Category: telepath

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Waltz of the Wizard’s Latest ‘Telepath’ Movement Showcases the Possible Future of VR Locomotion

Waltz of the Wizard

Virtual reality (VR) developers the world over are trying to create comfortable movement systems for virtual exploration, expanding upon standard smooth or teleportation locomotion. In 2017 Aldin Dynamics released ‘Telepath’ for Waltz of the Wizard, offering a solution between the two. Now the studio has released further improvements to the feature whilst preparing for a major gameplay expansion.

Waltz of the Wizard

Currently only available for the PC VR version of Waltz of the Wizard: Extended Edition, the new Telepath update offers players more advanced features to experiment with.

The original Telepath allowed users to draw a line where they wanted to walk, the videogame then followed this path, whether it was a small one around a room or down a long corridor. Players would then automatically move between smaller points along this path.

The update introduces features which include Presence Control, a Smooth option, along with Arc Roll. Presence Control ensures that Telepath isn’t some rigid locomotion system, that it can be adaptable. So you can physically step away to dodge an incoming projectile or smash a crate and Telepath will pause, resuming once you return, no button presses required.

Waltz of the Wizard

A smooth option has been added so players have an alternative to the step-based mode. Gradually moving along the path, smooth movement can also be sped up by physically moving your hands. Arc Roll then takes Telepath’s line drawing a step further, rolling sideways with a twist of the wrist to get around corners or other obstacles.

What’s most exciting about these and future developments are Aldin Dynamics plans for Oculus Quest. The studio previously detailed its experiments with hand tracking on the headset and now it seems implementation isn’t too far away. Combined with Telepath, Waltz of the Wizard: Extended Edition could offer one of the most natural and comfortable VR locomotion systems yet.

Waltz of the Wizard: Extended Edition lets you become a powerful sorcerer, combining arcane ingredients into a boiling cauldron to create all manner of spells. You can then step out of your sanctuary and embark on quests to unleash your new magical skills.

As further details are released, VRFocus will let you know.

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‘Telepath’ Movement System Could be a Great Fit for Quest Controllerless Hand-tracking

Controller-less hand-tracking (like what’s currently available as an experimental feature on Quest) has a handful of advantages over using controllers, like convenience and intuitiveness. However, common VR game actions like shooting and moving are difficult to do with hand-gestures alone. Aldin, the studio behind Waltz of the Wizard, has developed a new approach to VR locomotion called Telepath, and it could be a great fit for controller-less hand-tracking.

Aldin rolled out the first-generation of its Telepath system back in late 2017 with its VR classic, Waltz of the Wizard. The system lived on in an expanded version of the game, Waltz of the Wizard: Extended Edition, when it launched in 2019. Today the studio revealed an upgraded version of Telepath with new features that improve and refine the locomotion scheme.

In a blog post the studio overviewed its purpose behind Telepath which it says is to make an intuitive movement system which is comfortable and doesn’t discourage physical player movement. They also show how the Telepath system can work quite seamlessly with controller-less hand-tracking; if true that’s a boon because there is no simple way to effectively map thumbstick locomotion to hand gestures.

The new Telepath system is available as of today in Waltz of the Wizard: Extended Edition, and Aldin says it will roll out Quest once Oculus allows developers to publish content which makes use of the headset’s hand-tracking capabilities.

The studio previously explained its ‘Ghostline’ analytics system which it uses to understand player behavior in depth; the studio says that the data shows that Telepath is comfortable and causes players to be more physically interactive with the VR world compared to thumbstick movement. While teleport and thumbstick movement are available in the game, Aldin says that 90% of users chose to stick with Teleport after being told that the other options were available.

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Three Totally Creative Uses of Quest Hand-tracking

Beyond demonstrating the ability for Telepath to work with controller-less hand-tracking, Aldin is also rolling out new Telepath features: Presence Control, Smooth Motion Mode, and Arc Roll.

Oculus Quest has experimental controller-less hand-tracking which can be enabled in the headset’s settings. Developers aren’t yet permitted to publish applications that use the tech. | Image courtesy Oculus

Presence Control, as Aldin calls it, attempts to understand player intent without any button presses while adjusting the movement along a given path in real-time. The studio gives the example of being able to step away from the path to stop and interact with an object that catches your eye before continuing forward, or ducking behind an object for cover and having movement automatically pause.

While the default Telepath system moves players in short dashes along the path, the new Smooth Motion Mode instead moves players smoothly. While this may be less comfortable for those more sensitive to artificial motion, it can be more immersive for players that are ok with it. Granted, Alind says Smooth Movement Mode tends to be more comfortable than regular thumbstick movement.

Arc Roll is a new feature which makes it easier to draw more complex paths, including around corners and through doorways. It works by taking into account the rotation of the player’s wrist to influence the control of the path cursor.

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Oculus 'Designing for Hands' Document Introduces Best Practices for Quest Hand-tracking

Aldin says it plans to continue to develop Telepath to refine its features and continue to focus on measuring player intent—especially through new signals like eye-tracking—to make the system feel as natural as possible.

The post ‘Telepath’ Movement System Could be a Great Fit for Quest Controllerless Hand-tracking appeared first on Road to VR.

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‘Waltz of the Wizard’ Gets Substantial Update Including New Locomotion Scheme and Combat Area

Waltz of the Wizard, an uncommonly high-quality VR wizard experience from Reykjavik-based Aldin Dynamics, just got an update today introducing a new locomotion system and a “significant” expansion to the potion-mixing magical experience including  an entirely new area full of traps and supernatural guardians.

Aldin details the update in a blog post, where they introduce
‘Telepath’, a new VR locomotion style that combines elements of teleporting and linear movement. Critically, Aldin maintains Telepath “encourages greater physical engagement and simultaneously minimizes risk of discomfort.”

According to the company, Telepath is a path-based system that lets users instantly define where to go and how to get there with a wave of the hand. Effectively it functions a bit like a user-defined on-rails teleport that speeds-up forward motion when you make natural, running hand gestures. Much like the zero-G locomotion scheme seen in games such as a Lone Echo (2017) or Climbey (2016), tying artificial movement to real-world motion significantly reduces the discomfort associated with VR locomotion.

Aldin continues:

Artificial locomotion may never feel like an adequate substitute for physical movement, but there’s no solid way around play area limitations. For now our best option is to make VR locomotion systems that feel as natural and unintrusive as possible, for the broadest range of users.

Telepath’s basic implementation comes alongside a new area just outside the Wizard’s tower, which lets you engage in basic combat with some very imposing figures.

Aldin Dynamics remains one of the most experienced VR studios in the world, launching software on Oculus developer kits and Gear VR. It’s Ghostline VR analytics software, showcased in Waltz of the Wizard, was also used in the construction of games such as SUPERHOT VR (2017) and The Gallery: Call of the Starseed (2016).

Waltz of the Wizard currently holds a [10/10] rating on Steam with over 200,000 owners, beating out Valve’s own demo experience The Lab (2016) and making it the most popular VR-only game on the digital marketplace.

You can download Waltz of the Wazard for free with support for Oculus Rift and HTC Vive on Steam here.

The post ‘Waltz of the Wizard’ Gets Substantial Update Including New Locomotion Scheme and Combat Area appeared first on Road to VR.