‘Game of Thrones’ VR Experience Coming Exclusively to Viveport Infinity

HTC today announced that a VR experience based on HBO’s hit TV series Game of Thrones is set to launch exclusively on Viveport Infinity starting tomorrow, supporting Vive and Rift.

The experience, called Beyond the Wall, is said to transport users to the northern border of The Seven Kingdoms to fight and defend ‘The Wall’, the megalithic structure separating the South from the untamed North—a place that plays host to the mysterious rise of an army of undead wights under the behest of the ‘White Walkers’. There, players will be able to test their sword-fighting skills against an undead polar bear and hoard of wights.

Beyond the Wall made its initial debut at select AT&T stores as a ‘4D’ brand engagement activation to promote the season finale of Game of Thrones; this represents the first time users will be able to jump into the experience at home.

Image courtesy HTC, HBO

Beyond the Wall was created by HBO and Framestore, the Oscar-winning studio known for their work not only in film and TV, but also immersive experiences such as the Game of Throne-themed VR activation Ascend the Wall, and the recent Magic Leap GOT experience The Dead Must Die.

Since Beyond the Wall is exclusive to Viveport Infinity, HTC’s Netflix-style game subscription service, you’ll of course need to be a member to play.

Viveport Infinity is typically available for free for a two-week trial, costing $13 per month afterwards (or $100 annually), which gives you unlimited access to a 500+ VR games and apps. Take note: throughout the month of June, both new and existing Infinity members who own an Oculus Rift or Valve Index will be able to redeem two free months of the service.

Image courtesy HTC, HBO

There’s just one more catch. Beyond the Wall is launching first in English in the US, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, the UK, and Canada. You can probably thank the patchwork of licensing issues that official IP releases necessarily face when they head across borders.

The post ‘Game of Thrones’ VR Experience Coming Exclusively to Viveport Infinity appeared first on Road to VR.

Magic Leap und HBO veröffentlichen AR-Erfahrung zu Game of Thrones

Die achte Staffel der epochalen Fantasyserie Game of Thrones basierend auf der Romanreihe A Song of Ice and Fire von George R. R. Martin steht kurz bevor. Ab dem 14. April beginnt der Staffelauftakt zum Abschluss der Geschichte und die Fans können das heiß erwartete Ende, rund um die eisigen Schlachten zwischen dem Nachtkönig, Jon Snow und den Lebenden in Westeros kaum noch erwarten. Um den Hype weiter anzuschüren, sorgt eine neue Kollaboration zwischen HBO und Magic Leap nun für die Veröffentlichung einer GoT-AR-Erfahrung namens The Dead Must Die: A Magic Leap Encounter für die AR-Brille des Unternehmens. Die Magic-Leap-Erfahrung soll allerdings vorerst exklusiv in ausgewählten AT&T-Läden vorgestellt werden.

Game of Thrones – Magic Leap und HBO stellen “The Dead Must Die: A Magic Leap Encounter” in ausgewählten AT&T-Läden vor

In The Dead Must Die dürfen die Nutzer erstmalig selbst in das virtuelle Westeros eintauchen, um in den eisigen Gefilden hinter der Mauer auf Tuchfühlung mit einem White Walker zu gehen. Besser gesagt auf Konfrontationskurs, denn die Untoten sind alles andere als freundlich gesinnt gegenüber allen Lebenden. In der Rolle eines Soldaten begegnet ihr mit einer Fackel bewaffnet in einer schneebedeckten MR-Umgebung dem gefährlichen Widersacher.

Möglich macht dies eine Partnerschaft zwischen HBO und Magic Leap, um die AR-Erfahrung mit der AR-Brille des Unternehmens vorzustellen. Allerdings ist das Erlebnis nicht für die eigenen vier Wände gedacht. Die MR-Erfahrung wird vorerst nur in ausgewählten AT&T-Läden in den USA vorgeführt, dafür stilecht in einer würdigen Kulisse.

Valerie Vargas, SVP für Marketing und Creative-Service bei AT&T kündigt die Kollaboration mit enthusiastischen Worten in einem Statement an:

Dies ist das größte Fernsehereignis in der jüngeren Geschichte, zum großen Teil aufgrund der leidenschaftlichen, loyalen und engagierten Fangemeinde der Show. Zur Feier dieses Fandoms, und auch selbst als Fans, haben wir auf allen unseren Plattformen einzigartige Erfahrungen entwickelt, die nur AT&T und HBO bieten können. Mit dieser Kampagne wollen wir die großartigen Fans der Show und ihren festen Platz in der Popkultur feiern.”

Ab dem 1. April beginnt die Ausstellung in Boston, ab dem 3. April in Chicago und ab dem 6. April in San Francisco. Daraufhin ist die GoT-MR-Erfahrung bis zum 10. Juni zugänglich. Weitere Standorte sollen in Los Angeles und Dallas folgen.

(Quellen: VR Focus | Variety | Twitter: Game of Thrones)

Der Beitrag Magic Leap und HBO veröffentlichen AR-Erfahrung zu Game of Thrones zuerst gesehen auf VR∙Nerds. VR·Nerds am Werk!

Silicon Valley: Inside The Hacker Hostel VR Experience Now On Oculus Rift

Following the release of the Silicon Valley: Inside The Hacker Hostel immersive virtual reality (VR) experience back in March of this year for the HTC Vive. HBO and REWIND have now announced that the experience will be coming to the Oculus Rift now as well.

Silicon Valley: Inside The Hacker Hostel

The announcement comes ahead of the season give finale for Silicon Valley that is set to air this coming Sunday, May 13th at 10:00pm EST. The title allows fans of the show to jump into the Hacker Hostel and get to experience a number of items from the show along with having one-on-one encounters with the characters from the show including Richard (Thomas Middleditch), Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani), Gilfoyle (Martin Starr), Big Head (Josh Brener) and Jian-Yang (Jimmy O. Yang). Users can see how many times they get “always blue”, demo the Not Hot Dog app, find a secret message from Jared and help Richard out of a coding crisis.

The Silicon Valley: Inside The Hacker Hostel title was built by REWIND within the Unreal Engine 4 to allow for an authentic virtual recreation of the Hacker Hostel to be made for users to explore. By using a 3D software to faithfully recreate the environment from blueprints of the actual set, along with photo references to create textures and materials the team at REWIND were even able to capture HDR 360-degree photos of each room on set to ensure authentic lighting was possible. The team worked hard to ensure the digital recreation of the Hacker Hostel would be a one-to-one result giving fans the most immersive experience possible.

Kumail Nanjiani_Dinesh in Silicon Valley Inside The Hacker Hostel VR

“Being handed a beloved IP like Silicon Valley is daunting and exciting at the same time, but we were able to craft a virtual world that takes fans into the heart of the show.” Says CEO & Founder of REWIND Sol Rogers. “It isn’t just a gimmick or a reskin of something else; this is VR done right. It gives those that want to literally live and breathe the show the perfect accompaniment to the fifth season. Filled with Easter eggs, show references and loads of items to play with, it’s pure entertainment. Countless hours went into creating a perfect virtual replica of the Hacker House and we’re thrilled it’s now open to visitors.”

The Silicon Valley: Inside The Hacker Hostel experience is available now on HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. You can see a behind-the-scenes trailer below for the Silicon Valley: Inside The Hacker Hostel experience and for more on the title in the future, keep reading VRFocus.

REWIND and HBO Releasing Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel Experience Tomorrow

The Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel is an immersive virtual reality (VR) experience that will bring fans of the hit HBO comedy series Silicon Valley and put them into the heart of it all.

Thomas Middleditch_Richard Hendricks in Silicon Valley Inside The Hacker Hostel VR

The interactive VR experience provides fans with one-on-one encounters with the characters from the show including Richard (Thomas Middleditch), Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani), Gilfoyle (Martin Starr), Big Head (Josh Brener) and Jian-Yang (Jimmy O. Yang). Viewers who attend the Hacker Hostel can see how many times they get “always blue”, demo the Not Hot Dog app, find a secret message from Jared and help Richard out of coding crisis.

Powered by the Unreal Engine 4, which recently unveiled a host of new features at the Game Developer Conference including a real-time ray tracing Star Wars demo, the experience has been crafted for the HTC Vive. The team at REWIND, an immersive content studio with a passion for VR, augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR), have worked to create an authentic virtual version of the Hacker Hostel, a central part of the HBO show.

Kumail Nanjiani_Dinesh in Silicon Valley Inside The Hacker Hostel VR

Using 3D software to faithfully recreate the environment from blueprints of the actual set, along with photo reference to create textures and materials and making use of the show’s set using a HDR 360 Capture of each room to replicate the lighting as authentically as possible. The end result for the users is a digital recreation of the set that is fully explorable and intractable.

“Being handed a beloved IP like Silicon Valley is daunting and exciting at the same time, but we were able to craft a virtual world that takes fans into the heart of the show.” Says CEO & Founder of REWIND Sol Rogers. “It isn’t just a gimmick or a reskin of something else; this is VR done right. It gives those that want to literally live and breathe the show the perfect accompaniment to the fifth season. Filled with Easter eggs, show references and loads of items to play with, it’s pure entertainment. Countless hours went into creating a perfect virtual replica of the Hacker House and we’re thrilled it’s now open to visitors.”

The Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel experience is host to a number of interactive elements that users will be able to interact with including table football with integrated artificial intelligence (AI) to a fully playable piano. Screen distortion effects allow the user to become ‘drunk’ within the experience. It packed with so many different objects that are interactive that users can even put on a VR head-mounted display (HMD) within The Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel experience.

The Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel experience is releasing tomorrow on HTC Vive’s Viveport platform tomorrow and for now will only be available in America. As season five of the series is just starting on HBO, it is a perfect time to experience the show like never before and be a part of it with The Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel experience.

VRFocus will be sure to bring you all the latest from REWIND and HBO in the future so stay tuned for more.

‘Silicon Valley’ VR Experience Lets You Explore Erlich Bachman’s Incubator, Now on Rift & Vive

VR headset users now have a chance to walk into an interactive version of HBO’s Silicon Valley house. The Palo Alto home, which is owned by the series’ eccentric startup guru Erlich Bachman (T.J. Miller), was lovingly recreated in VR, replete with ‘always blue’ ball, foosball, and yes, even a bong.

Update (05/12/18): First released on Viveport, for HTC Vive, the free ‘Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel’ experience is now available on Oculus Rift for US-based users. The release on Rift precedes the show’s season finale, coming May 13th.

The original article follows below:

Original article (03/24/18): Called Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel, the experience is landing on Viveport March 25th, giving you a chance to walk around the house and fulfill objectives given to you by the show’s characters – Gilfoyle (Martin Starr) and Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani).

SEE ALSO
The Crazy VR Goggles in HBO's 'Silicon Valley' Are Not a Prop but a Real Prototype

According development studio Rewind, you’ll have one-on-one encounters with Dinesh, Gilfoyle, Richard (Thomas Middleditch), Big Head (Josh Brener) and Jian-Yang (Jimmy O. Yang). You’ll be able to demo the show’s infamous Not Hot Dog app and find a secret message from Jared, and help Richard out of a coding crisis. Rewind says there are 756 items to interact with.

Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel was created in promotion of the TV show’s upcoming fifth season which starts tomorrow, March 25th.

The post ‘Silicon Valley’ VR Experience Lets You Explore Erlich Bachman’s Incubator, Now on Rift & Vive appeared first on Road to VR.

HBO-Serie Silicon Valley: Viel VR und Prototyp statt Attrappe

Für VR-Fans enthält die aktuell laufende Staffel 4 von Silicon Valley etliche Anspielungen und einige Überraschungen: Die futuristisch wirkende VR-Brille in der HBO-Serie entpuppt sich als früher Prototyp des Avegant Glyph. Aufmerksame Zuschauer entdecken in der Satire auf Startups im Silicon Valley auch Querverweise auf den Oculus-Gründer Palmer Luckey.

Silicon Valley mit Avegant Glyph

Was in der Serie die Rolle einer VR-Brille spielt, ist gar keine. Trotzdem ist die Glyph des Herstellers Avegant eine interessante Lösung für ein echtes Kopfkino: Anstatt Displays verwendet die Brille zwei Mini-DLP-Projektoren, die ein HD-Bild direkt auf die Retina projizieren. Tests bescheinigen der futuristisch anmutenden Lösung, die direkt aus einem Star-Trek-Film kommen könnte, eine gute Bildqualität, allerdings nimmt die Schärfe am Rand ab. Eine 3D-Darstellung ist ebenfalls möglich sowie ein Head-Tracking. Der große integrierte Kopfhörer sorgt für angenehme Soundbeschallung.

Silicon Valley mit Brille

Die Serie Silicon Valley gibt den Prototypen der Glyph als VR-Brille aus.

Nachteile der Glyph: Sie ist mit derzeit knapp 550 Euro nicht gerade günstig und kämpft noch mit Kinderkrankheiten. In der HBO-Serie Silicon Valley kommt nicht die Consumer-Variante zum Einsatz, sondern ein älterer Prototyp. Das transparente Plexiglas der Kino-Brille gibt den Blick auf ihre Platinen frei, was für ein durchaus eigenwilliges Retro-High-Tech-Design mit leichter Steampunk-Note sorgt.

Grüß mir die VR-Szene

In der aktuellen Staffel von Silicon Valley rückt VR in den Mittelpunkt, wie Road to VR feststellt, und führt einige Beispiele auf. So sichtete das Magazin beispielsweise auch gleich Brillen von Oculus und die 360-Grad-Kamera 360fly. Eine Anspielung auf Palmer Luckey erkennt der Autor im Seriencharakter Keenan Feldspar, ein Beweis wäre sein Hawaii-Hemd. Außerdem benutzt Luckey in seinem Social-Media-Profil auf Twitter das Bild des Serien-Gründers.

Abschließend ergänzt Road to VR noch einen Schnittpunkt der Serie zum echten VR-Leben: Der Hauptdarsteller Thomas Middleditch war Gastgeber bei der Vergabe des jährlichen VR-Preises Proto-Awards. Wer selbst auf Spurensuche in Silicon Valley gehen will, wird bei diversen Video-on-Demand-Anbietern – meist kostenpflichtig – fündig.

(Quelle: Road to VR, Bilder HBO)

Der Beitrag HBO-Serie Silicon Valley: Viel VR und Prototyp statt Attrappe zuerst gesehen auf VR∙Nerds. VR·Nerds am Werk!

Sir David Attenborough to become 3D hologram for Sky VR documentary

Naturalist to help viewers ‘handle’ objects from Natural History Museum, as broadcaster also unveils new HBO deal

Sir David Attenborough is to be turned into a hologram for a virtual reality tour of the Natural History Museum in London that promises to allow users to “handle” rare fossils from the comfort of their own home.

Sky has commissioned the new experience, called Hold the World, which it says is a marriage of interactive video game technology and TV documentary. The public will be able to take the tour, which offers an up close and personal experience with fossils, bones and skulls, with insights from Attenborough, if they have a VR set, controller and phone app.

Continue reading...

Silicon Valley Season 4 May Focus On Virtual Reality

Silicon Valley Season 4 May Focus On Virtual Reality

The trailer for the fourth season of HBO’s Silicon Valley is out and it looks like Pied Piper’s technology might be used to improve virtual reality.

The show has referenced VR multiple times in its first three seasons, but it looks like it may play a major role in the next season with the trailer referencing the technology multiple times.

“It worked, I mean the VR is rad now,” Gilfoyle tells Pied Piper founder Richard Hendricks, who is shown wearing a prototype head-mounted display in another scene.

We hope the writers have discovered that the show’s “middle-out” compression technology would improve VR significantly.

Here’s the trailer:

Season 4 of Silicon Valley premieres April 23 on HBO.

Tagged with: ,

HBO Revealing Further Details on WestWorld: A Delos Experience at VRDC

In just over a months time the 2017 Game Developer Conference (GDC) will be taking place in San Francisco as well as its sister event, the Virtual Reality Developers Conference (VRDC). The event is one of the biggest in the gaming calendar, with plenty of announcements usually taking place – last year for example the PlayStation VR price and release date were revealed. As it is a conference there will be plenty of talks being held, one of which will be from Home Box Office (HBO) discussing virtual reality (VR) project WestWorld: A Delos Experience.

Taking to the stage will be HBO creative lead, Colin Foran, in a session called WestworldVR: Combining Linear and Interactive Content to Tell Character Centric Stories. He’ll be covering the general production and solving the issues around transforming traditional linear content into an immersive experience.

westworld

The official description for the session notes: “Over the last two years, an internal team within HBO has worked closely with showrunners to prototype storytelling experiences using compelling new technologies. The result, “WestWorld: A Delos Experience” is a room-scale VR installation that tells a coherent, character centric story using several new technologies. Combining realtime rendering, 360 video, interactive props and a physical set buildout staffed with actors, the piece represents a strong statement of intent to embrace new storytelling methods.”

GDC 2017 and the VRDC will take place from 27th February – 3rd March at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. For further details on the event, keep reading VRFocus.