Category: bigscreen vr

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Watch Bigscreen’s CEO Talk With Ernest Cline About Ready Player Two

Author Ernest Cline is joining Bigscreen CEO Darshan Shankar for a conversation to promote his new book, Ready Player Two.

The sequel is due out on November 24th after 2011’s Ready Player One ignited imaginations with its vision of an 80’s-inspired future taken over by VR. The movie version, of course, came out in 2018 directed by Steven Spielberg. The Q&A session with Cline and Shankar will be streamed in Bigscreen on December 5th at 5 pm Pacific. According to Bigscreen, the event will be free to anyone with the Bigscreen application and a supported VR headset.

“Bigscreen is by far my favorite VR application and it’s also the one I’ve used the most this past year,” Cline said in a prepared statement. “I get together with my friends inside Bigscreen at least once a week to hang out, watch movies, and play games together, even though we’re scattered across the country.  I’m so grateful to Darshan and his team for turning something from my imagination into a reality, and for doing it decades before I thought it would be possible.”

ready player two bigscreenWe’re interested to check out the new book and see how it stacks up to the original. There’s even been talk of a prequel as well that would explore the founding of the virtual Oasis that’s central to the story. It’ll be a little different reading the sequel in 2020, though, with VR headsets like Oculus Quest 2, HP Reverb G2, and Valve Index in homes around the world transporting people to virtual worlds.

Are you planning to give the book a read? Let us know in the comments.

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‘Bigscreen’ Expands Platform for Creators with New Green Screen Environment

Bigscreen, the social screen-sharing app for VR, is striding into new territory with its new green screen environment, which aims to let creators repurpose their avatars for anything from Zoom chats to YouTube videos.

The platform has a number of theater environments that are great for chatting, viewing videos and playing games; since there’s no user-generated environments, it can’t really be used for much else though.

Now you’ll be able to replace your background with anything you like, opening Bigscreen’s possibilities beyond its use as a video-viewing social app.

Using Bigscreen’s Green Screen

Virtual environments make everything easier from a setup standpoint: you won’t need a physical green screen, web cam, or adequate lighting—that’s all taken care of in-software.

Firstly, the new green screen environment can only practically be used on PC VR headsets. This is because Bigscreen’s third-person ‘Selfie Stick’ and ‘Streamer Cam’ capture tools are only available for SteamVR-compatible headsets and Quest 2 via Link. The original Quest is said to receive the Selfie Stick tool in the future.

Bigscreen supports Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index, all Windows VR headsets, Oculus Quest and Oculus Go. Find out how to download it for free here.

In addition to the obvious requirement of a SteamVR headset and VR-ready PC, you will also need a third-party capture tool like OBS, which is a free desktop recording tool with native chroma key software built in. There’s a quick tutorial from Elgato on how to use the chroma key function on OBS if you need help setting it up.

Make sure to have the latest update installed on Bigscreen, and go to the ‘Green Screen’ options under the ‘My Room’ tab, which is in the ‘Environments’ section. Set up either a selfie stick or streamer cam and start recording. And there you have it: your avatar superimposed on any background you like.

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Bigscreen Update Adds Green Screen, Remote Desktop Beta Coming Soon

Bigscreen has added a green screen environment in its latest update, which opens many doors for content creators and has endless creative potential.

The update will be most useful on PC VR headsets (and Quest running via Link) where it can be paired with the selfie stick and the streamer camera tools for broadcasting or recording purposes. When using the streamer or selfie cameras in the green screen environment, users will be able to use broadcasting or editing software on a PC to key out the background and place themselves wherever they like.

This opens up heaps of possibilities for content creation — streamers will be able to broadcast using their Bigscreen avatar placed against a custom virtual environment, for example. You can check out lots more examples in the video embedded above.

The selfie and streamer cameras are not available on Quest, so the green screen environment is somewhat useless on those headsets for now. That being said, Bigscreen have said they want to add a selfie stick camera to Quest in the future.

Bigscreen says this update is the first of a couple that will focus on remote work and virtual office capabilities. Within the next 2 months, it also plans to launch a beta for a remote desktop feature. Similar to other comparable remote desktop apps, it will allow you to stream your desktop and control it on from within VR on standalone headsets like Oculus Quest. The feature will have ultra low latency (10-15ms) when streaming to Quest, according to Bigscreen.

The feature will also have social capabilities, with other users being able to see others’ desktop streams and collaborate from within VR. This will all be part of a big ‘Quest 2’ update, which the developers say is coming soon.

The green screen update is available now for Bigscreen.

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Dragon Ball Movies And 30+ Paramount Titles Coming To Bigscreen

The Bigscreen team has shared some updates on new content and features coming to the platform in the next month, including the addition of three Dragon Ball movies.

On Sunday, September 12, the three latest Dragon Ball anime movies will premiere in Bigscreen:

  • Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods — 10am PT
  • Dragon Ball Z: Ressurection ‘F’f — 3pm PT
  • Dragon Ball Super: Broly — 7pm PT

In addition to the premiere screenings, the movies will be available to rent on-demand from Bigscreen’s movie rental catalog. The Dragon Ball films will be available for users in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand for $3.99 each.

There’s also a tie-in Dragon Ball contest with some tickets to the Dragon Ball screenings up for grabs. To win, users simply need to find all seven Dragon Balls in the mini game posted to the Bigscreen Twitter and Facebook pages at 8am PT on September 2. The first to complete the game and the person to complete it the fastest (on their first attempt only) will win a free ticket to the screening.

However the Dragon Ball movies aren’t the only titles being added to the rental catalog — Bigscreen is expanding its partnership with Paramount Pictures and adding over 30 new movies available as on-demand rentals. This includes the legendary Godfather trilogy and the Mission Impossible series, as well as Jackass 3D, which will be the first 3D movie to premiere in the United Kingdom.

The team will also launch an accessibility update, adding English Closed Captions for the deaf and hard of hearing community. Bigscreen is also currently developing support for hand tracking on the Oculus Quest, which the team hopes will allow users to communicate in ASL (American Sign Language) while using Bigscreen.

Just last week, Bigscreen added DLNA support, allowing users to remotely stream video and audio content from their media server into the app.

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Bigscreen Video Player Adds DLNA Support For Wireless Streaming

A new update for Bigscreen is available now, adding wireless video and audio playback through DLNA protocol support. Plus, an unreleased blockbuster movie is set to make a simultaneous debut across Bigscreen, physical cinemas and digital platforms.

Back in June, the addition of a video player to Bigscreen was a welcome addition for many users, especially on Quest. It allowed users to play video files natively in the app without streaming their entire desktop view. However, this feature only supported playing files stored on your device, but this new update adds DLNA protocol support, allowing for wireless streaming.

Users with a DLNA media server (or those using one with optional DLNA support, such as Plex) should now be able to access all their files in Bigscreen when connected to the same network as the server. This is of particular interest to Quest users, as it means they won’t have to transfer potentially large video files onto the Quest’s limited storage in order to watch them in Bigscreen.

Additionally, Bigscreen announced that a new movie studio with “thousands of 2D and 3D movies” will be partnering with Bigscreen soon. Even more exciting news is that an unreleased blockbuster movie will be available (presumably for a paid fee) in Bigscreen on the same day it becomes available in theaters and on other digital platforms. With many cinemas around the world closed, it’s nice to see Bigscreen acknowledged as a viable release platform alongside traditional VOD and physical options.

Bigscreen will also roll out a friends system in the coming months, as well as remote desktop support (coming out of beta) for ultra low-latency PC to Quest streaming. There’s also new environments, avatars and a paid membership plan on the way.

The Bigscreen’s DLNA update is available now.

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‘Bigscreen’ Now Lets You Watch Your Own Video Files on All Supported Platforms

Bigscreen today released an update that brings to the social VR viewing platform a video player that lets you watch your own video files. Yes, even on Oculus Quest.

Bigscreen’s new video player lets you watch your own files alone, or with friends—provided they have the same file stored on their local machine. If your friends do happen to have the same file, Bigscreen automatically syncs everyone in the room so you can watch it together.

Exactly how you obtain those files is up to you; the new update is only a video player and not a file sharing service per se.

Bigscreen’s video player supports both 2D and 3D movies (side-by-side and over-under), and is said to support most of the common file types. At the time of this writing, the video player doesn’t support 180/360 content, or DLNA/Plex, although it’s currently being considered for a future update.

You’ll find the video player there starting today; it works cross-platform across all supported headsets, including Oculus Quest, Oculus Rift, Oculus Go, HTC Vive, and all SteamVR-compatible headsets.

The social VR platform already has robust support for screen sharing, which is accomplished by mirroring the desktop of a host user to anyone in the room. With the recent inclusion of more direct streaming services, which includes both TV and movies, Bigscreen offered up a big slice of functionality to users on standalone headsets like Quest or Go, as well as to users without access to their own premium streaming services like Netflix or Hulu.

SEE ALSO
'Bigscreen' Brings On-Demand Movies in New 'Movies & Events' Update

Today’s update, while offering a comparatively basic feature, actually puts Bigscreen in a better position to not only compete as a virtual desktop solution (more than it already is), but also to further fill the gaps that platform holders are leaving with their own lackluster native offerings.

There is another side to it, although it remains to be seen whether the worry is founded in reality or if it’s simple speculation at this point—anyway, insert grain of salt here. Bigscreen’s continued deals with movie studios and streaming services may put it in the position at some point in the future to somehow limit the screensharing aspect of its business on PC platform, as individual users can easily stream more movies than they could ever license for their paid (and free) movie viewings. The video player, for ill or good, may be a way for Bigscreen PC VR users to have their cake and eat it too should that particular shoe ever drop—putting the onus on the individual to share files instead of simply mirroring their monitor for all to freely view. Again, that’s a small slice of speculation for the old brainpan.

In any case, the next set of features on the agenda definitely sound exciting: a Bigscreen Friends system, more new environments, a redesigned avatar system, built-in YouTube and TV channels into rooms, and more movie studio partnerships to host 3D movie screenings.

Bigscreen supports Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index, all Windows VR headsets, Oculus Quest and Oculus Go. Find out how to download it for free here.

The post ‘Bigscreen’ Now Lets You Watch Your Own Video Files on All Supported Platforms appeared first on Road to VR.

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Bigscreen Update Adds Videoplayer For Native Video File Playback

A new Bigscreen update launching today adds the capability to play local video files stored on a device in Bigscreen, even when offline. The feature also supports synchronized multi-user online viewing sessions, provided each user has the same video file stored on their own device.

Bigscreen has always been one of the leading applications for watching movies and videos in VR, with various environments and online multi-user capability. Bigscreen currently allows users to stream and view their entire Windows desktop in VR, including any videos or applications running on the computer. The app also offers ticketed official movie broadcasts in their virtual cinemas, which is run in participation with major movie studios.

However, this new videoplayer feature is slightly different and designed with mobile headsets like the Oculus Quest in mind. It allows users to pull up any video file, stored locally on the headset itself, to watch in Bigscreeen. Even if the user is offline, Bigscreen can be used to watch local video files, transferred onto the Quest from a computer, in any of the various environments on offer. The feature supports many video file formats and codecs, even including 3D video files.

There’s also online capabilities, allowing you and your friend to start an online session and watch a synchronized version of the same video, just like you would in any other Bigscreen experience. However, to do so, each participating user will need to have the same video file stored locally on their own device — the videoplayer doesn’t support streaming or sharing the file.

You’ll also be able to use the videoplayer feature in conjunction with other Bigscreen features, like desktop screensharing. So, on PC VR, you can now have a local video file playing in an environment while also using the desktop screenshare feature at the same time for other things.

The Bigscreen Videoplayer update is free and launches today.

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‘Bigscreen’ Expands International Availability of On-Demand Anime Films

Bigscreen, the social VR viewing platform, launched on-demand 2D and 3D video late last month. Shortly afterwards, the studio announced it had partnered with Sony Picture’s anime distribution company Funimation to bring some of the biggest names in anime to its rapidly expanding on-demand service. Now those films can be viewed in some regions outside of the US.

Update (May 15th, 2020): BIgscreen says that, in partnership with Funimation, it’s expanding the international availability of its 30+ anime films, which in addition to the US now includes Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.

The original article announcing the 30+ anime films and live showings follows below:

Original Article (April 29th, 2020): Bigscreen founder and CEO Darshan Shankar tells Road to VR that with Friday’s release of on-demand video, that the platform successfully broke its all-time revenue record.

“This was a massive change to how Bigscreen works,” Shankar says. “People that attended our inaugural movie events over the weekend were able to experience many packed cinema rooms. I was shocked to see that most people stayed all the way until the credits.”

Now with Funimation involved, Bigscreen is able to show 30+ anime films to Bigscreen, including popular hits Akira, My Hero Academia: Two Heroes, and Attack on Titan. Check out the full list below.

Bigscreen now boasts a catalog of dozens of 2D and 3D films available for on-demand viewing, which includes the ability to control playback like you would any streaming service. The new on-demand system gives you 48 hours to finish your selected movie once you’ve started it, and will be available in up to 10 countries starting from $4 per film. Check out Bigscreen’s catalog of movies here for more.

And to inaugurate the new glut of on-demand anime offerings, the platform is holding live film screenings that begin on May 1st, which will be broadcast live on a pay-per-view basis at 6PM PT (local time here) at the cost of $4 per ticket.

As opposed to on-demand content, these live screening events are conducted like physical movie theaters, with specific starting and ending times. Theater space is technically unlimited though, with infinite screens hosting up to eight users for each theater, making it easy to pop in for a showing without having to queue.

Anime Movie Event Screenings

  • May 1: Your Name
  • May 8: My Hero Academia: Two Heroes
  • May 15: Akira
  • May 21: The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya
  • May 29: The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
  • June 5: Sword of the Stranger
  • June 12: I Am A Hero

Anime Movies On-Demand in Bigscreen

  • Your Name
  • Planetarian: Storyteller of the Stars
  • The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya Movie
  • The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
  • Steins Gate Movie
  • Strike Witches Movie
  • Fairy Tail Dragon Cry Movie
  • Fairy Tail the Movie: Phoenix Priestess
  • Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie
  • Akira
  • Attack on Titan Part 1
  • Attack on Titan Part 2
  • Shin Godzilla
  • I Am A Hero
  • Parasyte Part 1
  • Parasyte Part 2
  • My Hero Academia: Two Heroes
  • Boy and the Beast
  • Triguns Badland Rumble
  • Death Note: Light Up the New World
  • Death Note
  • Death Note: The Last Name
  • Psycho-Pass: The Movie
  • Eden of the East: Air Communication
  • Eden of the East: King of Eden
  • Eden of the East: Paradise Lost
  • Assassination Classroom The Movie: 365 Days’ Time
  • Garo: Divine Flame
  • Black Butler: Book of the Atlantic
  • Sword of the Stranger
  • The School Idol Movie: Over the Rainbow

The post ‘Bigscreen’ Expands International Availability of On-Demand Anime Films appeared first on Road to VR.

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‘Bigscreen’ Brings On-Demand Movies in New ‘Movies & Events’ Update

Bigscreen, the social VR viewing platform, introduced paid movies late last year so you could buy a ticket to join people in watching a number of 2D and 3D films at set times, working more or less like a physical movie theater. Although you’ll still be able to do that through special, one-time events, Bigscreen is adding on-demand movie viewing to the list today, letting you watch its catalog of films whenever you want.

Bigscreen’s ‘Movies & Events’ update launches today, effectively replacing the ‘Bigscreen Cinema’ update from December 2019, which brought to the platform for the first time weekly films accessible at continuous, fixed time slots.

A catalog of dozens of 2D and 3D films will now be available on-demand, which includes the ability to control playback like you would any streaming service. The new on-demand system gives you 48 hours to finish your selected movie once you’ve started it, and will be available in up to 10 countries starting from $3.99 per film. Check out Bigscreen’s catalog of movies here for more.

For now, rental theaters are private, however the studio says you’ll soon be able to host your own public movie screening too, provided everyone pays their own individual rental fee.

 

Also new the the platform is the new Events menu, which includes a list of events, live countdown timers, and number of people interested in the event. These one-time only events let you watch things such as special movie showings, rocket launches, sports events, and other live streams with friends and anyone else on the platform. Although some events are free, Bigscreen says movie events require paid tickets, which start at $3.99 and vary by country.

SEE ALSO
'Bigscreen' Brings 50+ Free Steaming TV Channels to Social VR Viewing Platform

Bigscreen’s unique appeal is its ability to mirror a user’s desktop and share it with other people, effectively letting anyone throw their own viewing (or gaming) party. This is well and good for your standard set of SteamVR-compatible headsets, which have access to a desktop in the first place, however Oculus Quest and Go users have to jump through a few hoops first to get that particular functionality to work, making the new on-demand video function that much more important.

Notably, Oculus shut down its own video purchase and rental service in 2018 due to that lack of consistent revenue, so we’re hoping that with the new rental service Bigscreen can crack the code to make a healthy and vibrant service that doesn’t fall to the wayside. Since last July all users have been able to watch select live TV channels for free, although the on-demand rental service puts the company in a good position to understand where its users are spending their time, and more importantly, their money.

Bigscreen supports Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index, all Windows VR headsets, Oculus Quest and Oculus Go. Find out how to download it for free here.

The post ‘Bigscreen’ Brings On-Demand Movies in New ‘Movies & Events’ Update appeared first on Road to VR.

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The Best Media Apps Available On The Oculus Quest

The Oculus Quest is one of the hottest VR headsets on the market right now. While there’s a great selection of games for the Quest, there’s also a bunch of media apps that are perfect for when you want to kick back and watch something in VR.

Here are the best VR media apps available on the Oculus Store for the Quest.

YouTube VR

youtube vr

YouTube VR serves two purposes — you can watch normal YouTube content in a VR environment and you can also watch a plethora of 360 video content available on YouTube as well. While 360 degree video content is technically watchable on a standard YouTube browser or mobile app, VR is definitely the best option, so get on it.

Netflix VR

oculus quest netflix vr

Netflix is probably the biggest player in the streaming game and they have a nice accompanying VR app for your Oculus Quest. Netflix VR will place you in a small cozy cabin where you can enjoy your regular selection of Netflix content on a virtual TV screen that’s probably bigger than the one you own in real life.

Bigscreen

Bigscreen Cinema Arnold

Bigscreen is all about cinemas and social VR. Upon launching Bigscreen, you’ll be able to join a bunch of different rooms and cinemas types providing both free and paid content. Bigscreen Cinema – a service that offers paid tickets to screenings of popular movies — is one of the newer additions to the app. The movies are often shown in 3D and the selection changes weekly, with occasional special screenings such as the Valentine’s Day Titanic screening.

In addition to the official rooms, you can join rooms hosted by other Bigscreen users, which will be displaying content chosen by the host. Plus, you’re able to host your own rooms for you and your friends to join. Using a Bigscreen desktop app, you can even stream your computer display into those rooms while you hang out – it’s a versatile app, to say the least.

Skybox VR

skybox vr oculus quest media

Skybox VR is like Bigscreen but without the social element. It offers a bunch of different cinemas and environments for you to watch content in. You can load files that are stored locally on your Quest or stream content from your a DLNA server on your own network.

Oculus Venues

oculus venues seat screenshot

Oculus Venues is a Facebook app where you can watch a bunch of different events, from music concerts to sports to stand up comedy and more, as they happen live. The catch is that you have to tune in live — you won’t be able to rewatch any Venues content later. Like Bigscreen, you can watch with people around you in a social VR setting or you can opt to watch solo. We’ve had fun with venues in the past, watching some pretty high profile artists like Billie Eilish perform live. If you download the Venues app, you’ll be able see a schedule of the upcoming streamed events and their broadcast times.

Next VR

NBA VR Venues NextVR

Similar to Oculus Venues, NextVR has a bunch of live content that you can watch in VR, as if you’re really there. However, Next VR doesn’t incorporate any social elements and you’ll just be watching solo. That being said, some content is also presented in stereoscopic 3D, which really deepens the level of immersion. One of the biggest pulls of NextVR is their NBA content, with some matches allowing you to sit courtside and watch the action live in 3D!

Quill Theater

quill theatre quest

Late last year, Quill Theater released on the Oculus Quest, which allows you to view Quill content created on the Rift platform. The Quill creation tool is only available on Rift, not Quest, but allows users to make mini scenes, animations and movies. The creation tool allows creators to use some complex 6DoF animations and transitions between scenes, so there’s some great content to watch on the Quest. Quill Theater will present you with a rotating selection of creations to dive into and is definitely worth checking out if you want to see some awesome community media content that made in VR.

Those are our picks for best media apps available on the Oculus Quest? Are there any other apps you feel we should add to the list? Let us know in the comments.

The post The Best Media Apps Available On The Oculus Quest appeared first on UploadVR.