Category: Mobile VR Games

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‘Bigscreen’ Coming to Mobile VR in Q2, Gear VR Alpha Test Starts Today

Bigscreen is a unique social VR application which lets users bring their desktop screens and all the capabilities of their PC into VR with them. That means friends can come together virtually for LAN parties, streaming sessions, and much more. In Q2, Bigscreen will come to mobile VR headsets for the first time, allowing the mobile VR crowd to join their desktop brethren and get in on the fun. Starting today, Gear VR users can sign up for Bigscreen’s mobile alpha test.

Bigscreen is set to come to Gear VR, Oculus Go, and Daydream mobile VR headsets in Q2, the company announced today. In the meantime, if you own a Gear VR you can sign up for the Bigscreen mobile alpha test here.

Bigscreen founder Darshan Shankar says that Bigscreen mobile will have both singleplayer and multiplayer elements. Even though mobile VR headsets don’t have their own desktop to share, other features like a video player, 3D painting tools, and intriguing PC-to-mobile streaming are planned. The company breaks it down on their blog:

  1. Public & private rooms are supported, with 4–12 players per room. Mobile VR users can join rooms to watch videos and hangout together. Mobile VR users will eventually be able to create their own multiplayer rooms, but not during the Alpha Test.
  2. Mobile VR users will also be able to attend our live movie screenings, like our Paramount Pictures’ Top Gun 3D VR movie night and our Stargate movie night with MGM.
  3. The video player will allow you to watch videos stored locally on your device. We plan to eventually support various streaming services within our video player as well.
  4. PC-to-Mobile desktop streaming allows you to stream your Windows PC’s desktop screen into your Mobile VR headset over WiFi without the need to be tethered to your PC. This allows you to sit on your couch, pull up a movie or videogame on your PC, and see it on a huge screen in your headset.

The Bigscreen mobile alpha won’t have any single player features, but players will be able to join rooms hosted by PC VR users, which support up to 12 players per room. In the future, mobile users will be able to host their own multiplayer rooms.

The company also plans to bring Bigscreen to PSVR later this year.

The post ‘Bigscreen’ Coming to Mobile VR in Q2, Gear VR Alpha Test Starts Today appeared first on Road to VR.

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VR Tour App ‘MasterWorks’ Uses Photogrammetry to Bring You to 4 Fully Explorable Heritage Sites

MasterWorks: Journey Through History (2018) is a new app for Oculus Rift and Gear VR that takes you on a guided tour through four cultural sites spanning three continents. Created using photogrammetry and presented with audio clips from experts, collectible artifacts and 3D 360 photos, the app does more than just let you explore the sites; it preserves these sites digitally while teaching you about the real-world threats they face amidst a rapidly changing climate.

Spanning over 3000 years of human history, you’ll be able to visit:

  • The historical city of Ayutthaya, Thailand, the second  capital of the Siamese Kingdom
  • Chavín de Huántar, a pre-Incan temple in the Peruvian Andes
  • Mesa Verde Native American cliff dwellings of Colorado
  • The stone carvings of Mt Rushmore in South Dakota

You can download MasterWorks: Journey Through History for Rift here, and for Gear VR here.

Norman Chan and Jeremy Williams of Tested visited CyArk, the studio behind MasterWorks, to talk a little about how they captured the sites.

Founded in 2003, the non-profit company’s mission, CyArk CEO John Ristevski told Tested, is to capture, share and archive the world’s cultural heritage.

“We capture these places in accurate 3D, we archive it in case something happens to these sites – in case of destruction or damage – and we also makes this data available in interesting ways, such as in VR,” Ristevski explained.

The studio does this by using a laser-scanning Light Detection and Ranging device (LIDAR) and photo imagery using professional-level DSLRs and imagery captured via drones. Combining these two fundamental techniques, the company can make highly-accurate recreations of scenes like the ones seen below.

As it stands now, the process of creating these experiences is still pretty arduous, requiring between 5-7 days of on-site time to capture an area about the size of a quarter-mile squared area (about 400m squared).

CyArk Director of Product Scott Lee tells Tested their team uses motion-controlled camera rigs to capture the photos, which he says ensures the required 60-80 percent overlap is obtained to generate the photogrammetric models.

You can check out the full video interview here.

The post VR Tour App ‘MasterWorks’ Uses Photogrammetry to Bring You to 4 Fully Explorable Heritage Sites appeared first on Road to VR.

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NBA All-Star and Weekly Regular Season Coverage Comes Live to VR via TNT and Intel

TNT and Intel have teamed up to bring NBA All-Star coverage to VR on Gear VR and Daydream.

Based on Intel’s True VR technology, TNT is bringing live and on-demand VR coverage of NBA All-Star events to Gear VR and Daydream headsets via the NBA on TNT VR app. The app is available today on the Oculus store and the Google Play store.

Turner Sports says that fans will be able to see highlights, recaps, and live and on-demand full games in VR (provided they are logged in with an applicable TV provider), including in-game broadcast stats and commentary.

Starting on February 16th, viewers will be able to watch the following All-Star coverage live through the app:

Friday, Feb. 16 2018 Mtn Dew Kickstart Rising Stars, 9:00 p.m. ET
Saturday, Feb. 17 State Farm All-Star Saturday Night (Taco Bell Skills Challenge, JBL Three-Point Contest and Verizon Slam Dunk), 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 18 67th NBA All-Star Game, 8:20 p.m.

 

Image courtesy TNT, Intel

Following the All-Star coverage, one regular season game per week will be streamed:

Thursday, Feb. 22 LA Clippers @ Golden State, 10:30 p.m.
Thursday, Mar. 1 Philadelphia @ Cleveland, 8:00 p.m.
Thursday, Mar. 8 Boston @ Minnesota, 8:00 p.m.
Tuesday, Mar. 20 Houston @ Portland, 10:30 p.m.
Thursday, Mar. 29 Oklahoma City @ San Antonio, 8:00 p.m.
Thursday, Apr. 5 Washington @ Cleveland, 8:00 p.m.
Tuesday, Apr. 10 Boston @ Washington, 8:00 p.m.

The company also says it will provide NBA playoff coverage in VR through the 2018 Western Conference Finals.

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Intel’s True VR platform came from the company’s 2016 acquisition of VR broadcasting company Voke. Intel has also struck prominent deals with the MLB and NBC for VR broadcasting of Major League Baseball games and the 2018 Winter Olympics, respectively. Turner and Intel say the NBA coverage comes as part of a “multiyear” partnership between the companies.

The post NBA All-Star and Weekly Regular Season Coverage Comes Live to VR via TNT and Intel appeared first on Road to VR.

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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.”

image courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures

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.

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‘Blade Runner: Revelations’ for Daydream to Launch with 6DoF Tracking Support

A new adventure set in the Blade Runner universe from developer Seismic Games is coming soon to the Daydream mobile VR platform. The game is optimised for WorldSense, a new six degrees of freedom (6DoF) positional tracking system developed by Google, found in upcoming mobile devices such as the standalone Lenovo Mirage Solo.

Announced at Google I/O last year, the Mirage Solo is the first standalone mobile VR headset using the Daydream VR platform. Google recently revealed that it is also the first device to feature WorldSense, their new self-contained tracking system based on “years of investment in simultaneous localization and mapping,” that claims to deliver “PC-quality positional tracking.”

Alcon Media Group has partnered with Google and Lenovo to bring Blade Runner: Revelations to Daydream. Seismic Games, who acquired mixed reality specialists Grue Games in late 2016, have a history with major IP such as Skylanders and Call of Duty. The studio teased a potential Blade Runner connection in September.

image courtesy Lenovo

In this new narrative adventure, players assume the role of Harper, a seasoned Blade Runner who “unravels a twisted replicant plot that threatens the delicate balance of Los Angeles in 2023.” According to the press release, players will “search for evidence with the help of their flying spinner, deadly blaster, and esper image reconstruction to try to solve the mystery in an immersive VR environment.”

While the game will work on all Daydream devices, it is said to be “best experienced” on the Mirage Solo. WorldSense support means that players can “duck, dodge and lean,” as well as stepping “backwards, forwards, and side to side, unlocking new gameplay elements that bring the world of Blade Runner to life.”

“We’re working closely with developers to bring new experiences to the platform that take advantage of all these new technologies,” writes Clay Bavor, Google’s Vice President of Virtual and Augmented Reality. Blade Runner: Revelations is the first example of Google’s partnerships with developers to bring 6DoF-optimised games to mobile VR.

“It’s the most immersive way to access Daydream,” he says, noting the headset’s wide field of view (110°) and “advanced blur-free display”. The Lenovo Mirage Solo is due to launch in Q2 2018.

The post ‘Blade Runner: Revelations’ for Daydream to Launch with 6DoF Tracking Support appeared first on Road to VR.

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‘Bigscreen’ Now Supports Windows VR, PSVR and Mobile Headsets Coming in 2018

Bigscreen, the social VR app which lets users connect in a virtual environment while retaining the ability to use (and share) their own PC desktop content, now supports Microsoft’s ‘Windows Mixed Reality’ VR headsets. In 2018, the app will offer cross-play with mobile users on Oculus Go, Gear VR, and Daydream, as well as PSVR.

Bigscreen is all about letting you do anything you can do normally on your PC—play games, watch movies, browse the web, and much more—but with your friends in VR. It’s a simple idea which is incredibly powerful given the depth of capabilities already available to your PC.

Having earlier this year made major strides in desktop streaming quality between users, and just recently debuting larger rooms that can support “dozens” of users, the company today broadened their offering to support the recently launched Windows VR headsets. Previously available on the Oculus store and Steam, Bigscreen is now also available on the Microsoft store. The app continues to be free, as it has been since launch.

Coming in 2018, Bigscreen is going to open its doors yet further. To start, sometime in Q1, the app will come to all major mobile VR platforms: Gear VR, Daydream, and the forthcoming Oculus Go headset. Following the mobile rollout, the app is also headed to PSVR.

But what to do on the mobile and PSVR versions of Bigscreen when those platforms aren’t backed by a Windows desktop from which to run PC games and apps? Fortunately, all versions will support cross-play, meaning the mobile and PSVR versions of the app will function largely as a means of consumption and communication—non-PC players will be able to join the rooms of PC players to chat and watch shared content; great for friends who just want to watch TV shows or movies together.

Speaking of movies, the mobile and PSVR versions of Bigscreen will also be able to tap into the platform’s forthcoming lineup of timed content screenings in the app’s cinema; in 2018, Bigscreen promises fresh weekly content being shown each week.

Up to today, Bigscreen tells Road to VR that the app has seen some 340,000 users across Rift and Vive.

The post ‘Bigscreen’ Now Supports Windows VR, PSVR and Mobile Headsets Coming in 2018 appeared first on Road to VR.

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‘Bigscreen’ Now Supports Windows VR, PSVR and Mobile Headsets Coming in 2018

Bigscreen, the social VR app which lets users connect in a virtual environment while retaining the ability to use (and share) their own PC desktop content, now supports Microsoft’s ‘Windows Mixed Reality’ VR headsets. In 2018, the app will offer cross-play with mobile users on Oculus Go, Gear VR, and Daydream, as well as PSVR.

Bigscreen is all about letting you do anything you can do normally on your PC—play games, watch movies, browse the web, and much more—but with your friends in VR. It’s a simple idea which is incredibly powerful given the depth of capabilities already available to your PC.

Having earlier this year made major strides in desktop streaming quality between users, and just recently debuting larger rooms that can support “dozens” of users, the company today broadened their offering to support the recently launched Windows VR headsets. Previously available on the Oculus store and Steam, Bigscreen is now also available on the Microsoft store. The app continues to be free, as it has been since launch.

Coming in 2018, Bigscreen is going to open its doors yet further. To start, sometime in Q1, the app will come to all major mobile VR platforms: Gear VR, Daydream, and the forthcoming Oculus Go headset. Following the mobile rollout, the app is also headed to PSVR.

But what to do on the mobile and PSVR versions of Bigscreen when those platforms aren’t backed by a Windows desktop from which to run PC games and apps? Fortunately, all versions will support cross-play, meaning the mobile and PSVR versions of the app will function largely as a means of consumption and communication—non-PC players will be able to join the rooms of PC players to chat and watch shared content; great for friends who just want to watch TV shows or movies together.

Speaking of movies, the mobile and PSVR versions of Bigscreen will also be able to tap into the platform’s forthcoming lineup of timed content screenings in the app’s cinema; in 2018, Bigscreen promises fresh weekly content being shown each week.

Up to today, Bigscreen tells Road to VR that the app has seen some 340,000 users across Rift and Vive.

The post ‘Bigscreen’ Now Supports Windows VR, PSVR and Mobile Headsets Coming in 2018 appeared first on Road to VR.

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‘Gunjack 2: End of Shift’ Finally Comes to Gear VR

CCP Games (developer of EVE: Valkyrie, EVE: Online, and others) has launched Gunjack 2: End of Shift (2016), for the Samsung Gear VR on the Oculus Store. The title is the sequel to 2015’s Gunjack which had debuted on Gear VR.

Initially Gunjack 2, launched in 2016, was exclusively available on Google Daydream. Gunjack 2 is similar to an arcade action shooter by putting players in the cockpit of a spacecraft’s gunning turret to aim and shoot down waves of enemies. Players have other abilities at their disposal such as deploying special weapons to annihilate foes and activating energy shields to escape dodgy situations.

As with the Daydream version, the game can be played using the headset’s controller. Additionally, the game presents daily procedural missions in an effort to bring players back regularly. With the launch of Gunjack 2 on Gear VR, CCP has released a new trailer:

Gunjack 2 is available for download on the Oculus Store for the Samsung Gear VR for $9. A permanent price drop from $13 to $9 also carries over to the Google Play Store for Daydream users. Additionally, Gear VR players can opt for a bundle of both the original Gunjack and Gunjack 2 at a discounted price point (currently listed in the Oculus Store at $11).

The original Gunjack (first released for Samsung Gear VR in November 2015), will also be seeing a permanent price drop from $10 to $5 across all currently available platforms: Oculus Store (Samsung Gear VR and Oculus Rift), Steam (HTC Vive and Oculus Rift), Playstation Store (PSVR).

The post ‘Gunjack 2: End of Shift’ Finally Comes to Gear VR appeared first on Road to VR.

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‘Wands’ Comes to HTC Vive via Viveport Today, Cross-play & Steam Launch Coming Soon

Wands (2017), the first-person magic-dueling game, is available today for HTC Vive via Viveport. Already supporting Gear VR, Daydream, and Oculus Rift platforms, developing studio Cortopia confirmed with Road to VR that cross-play with other headsets is coming today, or at very latest “later this week.”

The studio also confirmed that Wands is hitting Steam at some point “in the near future,” although they weren’t specific when it would occur. The Steam version predictably also advertises Oculus Rift support, which may also be the case for the Viveport version, although this remains to be seen.

Pricing still isn’t available at the time of this writing, but if the Viveport version holds true to the Oculus Home version, it should cost $15 when it officially launches later today. The game will also be available through Viveport subscription, HTC’s monthly games’ subscription service.

Wands features fast-paced 1v1 magic duels across a number of battle arenas. Wielding a wand with access to 22 different spells, you battle it out to the death in competitive and casual matches. Locomotion is achieved through node-based teleportation, much like The Unspoken (2016).

The game first released on mobile platforms in summer 2016, later followed with its Oculus Rift launch back in September 2017. As a part of its mobile VR legacy, Wands for HTC Vive also features equal support for gamepads and motions controllers.

You can download the Viveport version here. The purchase link should be live later today.

The post ‘Wands’ Comes to HTC Vive via Viveport Today, Cross-play & Steam Launch Coming Soon appeared first on Road to VR.

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‘Catan VR’ to Launch Free Closed Beta Soon, First Images Emerge

Famous board game The Settlers of Catan (simple called ‘Catan‘) is coming to VR soon, and you could get a chance to play it before anyone else in the closed beta.

Created by Experiment 7 in conjunction with Asmodee Digital, and Klaus and Benjamin Teuber, Catan VR is headed to Oculus Rift and Samsung Gear VR sometime soon (including cross-play).

While there’s still no precise launch date, you can now sign up for the closed beta. The game is said to offer all of the classic gameplay of the original with the added benefit of player vs. AI as well as online gameplay.

With the news of the impending beta, the studio has also released several images of the game, revealing a little more about what to expect.

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image courtesy Experiment 7
image courtesy Experiment 7
image courtesy Experiment 7
image courtesy Experiment 7
image courtesy Experiment 7

We’ll be going hands-on at some point, so check back soon for our impressions.

In the announcement trailer, game’s original inventor Klaus Teuber said he was “fascinated by what VR has to offer,” and that he “never imagined actually stepping into the world of Catan when we first started making cut-outs and dreaming about exploring new lands.”

VR game studio Experiment 7 also created Magic Table Chess and Dungeon Chess, two fantasy-based VR chess game for Oculus Rift.

Experiment 7 says additional VR platforms are to follow, possibly meaning HTC Vive users will get a crack at it too.

The post ‘Catan VR’ to Launch Free Closed Beta Soon, First Images Emerge appeared first on Road to VR.