Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – Augmented & Virtual Reality Confabulation

January 24, 2018

Steam & Mobile VR: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Expanded veröffentlicht

Gute Nachrichten für Fans des Harry Potter-Universums, denn die Expanded-Version von Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them ist inzwischen für Oculus Rift und HTC Vive auf Steam sowie für Samsung Gear VR im Oculus Store erhältlich.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them für PC und Mobile VR

Am 23. Januar veröffentlichten Framestore und Warner Bros. Pictures die erweiterte Version der 2016 erschienenen VR-Erfahrung Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them auf Steam und im Oculus Store. In der VR-Erfahrung dürfen Spieler zum Zauberstab greifen und selbst in die Rolle eines Magiers schlüpfen, um die Fantasy-Welt zu erforschen. Mit dem magischen Werkzeug in der Hand dürft ihr mit den fantastischen Tierwesen interagieren und diverse Zaubersprüche verwenden.

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Die Neuveröffentlichung soll laut Entwicklern eine optimierte und verbesserte Version des Vorgängers sein. So wurde beispielsweise stark an der Optik sowie den visuellen Effekten gearbeitet – besonders in der Version für die Gear VR. Zudem sollen mehr Inhalte für die Spieler bereitstehen. Dazu zählen mehr Bewegungsfreiheiten im Spiel, neue Umgebungen, neue zusätzliche Kreaturen und interaktive Rätsel. Außerdem wurden zusätzliche Charaktere wie Niffler, Occamy und Bowtruckles eingeführt.

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Jedoch gibt es einige Kritiken bezüglich der Umsetzung für HTC Vive und Oculus Rift, denn dabei handelt es sich lediglich um interaktive 360-Grad-Erfahrung mit fixer Kameraposition und ohne Roomscale-Tracking. Dies schadet trotz der wunderschönen Bilder nicht nur der Immersion, sondern kann beim Versuch, mehr von den Tierwesen zu erkunden, sogar zu leichtem Unwohlsein führen. Ob die Entwickler hier noch einmal nachbessern, bleibt zunächst abzuwarten.

Außerdem planen die Entwickler weiterhin eine Konsolenadaption für PlayStation VR (PSVR).

Eingefleischte Harry Potter-Fans und neugierige Besitzer einer VR-Brille können Phantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them für HTC Vive und Oculus Rift für 9,99 Euro auf Steam oder im Oculus Store (Rift | Gear VR) erwerben. Die mobile Version ist für 4,99 Euro erhältlich.

(Quellen: VR Focus | Video: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Youtube)

Der Beitrag Steam & Mobile VR: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Expanded veröffentlicht zuerst gesehen auf VR∙Nerds. VR·Nerds am Werk!

January 23, 2018

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them VR Experience Expanded for 2018 Release

For the launch of Google Daydream back in 2016, Framestore and Warner Bros. Pictures created a virtual reality (VR) experience based on the Harry Potter spin-off film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It was known back in November that a PlayStation VR version was in the works but today the companies have announced the upgraded 2018 edition, coming to PC and mobile head-mounted displays (HMDs).

Fantastic Beasts 2018 Edition

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them VR Experience has been expanded from its initial 2016 offering with Framestore adding more of an open-world gameplay style to include additional creatures, environments and interactive puzzles. New character additions include the Niffler, Occamy and Bowtruckle, to the already existing Erumpent, Thunderbird and Graphorn.

“With this project, we wanted to bring players into an immersive experience combining the graphic fidelity of the Fantastic Beasts brand with the interactivity of real-time games,” states Julien Charlebois, Head of Production, VR, Montréal in a statement. “In order to achieve the quality expected from a Fantastic Beasts experience on such a broad range of VR platforms, we had to leverage the knowledge and expertise of our different teams around the globe.”

This latest VR edition was led by Framestore’s New York and Montréal offices; the project marking the first real-time project from Montréal, which opened its VR Studio in 2017. The team worked to optimise and enhance this latest version with new visual fidelity and technological innovation, especially for mobile VR.

Fantastic Beasts VR

The VR experience allows fan to become wizards themselves complete with a wand in hand, able to cast spells and control their environment whilst tending to Newt’s fantastic beasts. A new trailer has been released featuring Eddie Redmayne getting to grips with the new content.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them VR Experience will be released today, 23rd January on the respective stores for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and Samsung Gear VR (at time of writing this hasn’t happened yet). There’s been no mention of whether the PlayStation VR version will also be released today. For any further updates keep reading VRFocus.

January 23, 2018

Harry Potter Universe ‘Fantastic Beasts’ VR Experience Comes to Vive, Oculus & Gear VR

Gallopin’ Gorgons! An updated version of the Harry Potter Universe game for Daydream, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them VR Experience, is arriving today. Not only that, but owners of Vive, Rift and Gear VR will finally be able to get in on the magic-casting fun too, as the game lands on their respective app stores.

Finding yourself in Newt Scamander’s magical suitcase (it’s bigger on the inside), you encounter beasts taken straight from the 2016 film. Exploring the different areas, you can cast spells and interact with a variety of fantastic animals; Graphorns, Bowtruckles, Occamys, Nifflers and the multi-winged Thunderbird.

According to J.K. Rowling’s Pottermore, the updated Fantastic Beasts VR experience will include “many more beasts to interact with.”

Fantastic Beasts star Eddie Redmayne got a chance to pop into the updated version of the game, saying it was “so immersive – unlike anything [he’d] ever experienced,” although it’s uncertain if Redmayne was simply referring to the Vive headset or the experience itself. Redmayne lends his voice to the experience, narrating throughout as he teaches you how to cast spells with your wand.

While Vive, Rift and Daydream users will be able to cast spells and interact with the world using a single motion controller – rendered as a magic wand – the Gear VR version won’t actually feature a wand, likely meaning all interactions will be gaze-based. Gallopin’ Gorgons, indeed!

We’ll be updating this article once links become available for Rift, Vive and Gear VR versions of the game. Check back later today.

The post Harry Potter Universe ‘Fantastic Beasts’ VR Experience Comes to Vive, Oculus & Gear VR appeared first on Road to VR.

November 1, 2017

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Heading to PlayStation VR

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will be bringing Framestore VR Studio’s virtual reality (VR) experience based upon J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them to PlayStation VR, according to the German USK ratings board. A listing for the title has appeared on the official German USK website, suggesting that the publisher has submitted the VR experience for certification prior to an official release.

Titled Phantastische Tierwesen, which means ‘Fantastic Beasts’ in German, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was a launch title for Google Daydream. Acting as part of J.K. Rowling’s ‘Wizarding World’, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them offered a unique view of the universe created by the author which has millions of fans globally.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them recently featured in a new PlayStation VR trailer released in Japan, so it comes as no surprise to find that the experience will also be heading to western territories. However, the German USK listing includes both PlayStation 4 and PC, suggesting that the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them VR experience could also come to either Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, or possibly both. Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment has previously dived into VR videogame projects with Batman: Arkham VR and a forthcoming Justice League VR title, known as Justice League VR: The Complete Experience.

Framestore VR Studio’s description of the experience reads as follows: “Inspired by the narrative of J.K. Rowling’s latest tale, Framestore VR Studio scripted the Fantastic Beasts [and Where to Find Them] experience for the new Google Daydream to make the user truly feel like the protagonist: a wizard with a wand in their hand, able to cast spells and control their environment, whilst tending to their Graphorn, Erumpent and Thunderbird beasts.”

The Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them motion-picture will apparently be receiving a sequel in 2018, however Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment are yet to announce an associated videogame tie-in. Will there be a second Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them VR experience coming? VRFocus will of course keep you updated with all the latest VR software announcements from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.

November 10, 2016

A Guide to the Apps for Google Daydream View

Google Daydream, like most virtual reality (VR) formats, is being lead by its videogame experiences. But head-mounted displays (HMDs) can do much more than simply entertain. The launch of the Daydream View has been accompanied by a number of unique and exclusive VR applications, and VRFocus has experienced each one to bring you the details on the best the HMD has to offer.

YouTube VR

Perhaps a surprise for some, but not for those already immersed in the world of 360 degree video. YouTube VR is the answer to anyone’s complaints about lack of content in the dawn of modern VR: tens of thousands of 360 degree videos are already available on YouTube, and here on Daydream viewable in VR mode with no additional requirements. Simple and immediate, YouTube VR is the reason to own a Daydream View at present.

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Invasion

Free to download for Google Daydream View (for a limited time, as stated on the Google Play store), Baobab Studios’ Invasion! is an animated short with all the personality of a Pixar Animation Studios feature film. Starring two bumbling aliens and a rabbit – the real hero of the piece – the viewer is transported into a cartoon world where the aggression of your adversaries is lesser than their panic upon realising that you’re not scared by them.

Invasion! has already made it’s way to other VR platforms, such as HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, and comes to Google Daydream View ahead of the launch of Baobab Studios’ second title, Asteroids!.

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Google Street View

VR can transport you to another place, and with Google Street View, Daydream View does exactly that. Pick any location on Earth and there’s likely to be at least a handful of 360 degree images already available, showing you streets, venues, tourist attractions and more. Whether it’s a place you love or a place you’ve never been, Google Street View together with Daydream View can take you there.

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Fantastic Beasts

A Google Daydream exclusive, Fantastic Beasts is based on the hugely popular franchise, J. K. Rowling’s Wizarding World. Users are invited into Newt Scamander’s case to explore the world of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in this new VR experience. Meets the beasts, conjure spells and become immersed in the fantasy world ahead of the film’s launch later this month.

A Guide to the Games for Google Daydream View
A Guide to Google Daydream View: Installation, Games & Apps

November 10, 2016

Daydream’s ‘Fantastic Beasts’ App Is Our First Taste Of ‘Harry Potter’ In VR

The jury’s still out on if the upcoming Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them movie will be a worthy addition to the world of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter franchise, but its VR tie-in experience suggests good things, even if it’s a little underwhelming.

Fantastic Beasts could be considered a headlining app for Daydream View, out today. It was announced by Google itself at a press conference last month and is made by visual effects giant Framestore, which has other exciting goings on in VR right now. It’s a free download on the Google Play Store, and serves as a good introduction to the world of VR for inexperienced Potter fans, though VR veterans will make quick note of the limitations in both software and hardware.

The app plays out over several well-detailed environments. You start by heading into the suitcase of Newt Scamander, the movie’s protagonist, to find a sort of wizard’s zoo. He’s keeping several, for lack of better words, fantastical beasts inside the Tardis-like suitcase, and you’ll be able to summon three of them and interact with them. There’s the phoenix-like Thunderbird, a cross between an elephant and rhino named an Erumpent, and a… weird squid thing called the Graphorn.

To summon each you head to Scamander’s shack and perform a spell, which involves using the Daydream controller as a wand to trace out patterns that appear on-screen. You’ll then complete a small, simple puzzle, either mixing potions together in a specific order, moving blocks to align a drawing, or crushing plants together. You can then go outside and meet the animal you’ve summoned, perhaps feeding it or playing with it.

Framestore’s knack for stunning visuals is proudly on display here; each beast is meticulously detailed and wouldn’t look out of place in the movie itself. If the feature fiilm has as much imagination as these three monsters suggest it will be a treat for the eyes.

The trade-off is the sense of scale that these encounters provide. It never really feels like any of these beasts are in front of you, more like you’re looking at them in a 360 video, which I suspect is really the case given the visual fidelity. Honestly, I’d have happily traded the sheer detail seen in each animal for a better actual 3D effect. The horn on the Erumpent’s head at one point threatens to pierce you, but I didn’t get a sense that it was truly lingering over me. The Thunderbird stretched its wings, but I was not intimated in its majesty.

As someone that’s used to position-tracked controls, I also took issue with Fantastic Beast‘s representation of input. I’d been fine with the Daydream controller simply being a pointer in this world, but instead you see your wand in the hand you’re holding the device with. The position and movement of your hand rarely correlates with what you see on-screen, and it ended up distracting me more than tricking me into thinking I was holding a wizard’s wand. This is something Daydream developers will really need to consider if they want to maintain immersion in their experiences going forward.

To the untrained eye, the Fantastic Beasts VR app is a fun introduction to Daydream, but I couldn’t help but feel underwhelmed by it. It’s a fun showcase of what’s possible on Google’s new headset, but it flags up some of the major limitations too.

October 4, 2016

J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Coming to Google Daydream By Warner Bros and Framestore

There have been a fair few announcements to come from the relatively concise Google event that took place this evening, including the Google Pixel smartphone and Google Daydream View. To go along with these two reveals, there needs to be applications, and it seems as though there was a big reveal for Harry Potter fans hidden up their wizard sleeve.

Adrienne McCallister who is the leader of partnerships for Daydream came up on stage, and one of the first announcements was of this new Harry Potter franchised title made with Framestore: “With Daydream you’re going to be able to explore some really magical places, and what’s more magical than the wizarding world of J.K Rowling? I’m excited to announce that we’ve been working with Warner Brothers to bring an exclusive Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them experience to Daydream.”

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In the preview shown during the event it looks as though players can wave the controller as the wand and interact with various surroundings as well as with the beasts. “In it you’re a wizard and the controller transforms into a wand that you can use to levitate objects and cast spells. We’re really stoked about this because don’t we all just want to be wizards?”

There has been no specific date set for this, but check back with VRFocus for the latest news, updates, and features in the world of VR.

October 4, 2016

Google Daydream Apps to include J.K. Rowling Experience, Gunjack 2, Netflix, and More

Today at Google’s press event announcing the Pixel phone and Daydream View headset, the company detailed VR content on the way to the Daydream Android VR platform.

Along with Daydream VR apps and experiences we’ve seen previously, Google today announced a group of exciting content on the way to the platform. Release dates were not mentioned specifically, but we expect the content announced today to launch with the Daydream headset in November.

J.K. Rowling – Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Google says they’ve been working with Warner Brothers on a Daydream VR experience based on J.K. Rowlings book/upcoming film located in the Harry Potter universe. The app will make use of the Daydream controller to put a wand in the hand of players who will encounter (you guessed it!) fantastic beasts.

Gunjack 2 from CCP Games

Also headed to Daydream is Gunjack 2. Developed by CCP Games, the same studio behind the MMO Eve: Online and VR game Eve: Valkyrie, it’s the sequel to Eve: Gunjack, a VR turret shooter that first debuted on Samsung’s Gear VR headset. It isn’t clear yet if Gunjack 2 will be exclusive to Daydream or if it will also land on Gear VR and other platforms.

Netflix, HBO, and Hulu

Major streaming media platforms Netflix, HBO, and Hulu are all getting apps that allow their entire libraries to be view on Google’s Daydream View headset. Videos through these services will naturally be shown on a big virtual cinema screen, but opens the door to VR content to be streamed as well. Netflix and Hulu have already made appearances on Gear VR, though we’ve been patiently waiting for Netflix’s promised multiplayer functionality.

Star Chart

Star Chart will let you explore an immersive map of the cosmos, allowing you to explore planets, stars, and constellations. This app has already been seen on Gear VR, Oculus Rift, and HTC Vive.

Google Apps – Movies, Photos, Street View, and YouTube

Many of Google’s core Android apps are also getting the Daydream treatment. Movies will allow users to watch rented or purchased videos on a virtual big screen. Photos will let users “relive memories in an immersive way,” focused on users own captured photos and videos. Street View will let users explore Google’s huge library of street level photography, including 150 curated tours of memorable places like the Taj Mahal.

Then there’s YouTube of course which will make the jump from Cardboard to Daydream with a higher-end experience. The Daydream YouTube app will allow exploration of the entire YouTube library and of course viewing of made-for-VR content. No other platforms have seen an official YouTube VR app up to this point.

With the announcement of the Pixel Daydream-ready phone and Daydream View headset, Google is quickly gearing up for the Daydream launch coming in November.

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