Orta - VIRTUAL REALITY: How to Experience and Create Amazing VR Content

Virtual Reality:

How to Experience and Create Amazing VR Content

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: What Virtual Reality Means in 2016

Chapter 2: Current Virtual Reality Devices

Chapter 3: Current Must-Have Virtual Reality Experiences

Chapter 4: Creating Virtual Reality Content

Chapter 5: The Future of Virtual Reality

Conclusion

Introduction

I want to thank you and congratulate you for downloading Virtual Reality: How to Experience and Create Amazing VR Content. This book contains all of the information you need to know on the current state of the virtual reality development scene as it stands at the beginning on 2016.

The virtual reality development space is poised to explode this year and the following chapters will provide you with the information you need to get in on the ground floor of your chosen virtual reality device.

Virtual reality is still an emerging technology so it is important to take all of the specifics discussed in the following chapters with a grain of salt as many of them are still subject to change. Likewise, until you know how your body responds to virtual experiences it is important to take things slow until you are sure you wont experience any negative effects. With that being said, have fund and enjoy the future!

Thanks again for downloading this book, I hope you enjoy it!

Copyright 2016 by Mauricio De la Orta - All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: What Virtual Reality Means in 2016

Despite its lackluster performance in the mid-90s, the appeal of virtual reality has always been obvious. Strap in, turn on, drop out, out of the city, world, even galaxy, all with the touch of a button. Despite being a technological construct, the promise of virtual reality has always been more of an organic prospect. Granted what is created is a technological space, but it is experienced in the organic environment in the mind.

The concept of virtual reality began being thrown around almost as soon as computing entered the relatively modern era of the 1950s. Technology was still light years from being able to produce anything but the crudest simulations of reality however and, with the notable exception of the United States government, virtual reality creation was on hold until the late 1980s when the personal computer craze first started. While this period also marked the creation of the first virtual reality arcade games, the technology was still not advanced enough to simulate anything remotely approaching realism.

Finally, the current round of virtual reality development began in earnest in 2010 when Oculus VR founder Palmer Luckey created his first prototype virtual reality headset. While this initial device only offered a view of two dimensional images, it offered a full 90-degree field of view, a range far greater than anything that had appeared before. The first demonstration he revealed allowed users to move through a cartoon version of Jerry Seinfelds apartment and while the graphics were basic it was fluid enough to spark a new wave of interest in virtual reality devices. While the technology still has some naysayers, the fact that Facebook purchased Oculus VR for two billion dollars in 2014 means that whatever happens the next few years will be full of devices trying to make virtual reality a reality for the average person.

While products including the Oculus Rift have so far only been available to the public for several years in the form of developer kit units, that hasnt stopped the marketplace from already releasing a number of products designed to enhance the virtual reality experience. These include products such as the Virtuix Omni which is an omnidirectional treadmill designed to be used for walking around in virtual environments or the Gloveone, a pair of haptic gloves that allow users to interact with virtual environments while also providing real-time feedback and lifelike touch sensations.

Not to be outdone, Google introduced Google Cardboard in 2014. While widely seen by the public as a joke, Google Cardboard headsets were designed by a pair of Google Engineers as a low-cost way to increase interest in development of additional virtual reality applications. While the idea was created by Google there is no official manufacture and several companies have taken it upon themselves to create the goggles which are available in a wide variety of styles and colors. When assembled, the Google Cardboard headset holds a smartphone while an application splits the signal before applying effects which generate a three-dimensional affect. In July of 2015 the company One Plus launched their product the OnePlus 2 with a virtual reality commercial which was compatible with Google Cardboard.

After years of hype and speculation 2016 does indeed seem to be the year that virtual reality hits the consumer market in a big way with the Oculus Rift launching in March to a high demand despite the relatively high $600 asking price. With the Valve-back HTC Vive and the Sony VR device for the PlayStation 4 launching later in the year. In addition to the big three, there are a number of other products being worked on by smaller teams which are sure to shake the space up as well.

Perhaps more compellingly, the Open Source Virtual Reality open-source community which connects likeminded companies interested in developing for a virtual space has added at least one new organization every day since its launch in early 2015 and already counts notable companies like Ubisoft and Intel among its ranks. This community is dedicated to the goal that there should be a realistic virtual reality experience for consumers at a wide variety of price points, not just for those who can afford a $600 Oculus Rift on top of a computer powerful enough to run it properly.

This in turn, the community believes, will allow for the broad-scale market penetration that virtual reality needs to not only survive but thrive in a way that it determines the future of digital design in a big way. Market penetration is key as the 3D craze of the early 10s showed, if enough people dont jump on the new technology at a fast enough rate then it is liable to die on the vine. Virtual reality designers seem to be learning from 3Ds mistakes however and are looking to engage with consumers in a wide variety of ways.