Something about the immersive nature of virtual reality (VR) seems to make it attractive to creators who have a slightly more psychedelic view of the world. From the neon-lit distortion of Rez Infinite, to the bizarre trippy world of Polybius, and some of the more esoteric creations in Tilt Brush. Another entry into this specific VR sub-genre is particle physics and fluid simulator Chroma Lab.
At its heart, Chroma Lab is a custom particle physics engine that uses the power of modern graphics cards to calculate the millions of forces that act upon particles in order to allow them to behave like a fluid. This engine is used to create a VR experience the is somewhat like an interactive version of old-school music visualisations such as those found in WinAmp.
The particles will react with background music, with most external music players being compatible with the application. The particles can be controlled with variety of settings, including some simple presets to get users started. There is a choice of different particle shaders and colour palettes available, along with other more advanced settings to play with, including the optional ‘lava lamp’, ‘Gravity’ and ‘Black hole’ modes. Time is also a controllable variable, with the option to freeze the simulation in place, or slow time to a crawl.
Chroma Lab is available on Steam for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift with Touch. It is currently available with a 10% launch discount, priced at £3.59 (GBP), compared to the usual price of £3.99.
Further information and updates can be found on the Steam store page.
VRFocus will bring you further news on Chroma Lab and other Steam VR titles as it becomes available.