Category: WalkinVR

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The VR Game Launch Roundup: Super Retro Puzzle Adventures

Iron Man VR header2

Welcome to another Friday roundup of the best virtual reality (VR) titles due for release over the next seven days. There’s quite an assortment in store especially if you’re a PlayStation VR owner who loves collecting physical editions of their games.

WalkinVR

WalkinVR – 2MW

Ok so this isn’t technically a videogame rather an add-on for PC VR titles but VRFocus thought it was worth including this week. WalkinVR is a piece of software designed to help those with physical disabilities play VR experiences.

Shooty Skies Overdrive – Mighty Games

Some retro-inspired goodness from Australian studio Mighty Games, Shooty Skies Overdrive takes the original mobile title and gives it a VR makeover. With one hand control a plane to shoot down waves of enemies and with the other grab power-ups to cause even more destruction.

Shooty Skies Overdrive

Iron Man VR – Camouflag

The big VR launch of the week is one PlayStation VR fans have been awaiting for a little while now. Having suffered a number of delays, Camoflaj’s Iron Man VR needs minimal introduction. Jump in the famous armour of the Marvel character and fly around shooting down enemies; what more could you want?

  • Supported platforms: PlayStation VR
  • Release date: 3rd July

Gun Club VR – The Binary Mill

Part of Perp Games’ Summer Spectacular of physical PlayStation VR releases, Gun Club VR is a first-person shooter (FPS) focused on highly realistic weapons and gameplay mechanics, set in a shooting range.

  • Supported platforms: PlayStation VR (Physical copy)
  • Release date: 3rd July
Down The Rabbit Hole

Down the Rabbit Hole – Cortopia Studio

Previously released for PlayStation VR digitally at the beginning of May, Perp Games once again brings another title to retail locations, this time Cortopia Studios’ Down the Rabbit Hole. This magical adventure puts you as an unnamed girl who’s searching for her pet, stumbling upon Wonderland in the process.

  • Supported platforms: PlayStation VR (Physical copy)
  • Release date: 3rd July
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WalkinVR Add-on Makes VR More Accessible to Disabled Gamers, Steam Launch Next Week

WalkinVR is a custom locomotion driver for SteamVR which offers a range of tools to help gamers with disabilities adapt VR games to their needs. The utility is set to launch for free on Steam next week.

WalkinVR first launched in beta back in 2017. Developer Grzegorz Bednarski says the reception to the utility was positive enough to encourage him to continue building the tool and adding new VR accessibility features to help gamers with disabilities enjoy VR. Next week, on June 29th, WalkinVR 2.0 will launch on Steam for free.

The tool, which supports any SteamVR headset, has four primary features which can be tweaked on the fly.

‘Virtual Move’ allows players to use motion controllers to move themselves around the virtual world without physically moving around their playspace, including the ability to virtual crouch and stand.

‘Motion Range and Boost’ makes it possible to change the origin point of the motion controllers (ie: raise the player’s virtual hands from a resting height up to shoulder height) and to amplify movement so that small physical movements like reaching or twisting a controller become larger virtual movements to aid with interacting with the game and its environment.

Image courtesy WalkinVR

‘Hand Tracking’ allows the position of motion controllers to be emulated based on the user’s hand position as tracked by an external motion tracking sensor (like Kinect), benefitting gamers who have trouble gripping a motion controller.

 

That pairs well with the ‘Xbox Controller Move’ function which allows another person to assist the player in the headset by using a gamepad to emulate VR controller inputs—like using the sticks, triggers, or grip buttons—to help gamers who can’t control the inputs on their own.

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WalkinVR is set to launch on Steam on June 29th. While the add-on is free and all features are unlocked, users will have the option to purchase the Premium version of the app to support the developers and remove a brief pop-up inside the headset.

The post WalkinVR Add-on Makes VR More Accessible to Disabled Gamers, Steam Launch Next Week appeared first on Road to VR.

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WalkinVR SteamVR Utility Adds Accessibility Options To PC VR

A new SteamVR utility aims to make virtual reality more accessible to users with physical disabilities, such as those who are can only perform certain actions or have limited movement options. The software is highly customizable and covers a range of different situations.

The software, called WalkinVR, releases on June 29 on Steam and works directly with SteamVR in order to provide options for VR users who have physical disabilities. For example, if a user is in a wheelchair, it may difficult for them to physically turn or move while in VR. With WalkinVR, the user could be assisted by a third party, who uses an Xbox controller to make movements or positional adjustments for the VR user. Alternatively, WalkinVR also provides options to bind movement options to controller buttons, enabling the user to use a VR controller to simulate any required real-life movement that they may not be able to physically perform.

This is just one example of what WalkinVR can do — there are many more. If a user’s ability to move a controller is minimal or restricted, WalkinVR can dynamically adjust small or restricted controller movement to represent larger actions when translated into VR. Basically, slow or small movement of a controller in real life can be adjusted to be interpreted as a a faster or larger movement in VR. You can see this in action in the video embedded above.

One notable feature is the ability to use a Kinect device to track a user’s hands and translate this to controller movement in VR. This is aimed at users who are can’t fully grip or use controller.

As the software is for SteamVR, it is only available for PC VR headsets or Oculus Quest when using it via Oculus Link.

WalkinVR is available on Steam from June 29.

The post WalkinVR SteamVR Utility Adds Accessibility Options To PC VR appeared first on UploadVR.

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WalkinVR’s Solution Removes Physical Disability Barriers to VR Gaming

WalkinVR

Developer Grzegorz Bednarski has been working on his solution to help remove any gameplay barriers people with physical disabilities may find with virtual reality (VR) for several years now. Called WalkinVR, the SteamVR compatible software has been available in beta form since 2017, next week it’ll officially launch on Steam.

WalkinVR

As VR technology has evolved and matured so has the gameplay, moving away from gamepad or 3DoF controls to far more physical, roomscale interactions. While this has allowed for more creative and immersive worlds to be built, not all players have the range of motion needed to play these titles.

WalkinVR is designed to offer an all-in-one solution to aid those who love or want to enjoy VR gaming but don’t have the necessary physical movement to play a lot of the experiences available.

The software offers a wealth of options to cover various disabilities such as those who have suffered a stroke, are in a wheelchair or have spinal muscular atropy for example. These can cause a range of issues when playing a VR videogame, from turning to holding motion controllers at the required height to interact with the environment.

WalkinVR

So WalkinVR‘s features include enhancing movement range of the hands, virtual movement for turning, leaning and crouching. If a player has weak hands or spastics then hands can be tracked with the help of a Kinect or Azure device. Should pressing buttons pose an issue then a third-party can assist through a gamepad, pressing the required button where required.

WalkinVR is scheduled to launch via Steam on 29th June 2020, supporting Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index and Windows Mixed Reality headsets. There will be free and premium versions, working with all videogames and applications available on SteamVR. VRFocus will continue its coverage of WalkinVR, reporting back with further updates.

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‘Driver4VR’ Emulates Vive Trackers With Kinect for Cheap VR Body Tracking

A new SteamVR mod from the developer behind WalkinVR now allows body tracking by emulating Vive Trackers via Kinect’s motion sensing data, enabling an inexpensive solution for full body motion tracking in VR. The driver, available at the official Driver4VR site, works for both Rift and Vive when running SteamVR; this could be particularly interesting for Rift users, as Oculus currently offer no ‘Vive Tracker’ equivalent.

Since the launch of the Vive Tracker earlier this year, impressive full-body motion capture has been demonstrated through the use of three Tracker units, in combination with the two tracked controllers and headset. But at $99 each, this is another expensive upgrade for VR gamers; only a small selection of VR titles have enabled full-body functionality, such as Tornufallo, The Path of Greatest Resistance and Climbey.

Driver4VR’s emulation of three Trackers using a single Kinect makes for a much more affordable solution for both Vive and Rift users. Microsoft’s hardware is easily the most widely spread and inexpensive full-body tracker on the market (now priced at just $45, plus $40 for the PC adapter), and has proven to be an invaluable tool for many developers experimenting with VR.

This is the second project from Grzegorz Bednarski, the developer behind the WalkinVR driver for people with physical disabilities. As shown in the setup video above, the Driver4VR installation is simple, with calibration steps to align the virtual trackers to Kinect data. While there are apparently no problems with Oculus’ ‘constellation’ tracking, the Kinect’s infrared projector can interfere with the Vive’s tracking—particularly the newer ‘Kinect 2.0’ model for Xbox One. Some users are finding success with both models, but the developer recommends Vive users use the original Kinect (rather unfortunate as Kinect 2.0 is more accurate).

For now, Driver4VR has some limitations, as it only works effectively when facing directly towards the Kinect sensor, and the accuracy is significantly lower than using real Vive Trackers. Bednarski has plans to improve the tracking quality, and is testing the feasibility of using wearable LED bands to increase the precision, as well as using two Kinects for 360 tracking.

The post ‘Driver4VR’ Emulates Vive Trackers With Kinect for Cheap VR Body Tracking appeared first on Road to VR.

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WalkinVR Showcases its VR Accessibility Software with new Videos

A couple of months ago VRFocus reported on WalkinVR, a piece of software designed to make virtual reality (VR) more accessible for those with disabilities. Recently WalkinVR released some videos showcasing how its software works.

Designed to be used by anyone who needs a wheelchair, maybe bed-bound or has the use of one arm, WalkinVR supports both Oculus Rift and HTC Vive through SteamVR at present.

“WalkinVR aims at giving users with physical disabilities the freedom of unlimited movement in virtual reality. The Driver enables them to rotate and move around a virtual environment without the need of lower body motion using any VR Config in SteamVR environment,” developer Grzegorz Bednarski told VRFocus.

Bednarski plans to extend that support which can be seen in the first video. “Currently work is being done on Release 2 that will allow people with other disabilities to enjoy VR as well, he continued. “That will include spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) where problem is with keeping hands high due to weak muscles. Additionally WalkinVR will allow more control using classic gamepad so people with hand disabilities can take some of the control using their feet.”

WalkinVR is already available to download from the official website for €32 EUR. Checkout how Bednarski is making VR more accessible and for further updates on WalkinVR, keep reading VRFocus.