workspace on VIVE Pro and VIVE Focus Plus (all-in-one VR with six degrees of freedom.)
    A demo workspace that includes a 3D jet engine model, white board, .pdf board and two stream boards to demonstrate Tsunami XR Workspaces cross-device capabilities.

    Dell Gaming CES Virtual Experience on VIVE Pro.
    A complete digital twin of Dell Gaming and Alienware’s physical CES booth demonstrates the future of retail shopping in the virtual world. The experience showcases Tsunami XR Workspaces scripting and simulation capabilities.

    Ameren Training Experience on VIVE Pro.
    Virtual training has the ability to save lives and reduce costs. The Ameren Training Experience highlights the improved learning and retention of immersive education versus standard 2D methods. Visitors are transported deep inside a nuclear facility to troubleshoot potential threats and learn how to safely mitigate those risks.

    Silverdraft

    DemonVR, a first-of-its-kind supercomputer capable of hosting two VIVE Pro headsets simultaneously.

    Whether you’re in design, VFX, manufacturing, AEC, or simply looking for ways to leverage visualization to enhance your business, Silverdraft can help accelerate your adoption and speed up your ROI. They focus on the use of talented individuals and unique supercomputing architecture to address the significant computational and processing needs of high-end rendering, VR, and visual effects. The Silverdraft process always starts by identifying the bottlenecks in any given workflow to establish which solution is right for the job.

    Most relevant to those interested in extended reality solutions, and the one showcased at SOLIDWORKS World 2019 is the expert-assembled DemonVR, a first-of-its-kind multiuser VR workstation capable of hosting two VIVE Pro headsets simultaneously. Powered by two NVIDIA P6000s, one NVIDIA P2000 and backed up by a single 18-core Intel Extreme CPU and 64GB of high-speed RAM, DemonVR is designed to deliver smooth, collaborative user experiences.

    Website: LINK

  • Third Annual Viveport Developer Awards Winners Announced

    Third Annual Viveport Developer Awards Winners Announced

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    At GDC 2019, VIVEPORT hosted the third annual Viveport Developer Awards. The awards program is an open contest for VR developers who have titles published in Viveport Subscription. Viveport announced the winners of the four categories for PC titles and winners of the three VIVE WAVE categories during the event, celebrating VR’s most captivating and original titles in the genres of entertainment, arts & culture, arcade and education.

    “Viveport’s goal is to be the number one advocate for VR developers to ensure they have the support they need to develop the experiences that continue to drive engagement and excite consumers,” said Rikard Steiber President of Viveport. “This year’s winners highlight the high caliber of VR content now available across popular genres and all of these experiences will be available in the Viveport Infinity service.”

    The Viveport Developer Awards celebrate exciting new content that has been published on Viveport Subscription. Category winners will receive a prize bundle including a cash prize, the newest VIVE® hardware, tickets to the 2019 Game Developers Conference and marketing support, including a “Viveport Developer Stories” video, totaling over $50,000 in value.

    The categories and winners are listed below, all of which will be available in Viveport Infinity when it launches on April 2nd:

    Entertainment – PC

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CN1RsJkUvwk]

    • Finalist – Blind by Tiny Bull Studios & Fellow Traveller

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zHypU267Z8]

    Education – PC

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTdOU0vcEyk]

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPv6H_o3JvI]

    Arts & Culture – PC

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-7AkihfPZU?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zja5yDgJ5kQ]

     

    Arcade – PC

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFQ2CTcRY6I]

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6taGudtLLOo]

    Entertainment – WAVE

    • Winner – Bait! by Resolution Games

     Education – WAVE

    • Winner – Star Chart by Escapist Games Limited

    Arts & Culture – WAVE

    • Winner – PAINT VR by COSKAMI LLC

    Website: LINK

  • VIVE Paves the Way for Developer Success

    VIVE Paves the Way for Developer Success

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    At the annual Game Developer Conference today, VIVE hosted a Developer Day to connect with the community and show why there has never been a better time to develop for VR and VIVE. VIVE executives and engineers spent the day sharing information on our newest developer toolsets, our platform strategy and answering questions from the community.

    Today, we shared how VIVE is building a comprehensive ecosystem of content, hardware, platforms and toolsets that are paving the way for innovative VR development. During the sessions, we outlined our complete set of tools and services from SDKs to interesting toolsets that will push the VR industry forward (or maybe just help us all experiment a little bit more).

    To start, VIVE announced a new partnership with Photon, the global cross-platform multiplayer backends as a service (SaaS) and on-premise solution for real-time multiplayer games and applications. With the new Photon toolset, Vive is looking to grow the VR ecosystem to enhance multiplayer gaming and allow Viveport users to match with both Steam and Oculus players.

    In addition, executives from Viveport shared that the platform has grown 3x since last year in content, revenue and users. This year, we’re doubling down on our subscription model with Viveport Infinity launching April 2nd. Members will gain unlimited access to Viveport’s subscription library of over 600 titles for $12.99/month or $99/year. To further support the developer community, Viveport is increasing developer net revenue share to 80/20 through 2019 for all titles in Infinity.

    Vive also showcased some future concepts that the team is exploring from CloudVR to new methods to track facial expressions. For more information on our toolsets and SDKs talked about today, head to our developer forums and blog.

    If you’re attending GDC this year, make sure to check out the VR Play Area, in the Center Hall Wednesday through Friday to get hands on demos with Vive’s newest hardware and partner experiences, including:

    • Vive Sync from HTC VIVE/2 Bears
    • Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl from Vertigo Games and Vive Studios
    • Audica from Harmonix
    • I Expect You To Die from Shell Games
    • Hotel Transylvania Popstic from Specular Theory
    • Project Ghost for Project Ghost Studios
    • TribeXR DJ School from Tribe X
    • Ovation from Ovation VR
    • Mercenary from KukrGame
    • Budget Cuts from Neat Corporation
    • Ancients from Immersion

    Website: LINK

  • VIVEPORT Infinity to Offer Unlimited Gaming for $12.99 a Month Starting April 2nd

    VIVEPORT Infinity to Offer Unlimited Gaming for $12.99 a Month Starting April 2nd

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    VIVEPORT Increases Developer Net Revenue Share to 80/20 Through 2019

    Today, VIVEPORTTM announced that Viveport Infinity, the first unlimited VR subscription service, launching on April 2nd, will be available for $12.99 a month or $99 a year. In the largest upgrade to the platform yet, Viveport Infinity members will gain unrestricted access to the service’s library of over 600 apps and games in addition to exclusive membership benefits such as the revamped Viveport Video application. Current members, including those with pre-paid subscriptions, and new members who sign up before April 2nd, will keep their current price through the end of 2019.

    Viveport Infinity offers a diverse library of popular and indie VR titles. At just $12.99 a month or less with a prepaid annual subscription, members can save thousands of dollars on top-quality content while aiding them in the discovery of hidden gems throughout the service. Popular titles, such as Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs, have timed their launch in Subscription to coincide with their global release, giving members optimal choice and affordability when it comes to trailling new content in Viveport’s Subscription service. New Viveport customers can sign up anytime for a free 2-week membership to experience unlimited gaming with Viveport Infinity.

    “We have built a new model for VR that shines a light on the great library of VR content this industry has developed and gives users a reason to spend more time in headset than ever before,” said Rikard Steiber, President of Viveport. “At the same time, we’re increasing developer reach and potential revenue as more developers can monetize a single Infinity user. We believe this model matches how consumers want to experience VR”

    Viveport Infinity will be available to VIVE and Oculus Rift owners. For compatible titles, Viveport Infinity will also travel with members to any standalone headset built on VIVE’s WAVE platform. This hardware agnostic and cross-platform approach is bringing the service to a whole new category of VR devices while broadening a developer’s reach and audience pool.

    “Through Viveport’s subscription service, we’ve been able to increase our player pool and build a bigger community around The Wizards,” said Paweł Gajda, Head of Marketing and Publishing, Carbon Studios. “Viveport Subscription has become a significant part of our revenue and we can’t wait to connect with even more players though Infinity.”

    To further support Viveport Infinity developers, Viveport is increasing the developer’s share of revenue earned to 80/20 up from 70/30. Running from April 1st through the end of 2019, this increase in profits applies to all titles in Viveport Infinity. In addition, with a consumer’s unlimited access to content, more developers can monetize a single member with Viveport Infinity, increasing potential revenue for a developer.

    Membership Promotions

    All Viveport Infinity members will enjoy exclusive perks such as weekend deals on select titles, free title giveaways, and monthly coupons. Starting April 2nd, members will automatically receive a 10% coupon at the beginning of every month to spend on any Viveport store purchase. Viveport will also hold a store-wide sale on over 100 titles to celebrate the launch of Infinity from April 2nd – April 7th.

    New members can start their free trial today to lock in the current $8.99 price before Viveport Infinity launches on April 2nd. In addition, all current monthly Viveport Subscribers and those with pre-paid Subscription bundles will also keep their current low price through 2019.

    Website: LINK

  • Hyperdeck Chooses VIVE For The Arcade of the Future

    Hyperdeck Chooses VIVE For The Arcade of the Future

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    With an attraction as grand as Hyperdeck, you need the right VR system to match.

    From left to right: Mike Bridgman, Sean Hennessey, Colin Schultz, and Jay Miller. Bridgman is the co-founder of MajorMega, the company behind a new VR attraction called the “Hyperdeck.” We met him at the 2018 IAAPA Expo in Orlando, FL where the Hyperdeck was first unveiled to great praise—one industry veteran dubbed it “the Void on steroids”

    What is the Hyperdeck?

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E47uIlcitiE]

    The Hyperdeck is a four-player VR ride with intense environmental simulation. It combines a full-motion platform, hurricane winds, instant heat, and interactive controllers to create an unparalleled immersive experience.

    Our debut experience is full of great examples: you feel real 75 MPH wind as you soar through a city in the open air; you feel the ground shake as you drop 100 feet onto a moving truck; you feel the truck suspension recoiling from explosions as you fend off killer AI cars; I could say more but I want to keep some surprises!

    Sounds intense! What about motion sickness?

    Well, I can safely say we have eliminated motion sickness with our custom system that moves the floor in real time with the game to simulate the proper g-forces on your body. We’re also able to amplify certain motions and do some other neat things that trick the brain into feeling something you’re not actually experiencing. It’s our secret sauce we’ve been developing for almost three years now. When you combine that with wind, vibration, and some other tricks, the level of immersion is incredible. So far, after thousands of players, we’ve had zero reports of motion sickness.

    What made you choose the VIVE Pro?

    We started with the original VIVE and loved everything about it. The deluxe head strap enabled us to quickly get players comfortable with a simple twist, the integrated headphones sounded great and simplified our setup, and the lighthouse tracking was perfect, even with four players in a small area.

    The VIVE Pro improved everything. On top of making a lighter and more comfortable design, the increased pixel density allowed us to do more with text and bring out more detail than ever in our games. And with the 2.0 SteamVR™ Tracking, we’re able to use four lighthouses to make sure every square inch of our play area is covered.

    The controllers look interesting—how did you arrive at that design?

    Well, we knew early on that people would lose their balance if we didn’t provide some kind of railing for stabilization—the idea to make that a controller was obvious from the start. My partner Sean Hennessey “MacGyvered” the first “Hardware Store” version from threaded steel pipe. We attached VIVE Controllers and a VIVE Tracker to it and it ended up working really well; people could stabilize themselves, but also feel like they were holding onto this supermassive object.

    The Hyperdeck controller boasts a full-motion platform, hurricane winds, instant heat, and interactive controllers. VR doesn’t get more immersive than this

    Our latest controller is jam-packed with tech. Each will automatically adjust height to fit the player, powerful recoil and vibration provide intense feedback, dynamic tension allows us to simulate a change in weight—switching from a machine gun to rocket launcher, for instance—and finally, hand sensors allow us to stop the motion floor if a player were to let go.

    And the iPads mounted outside the Hyperdeck, are they for interacting somehow?

    Yes precisely, our “Spectator Play” feature allows people standing outside the Hyperdeck to interact with the players in the game. They have the ability to target a specific player and create helpful or hurtful situations. It’s great for people waiting in line, or the person that couldn’t play in VR but still wants to take part in the experience.

    Can you tell us more about your launch title?

    The game is called H.A.I.R., which stands for Hoopers Artificial Intelligence Research. It tells the story of Harold Hooper, a washed up 80s rock star. To combat writer’s block, he invents a super powerful A.I. to write the ultimate metal riff, but when he fuses it with his body and releases it out of his lab…well you’ll have to see what happens. I can tell you it’s totally metal!

    Sounds fun! What does the future look like for MajorMega and the Hyperdeck?

    We’re currently in negotiations with a theme park, some family entertainment centers, and the largest athletic center in North America! We’re also working with some major brands to create custom experiences on a level they’ve never done before.

    We truly believe the Hyperdeck is the “arcade of the future” and we want to see one in every major city (and town!) in the U.S. and beyond.

    For more information visit HyperdeckVR.com

    Website: LINK

  • VIVE X company, Mindesk, secures $900k to bring CAD designers into Virtual Reality

    VIVE X company, Mindesk, secures $900k to bring CAD designers into Virtual Reality

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    Following the graduation from VIVE X, HTC VIVE’s global VR/AR accelerator, Mindesk has moved its HQ to San Francisco and will continue to develop VR software in Italy and the US. The company secured $900k seed round from HTC VIVE, Barcamper Ventures, A11 Venture and Invitalia Ventures.

    “We’re excited to see the success and progress Mindesk has made since graduating from the second batch of Vive X companies,” said Marc Metis, Vice President, HTC VIVE. “Vive sees virtual reality having a tremendous impact on the AEC industry and we will continue to invest in companies like Mindesk who are pushing the industry forward.”

    Mindesk, a startup founded in 2015 in Bari (Italy), created a platform for real-time CAD collaboration, enabling multiple users to review, create and edit 3D CAD models immersed in Virtual Reality. Mindesk has already published its solution for McNeel Rhinoceros and Grasshopper and soon will publish the one for Dassault SolidWorks.

    “We are proud of the Italian excellence exhibited by Mindesk. HTC’s investment is evidence of the quality team behind Mindesk and their ability to shape the future of the global VR industry” added Sergio Buonanno, CEO of Invitalia Ventures.

    We asked a few questions to Gabriele Sorrento, CEO and co-founder:

    What does Mindesk do?

    Mindesk’s product is a plug-in for CAD software like McNeel Rhinoceros and Grasshopper. Once installed, it allows users to quickly jump in VR to visualize, create and edit 3D CAD projects in their original format.

    We followed up on the desire of designers for a real-time VR design platform. Tired of spending hours exporting their CAD model to third parties’ game engines, we made it possible to jump right in VR in just a click with no model preparation or export involved. Our customers are active predominantly in the fields of architecture, ship design, industrial product design and creative arts, all who have tight deadlines and no time to waste in tech frictions.

    Why is virtual reality relevant to designers?

    Previously working as an architect, I would spend hours making physical prototypes of my designs to show clients or studio partners. However, right after these meetings, I would end up throwing the prototypes away as they were no longer needed or up to date. The costs associated with this wasteful and time-consuming workflow is the reason more designers are now turning to VR for reviews.

    In addition, virtual reality has the ability to make design reviews more productive and engaging for designers and their clients. Mindesk’s VR platform keeps a live link between VR and CAD, enabling users to experience and edit a project in the design phase by fully immersing themselves in the virtual environment. Designers can modify a model in real-time while their client is in VR and even enables clients to make their own edits in headset. Mindesk’s approach to this process facilitates a more collaborative partnership between designer and client.

    This level of engagement and communication benefits the design process itself by making it less prone to errors. With Mindesk, we’ve observed that clients are more likely to leave a review session with the feeling that their message has been received while designers know their work has been fully understood and accepted.

    So, is Mindesk a design review platform?

    With Mindesk, customers can do much more than just design reviews.

    An Australian sculptor used Mindesk’s VR modeling tools to shape a steel sculpture while an architecture firm in the Bay Area is combining Mindesk with Grasshopper (a computational plugin for Rhino) to monitor real-time information and simulation analysis results every time their 3D model changes. Another company is using VR to display a point cloud that is then traced directly in the space. When compared to tracing a model using a traditional mouse on a 2D monitor, Mindesk has made reverse engineering an easier and more intuitive process for this customer.

    There are several workflows that users can implement by combining Mindesk with different CAD software and related plugins. We keep our products as flexible as possible in order to meet our customer’s diverse use cases.

    How did it all start? What’s the road ahead?

    It all started in 2014 – I had been using CAD software for many years and was frustrated with the way I was forced to design 3D objects on 2D surfaces such as a monitor and keyboard/mouse. With modern VR headsets just blossoming, I thought it was the right time to start developing a solution to improve the lives of CAD professionals. From then onward it’s been quite a ride. Mindesk now has a couple of products on the market: one for Rhinoceros and one for Grasshopper, with another for SolidWorks set to launch soon.

    Last November we participated in Autodesk University, where we unveiled our forthcoming integration with Unreal Editor in partnership with Epic Games. This integration will add photorealism to 3D CAD modeling, creating the ultimate design environment for AEC.

    Future product offerings will scale on other CAD software including SolidWorks, a parametric CAD used extensively in mechanical engineering. Attendees who tried it at SolidWorksWorld 2019 in Dallas found the solution intuitive and attractive for the beneficial impact it could have on their businesses. We collected the application of interested designers and launched a closed beta at the end of February.

    How does the market for such products look like?

    The VR/AR market is burgeoning, going from $4.5Bn in 2017 to more than $200Bn by 2026, at a staggering CAGR above 50%. Last year VR hardware and software had the lion’s share compared to AR, 92% vs 8%. More than half of this market was represented by enterprise applications.

    We’re excited to be active in the VR B2B software market. VR can be a game-changing productivity solution for many companies while the enterprise is proving to be some of the earliest adopters of new technologies.

    How has HTC VIVE helped you along the way?

    We were lucky enough to be chosen for the second batch of the Vive X acceleration program in San Francisco in 2017. Needless to say, it has been an incredible experience. I’ve met some terrific startups and built a network that is proving to be useful even a few years in. I can say without a doubt that participating in Vive X has greatly increased our chance of success. The recent convertible note by HTC has also been particularly helpful as cash and trust are the most appreciated forms of support for an early stage startup.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak9bwFB8Uxs]

    Website: LINK

  • Vive Studios and Vertigo Games Announce “Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl”, A Competitive Card-Battler Built for VR

    Vive Studios and Vertigo Games Announce “Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl”, A Competitive Card-Battler Built for VR

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Vive Studios and Vertigo Games today announce Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl, a highly competitive, cross-platform multiplayer VR card-battler from the creators of Arizona Sunshine. For the first time, PC VR and standalone VR players will join together as the game launches with full cross-platform support for major VR platforms on April 2, 2019.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHFb997kPmM]

    From the creators of Arizona Sunshine, set in the Skyworld universe, Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl is an action-packed, real-time multiplayer card-battler that will turn best friends into foes, built exclusively for VR. Unlock, collect and upgrade dozens of cards to build a powerful deck, and watch your cards come to life as you cast spells and summon forces to wipe your enemy off the map. Join a clan, take on opponents from around the globe in regular online tournaments, and claim your place on the global leaderboards. This is no friendly battle… this is war!

    “Vertigo Games and Vive Studios have delivered on the VR industry’s desire for a gripping multiplayer game where players can battle friends regardless of their different VR hardware,” said Joel Breton, Vice President, Vive Studios. “We are very excited to be partnering with Vertigo Games to bring Skyworld Kingdom Brawl to the entire VR community.”

    “We set out to deliver a consistent, uncompromising cross-platform experience across PC VR and standalone VR hardware with Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl and it’s exciting to see how far we’ve been able to push the devices; from drawing massive numbers of units on screen to delivering awesome combat effects,” said Trevor Blom, Lead Tech at Vertigo Studios.

    For those brave enough to set foot in its merciless VR battlegrounds, Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl is headed to GDC San Francisco next month where its highly competitive gameplay will debut in a cross-platform multiplayer hands-on demo on Vive Pro and the Vive Focus with dual 6 degrees of freedom (6dof) controllers in the VR Play Area.

    To celebrate today’s reveal of Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl, Vertigo Games launches the original Skyworld VR wargame into Viveport Subscription today.

    Skyworld: Kingdom Brawl will launch for HTC Vive (Pro), HTC Vive Focus, Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality headsets on April 2, 2019, followed by a Vive Focus Plus launch later this year.

    Website: LINK

  • HTC VIVE Partners with the American Museum of Natural History

    HTC VIVE Partners with the American Museum of Natural History

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    VIVE Arts continues to lead the charge in bringing the public closer to humanity’s artistic creation and cultural heritage through VR. Today, we’re excited to announce our collaboration with the American Museum of Natural History, one of the world’s preeminent scientific, cultural and educational institutions, on their new T. rex: The Ultimate Predator exhibit.

    The exhibition, which will be open to the public from March 11, 2019, to August 9, 2020, features the museum’s first multiplayer, interactive VR experience in addition to life-sized reconstructions of T. rex at various life stages—including the most scientifically accurate representation of T. rex to date, fossils and casts, large-scale projections and hands-on interactives to tell the amazing story of the iconic dinosaur.

    T rex: The Ultimate Predator is the first major exhibition of the American Museum of Natural History’s 150th-anniversary celebration. The first T. rex skeleton was discovered in 1902 by the Museum’s legendary fossil hunter, Barnum Brown, and the Museum boasts one of the few original specimens of T. rex on public display in the Hall of Saurischian Dinosaurs. With more than 120 years of dinosaur research and discovery, the Museum continues to be a leader in this field. In collaboration with HTC VIVE, the Museum adds a new dimension to this legacy with the exhibition’s virtual reality experience, T. rex: Skeleton Crew.

    Developed in collaboration with the Museum’s Science Visualization team, VIVE Studios (VIVE’s premium content development and publishing initiative) and Immersion, this VR experience places up to three visitors within a space similar to the Museum’s Hall of Saurischian Dinosaurs, where they will work together to help build a T. rex skeleton bone by bone. Once the full dinosaur is complete, players will witness a realistic T. rex come to life before their eyes. As the columns of the setting dissolve into trees, the Hall will transform into the marshland that is now Montana, the T.rex’s home 66 million years ago.

    “Through VR, visitors can engage with the exhibit in an exciting, in-depth way that enriches their knowledge and leaves a lasting memory for years to come,” said Chris Chin, Executive Director of Education VR Content, HTC VIVE. “VIVE is proud to partner with the American Museum of Natural History to harness the power of premium VR bringing visitors closer to the scale, majesty, and awesomeness of T. rex like never before.”

    “American Museum of Natural History is one of the world’s most innovative and forward-thinking museums. The VIVE team worked closely with the Museum’s paleontologists and science visualization team to create an interactive and scientifically accurate representation of T.Rex based on the latest research,” said Victoria Chang, Director of VIVE Arts. “We are excited to observe the educational impact of this remarkably engaging VR project as it is experienced during the exhibition and soon globally through VIVEPORT.”

    “Virtual reality is a magical realm in which our human perceptions of time and space are suspended,” said Vivian Trakinski, the Museum’s director of science visualization. “In virtual reality, nothing is too small, too big, too fast, too slow, too distant, or too long ago to be appreciated. We hope this technology will let our visitors experience the most fantastic and inaccessible realms of nature.”

    HTC VIVE is proud to be the virtual reality partner of leading arts and cultural institutions such as the American Museum of Natural History, Tate Modern and Taiwan’s National Palace Museum. Through VIVE Arts, virtual reality is transforming the way art and culture are experienced around the world.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y35HlzdcEgE?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque&w=730&h=411]

    Stay tuned for more information as the home version of T. rex: Skeleton Crew launches this summer on VIVEPORT.

    Website: LINK