Virtual Reality (VR) is currently used as a tool to train upcoming crime scene specialists in both the professional working world and even in forensic science modules that are taught in NUS. I like this application of VR as I have an interest in True Crime/CSI and I believe the application of crime scene reconstruction in a VR World has a huge capability in aiding investigators in solving criminal cases. Reconstructing and saving a crime scene in a 3D virtual space may also help investigators re-visit a scene and potentially solving cold cases.
Having an advanced crime scene construction saved in a virtual space would provide more intuition for investigators or students to solve crimes rather than the traditional photographs of textual evidence of a crime scene.
Why they are engaging
VR has made learning more hands-on and intuitive. Rather than relying past case studies of photographs and textual evidence of the crime scene, students are fully immersed in a virtual environment where they get a fuller picture of a crime scene. There, they are better able to spot subtle clues more clearly, such as handprints or gunpowder soot for example.
Before VR entered the picture, setting up a mock crime scene was a very laborious process and a physical set had to be packed with clues and then later unpacked once students finished with their investigations. With VR, a click of a mouse enables students to start their training with different configurations and different crime scenes without much overhead.
Features that are done well
During training, HUD’s that may block the student’s view are limited are rarely used, allowing them to fully immerse into the setting of a crime scene investigation.
The VR system also allows fellow students to see the headset wearer’s field of vision. Fellow students can direct the headset wearer to pick out details of clues they may have missed. When students interact with each other through the investigation, they can help sharpen one another’s analytical skill and correct each other’s methods on the spot.
The student’s actions that are taken during the virtual investigation are also logged and can later be easily reviewed by themselves or an instructor. They can then reflect on what went wrong or what went right during their mock investigation.
What can be improved
Of course, VR in this application still has its limitations. The controllers used in VR are essentially joysticks and cannot fully simulate the flexibilities of a human hand, which is important when learning proper techniques to handle evidence or risk damaging them. Perhaps when VR applications become more advanced and widely used, sensors in each fingers can be used instead of a controller to mimic the controllers of the human hand.
The graphics in the VR world may also not be entirely convincing enough to set an atmosphere of a heavy crime scene in order to completely immerse a student.
However, VR is ultimately still a beneficial tool in helping students learn better, be better engaged and also have more fun while learning.
AR (augmented reality) is the integration of text, graphics, audio, and other virtual enhancements with real-world objects in real-time. In the military, the use of AR has evolved significantly, proving itself to be a vital upgrade where better information can be that decisive factor in determining matters of life and death. One such use is the utilisation of AR in increasing the quality and precision of night vision by feeding the surrounding terrain into the goggles and enhancing images with silhouettes to provide better target location, distance, and depth (see Video 1). As another interesting application of AR, it might be used as an immersive 3-dimensional pre-mission sandbox to learn the terrain before heading out on a mission (see Video 2).
History is replete with examples of wars won with superior technology and access to information (Ahir et. al., 2020). In modern warfare, AR applications are a game-changer and a competitive advantage. The use of enhanced night-vision goggles for covert intrusions into enemy territory coupled with pre-mission terrain practice increases spatial orientation and situational awareness, thereby increasing mission success. Through these capabilities, soldiers are able to train for real-world situations without risk of injury. Battle strategies are evaluated, modified, tested and tested again in anticipation of potential issues to arrive at the best possible outcome given operational constraints. I appreciate that such AR technology has the potential to alter the course of war.
Why is it engaging?
By overlaying digital content on top of the physical world, AR technology creates a wholly immersive and lifelike experience for the user. Using the holographic tactical sandbox as an example, it can give tacticians instant information, deeper understanding of the battlefield, such as the height of the terrain, and even the ability to stage mock battles to practice combat maneuvers. This would not have been possible a decade ago, when war simulations were based on human judgment using rudimentary tools such as 2D physical maps, figurines and props. As a result, it is interesting since it expands the military’s options for what is achievable in technical warfare.
The current state of TAR and what can be improved
In determining the optimum method to use the AR, the designers of the AR-assisted night vision goggles did a thorough job of surveying their target audience and taking into account what modern soldiers are used to. For instance, the modern soldier is used to playing videogames. Thus, the designers incorporated game like designs into their visual display such as Sobel-like white lines that mimic gave avatars in videogames.
However, I believe there is room for improvements with the goggles’ visual HUD. The color and position of the clock display and compass are hard to view from the user’s perspective, as seen in the screenshot above. A potential upgrade could be to give users the option to alter the display’s positioning, on/off status, and color scheme or perhaps map elements to the hand similar to VR videogames.
For the tactical sandbox, its architecture allows for real-time communication between several parties without their physical presence being necessary. This feature considered real-world situations where not every level of military command would be present at the same location. Plans can be accepted immediately thanks to the sandbox’s ability to facilitate remote participation and expedite the chain of command.
However, one feature that may need improvement is the UI elements that represent the sandbox’s routes and enemy positions. It was difficult to distinguish the areas with intense firing from the areas with dense population. During war simulations, the ability to toggle it off or change how the routes look may be a welcomed option.
Conclusion
In conclusion, utilizing AR technology provides many advantages over the present military deployment approach. It gives soldiers better information and new strategies for gaining the upper hand tactically. While the military may not currently use much AR technology in actual missions, it will undoubtedly advance and eventually become a standard requirement in this age of technological warfare.
Citations
Ahir, K., Govani, K., Gajera, R., & Shah, M. (2020). Application on virtual reality for enhanced education learning, military training and sports. Augmented Human Research, 5(1), 1-9.
Assembling or performing maintenance on an aircraft are difficult tasks that require a lot of precision and focus in order to ensure that the aircraft functions correctly. Technicians and engineers make use of many different diagrams, indicating elements such as electrical wiring, cable management, machinery and such. But even after undergoing rigorous learning and training, their work can be very time-consuming.
Boeing and augmented reality
Therefore Boeing started to develop a new project : using augmented reality for maintenance and inspection of aircrafts. Equipped with AR goggles, one can inspect the aircraft in order to work on its assembly or repairs and modifications.
AR goggles worn by electricians. Source : Boeing
Checking the electrical wiring can be done in real-time, without having to move or touch anything. The goggles display 3D diagrams and instructions, and allow a technician to interact instead of relying on a paper diagram. This use of AR here drastically improves both the quality and efficiency of the work, in a very technical domain where mistakes cannot be allowed.
Displaying wires in AR. Source : Boeing
My personal take
What really impresses me is the very technical application of AR on a very difficult domain to master. Hopefully it can help engineers and technicians to achieve their work faster, with more accuracy and confidence. Another point that I like is the see-through vision, just like x-ray vision where you can see what kind of cables or piece of machinery might be hidden and not directly visible.
Possible improvements
One of the possible improvements I can think of is installing multiple sensors and detectors on all the different pieces of equipment in the aircraft. This way you can see the in real-time status and check the durability or look for failures for example. Another possible option could be having a more user friendly interface and instructions, so it can be used for leisure or educational purposes such as in museums.
The Room VR: A Dark Matter is a room escape game released in March 2020 by the Fireproof Studios. Being the fifth series to the renowned mobile room escape games, the company decided to develop their game in VR this time to offer a more fascinating and different experience to their fans.
In the game, the player is allocated the role of a detective investigating on a case of a missing Egyptologist. Through interacting with nearby objects and solving hands-on puzzles within a realistic environment, the player will be absorbed into the game as the truth unfolds before their eyes.
Why is it engaging?
Room escape has traditionally been a popular genre existing in mobile, PC, and even offline settings to cater to the needs of puzzle and investigation fanatics around the world. Among the platforms offering such games, the most immersive experience would be through a physical room escape game. However, the offline experience is rather expensive, and often lacking in quality as there are limitations to how an investigative environment could be recreated in the enclosed area. For mobile and PC settings, the graphical immersion was there but the absence of on-hands activities was rather disappointing.
The emergence of VR versions of room escape games was thus revolutionary, as it solved all aforementioned problems. Realism was brought through a 360 degrees graphic environment which provided the appropriate atmosphere to the players without having movement limitations in a confined area, and players were able to interact with the necessary items with their hands, instead of merely clicking onto some item with the tip of their fingers and expecting it to magically go full screen.
Even among those VR room escape games out in the market, The Room VR: A Dark Matter was an especially engaging game due to its excellent graphics that blends in well with the creepy surroundings, and smooth interactivity with in-game objects. The field of VR room escape has advanced immensely during the past few years, and The Room VR: A Dark Matter may not be the very best VR room escape game out there now, but it still remains as one of the top and a good introduction to the world of VR room escape in my opinion.
What features are well done?
VR-exclusive interactivity
The interactive element in The Room VR: A Dark Matter is remarkable, and the immersion experience is right on the spot. Players can hold onto puzzle items and inspect them, looking at the item from different perspectives or placing them into or onto applicable locations. One of the exciting cases of interactivity was when lifelike hand movements were required for game progress, such as holding a key, pressing it onto the keyhole, turning the key, grabbing the doorknob, and pushing it down to open the door. The 1st person viewpoint was also fully utilized in the game. Some puzzles allowed the player to have different viewpoints of the same locations, which would have not felt the same if the puzzle was carried out in over a flat screen. Despite the fact that VR is generally already room-escape friendly due to the nature of it in which view is not restricted and all 360 degrees can be looked around for investigation, the interactive element in this game did not stop there but attempted to provide players with VR-exclusive experience especially with the hand consoles and 1st person viewpoints.
Graphics and sound
Another element that elevated the VR experience of The Room VR: A Dark Matter was the quality of the graphical backgrounds and the appropriate usage of sound effects. Faithful to the storyline settings of 1908, the in-game objects feel antique, and the seemingly old texture further enhances this effect. As the player progresses further in the game, the scale and the quality of the environments and surrounding objects only gets better, and the player is pulled deeply into the game. The remarkable graphics were a result of intensive research by the developers, who referred to real-life buildings, objects, and historical records to replicate them as realistically as possible, which was reflected in the delicate modelling. The 3-D sound effects and background music certainly added on to the immersion aspect of the game by creating an eerie atmosphere throughout and making suitable sound effects when objects were moved.
Minimal unnecessary real-life movements
One problem regarding VR games is that sometimes physical movement is obligatory. This may not be an issue for short games like those available in VR cafes, but as the gametime increases, extensive movements exhaust the players and limit their playtime, and the weight of the headset does not help either. The Room VR: A Dark Matter resolved this issue by allowing the players to select whether they would like to progress in sitting mode, which literally means that the player can have the full game experience comfortably on a chair. In addition, unnecessary movements such as bending down were not required and movements were limited to hand controllers, allowing the players to enjoy the game in space-restricted conditions as well.
User-friendliness
User-friendly settings were also observed in the game. There were no fixed HUDs in the game that blocked the players’ view, allowing them to immerse into the beautifully structured graphics in the game. UI only popped up when necessary, such as when items needed to be retrieved from the inventory or text information needed to be shown. The most appreciated component of the game was the easily approachable hint function to help players who needed guidance. The hints were very obvious and impossible to miss out on, allowing for a smooth continuation of the game.
A user-friendly element out of gameplay was that the game provided multilingual services for non-English speakers, of surprisingly decent quality that did not hinder the storyline or puzzles. This was something to commend them for as game translations are often done haphazardly in non-English languages, leading to awkward game experiences.
What features can be improved and how?
Although the game is one of the best VR games that is able to provide a captivating experience to the players, I would like to point out some features that could be improved on.
Limited content
The Room VR: A Dark Matter is a puzzle-based room escape game with a storyline. Due to the nature of the genre, there is no replay value of this game for most players. Furthermore, gameplay usually takes around three to six hours only, making some players feel that the game lacks in content. Another area of disappointment was that contrary to the previous series where multiple endings were shown depending on the user’s gameplay, there was only a single ending to this game. In my opinion, more endings or DLCs for additional storylines could be provided by the developers such that the game will not be a one-time experience, but something to look back on more frequently.
Limited non-puzzle item interactivity
A major forte of VR games is the possibility of being able to interact with surrounding elements, creating a sense of realism and immersivity into the game when combined with the 360 degrees environment. The Room VR: A Dark Matter has succeeded in providing such experience regarding items needed for solving the puzzles, but for objects that were not required in the main playthrough of the game, that was not the case. Comparatively unimportant objects were stripped of any interaction, given the sole role of being graphic backgrounds. This sometimes pulled the player out of absorption upon realising that the world was still quite limited, and their surroundings were mere graphics, especially when they were stuck. A suggestion to this issue is to add interactable elements to prop items around the user, which could be small interactions such as holding those items just to take a closer look or giving short text descriptions. Being able to interact with items regardless of their importance would also increase the difficulty of the game, which would eventually lead to a longer playtime, becoming another solution to the aforementioned issue – short playtime.
Teleportation
The developers have decided that movements in-game would be carried out through teleportation, which may be appealing to some users in the sense that walking time and real-life movement space is saved, and there is lesser possibility of motion sickness. There are some portions in the game in which movement can only be explained by teleportation, so there is no doubt to why the developers decided to adopt this method in the game. However, it is indisputable that teleportation for a walkable distance is an unrealistic element that may cause disruptions to a user’s VR experience. During movements between open locations, a short animation of walking towards the area of interest, followed by a fadeout scene to create an impression that the player had “walked” to their destination could be provided. For users who would be more concerned about time wasted during transport rather than the quality of the walking animation, there could be an option to turn off walking animations to provide full on-spot teleporting services like how the game is now.
Conclusion
As a fan of room escape games regardless of whether they are on mobile or offline venues, I was highly intrigued by the existence of a VR room escape, and my expectations were met with this game. Although the playtime was short, the movie-like graphical presentations and interactive elements allowed me to be deeply immersed into the storyline. Despite some awkwardness with hand movements, which is inevitable in the world of VR, the console-hand interactivity in the game was fabulous and the experience was amazing. I highly recommend this game as an introductory step to those who have not experienced VR room escape, or even room escape games in general before.
References
[1] “The Room VR: A Dark Matter” Fireproof Studios. [Online] Available: https://www.fireproofgames.com/games/the-room-vr-a-dark-matter (Last accessed: 16-Jan-2023)
Beat Saber is a VR rhythm game released in 2019, and has been a great success, with 96% of more than 60k reviews for the game on Steam being positive. It’s a game that I’m certain many have seen before or at least heard of.
Regardless of the player’s level of experience with rhythm games, the gameplay is intuitive enough for any new player to grasp quickly, especially since the controls are simply an extension of one’s own arms.
While I have not personally played Beat Saber due to a lack of the required hardware, I have been an avid player of rhythm games for more than a decade, and I feel that I am well equipped to give the game a reasonably well-substantiated writeup from the viewpoint of someone with such experience.
Revolutionising rhythm games
Before the introduction of Beat Saber, rhythm games have been primarily played on mobile devices, PCs, and arcades. Rhythm games tend to stick to a very standard formula: notes fly at you and you click on them at the right timing. They mostly vary in how the standard formula is implemented: namely how the notes fly at you, and how you click them.
Some of the more innovative implementations include Cytus for phones, osu! for PCs, and many various titles for arcades. However as time progressed, it becomes harder to create innovative variations of the standard rhythm game formula, especially for phones and PCs, due to the limited types of inputs that could be used. Arcade rhythm games on the other hand are able to continue innovating, as they are not restricted by the hardware.
With the advent of VR technology, Beat Saber is able to utilise the new input methods available to PCs and bring something similar to the arcade experience to the home.
With access to input in the third dimension, Beat Saber uses a very natural twist on the classic vertically scrolling system widely seen in many rhythm games. Instead of having the notes scroll vertically down the y-axis, they come towards the player in the z-axis.
While this is very intuitive, it comes at the cost of players not having a clear visual cue about when the notes should be hit. Most rhythm games do have some sort of judgement line which users can use as an accurate reference of when the note should be hit.
Having the notes come towards the player also comes at the cost of each note potentially occluding the note directly behind it, which might end up either restricting chart design or making memory an important part of playing some charts. This is especially impactful since the player needs to actually be able to see the arrow on the note to hit the note properly.
Straying from the classic formula
On the topic of players not having a clear visual cue about the accurate timing of each note, it is worth noting that unlike a classic rhythm game where the player gets a higher score for hitting the note at the right time, Beat Saber scores players based on the angle and position of the cut.
The rhythm aspect still exists. There is a sweet spot that is around 44ms long where your swing will net you more points by virtue of slicing the note at the right timing. However, this sweet spot is rather lenient when compared to other rhythm games, which typically have a timing window around 33ms.
This is a great change to make the game more focused on mindlessly slashing the notes to the beat, improving the immersion the player would experience, as well as making the game more forgiving for new players. Since the player has to move more to hit the note as well, the larger timing window also accounts for the further distance the player’s hands have to travel to hit the note.
Focusing on the cut also ensures that the player would move as much as the game intended, making the slicing aspect of the game feel more satisfying. This however does come at the cost of requiring players to move more, making them more exhausted than they already are.
Making use of the whole body
Besides just having notes to slice, Beat Saber also has bombs and walls that the player is supposed to dodge with their body. This makes use of the player’s whole body in a way that very few other rhythm games in the market have done at that time, fully immersing the player to move to the song and working out their whole body instead of just their arms.
Before the advent of VR, such body tracking was hard to achieve at home. Some dancing-based rhythm games like Dance Evolution for the arcade or the Just Dance series have done this before, but it is hard to consider these games as pure rhythm games due to the lack of distinct notes to be hit at a certain time.
Beat Saber does a great job of mixing the full-motion of the dancing games with the core rhythm game mechanic of hitting notes at the right time, bringing the best of both worlds into one single game.
A vibrant community to fill a gap
The core game itself does not actually contain that many songs, with approximately 100 songs as of writing this. For reference, Project Sekai, another popular rhythm game that was released more than a year later, has more than double of that.
Furthermore, the songs in Beat Saber are mostly Western songs, which might alienate the most dedicated fanbase for rhythm games: East Asians. A lot of rhythm games primarily use electronic music composed by some well-established Japanese and Korean composers that specialise in rhythm game music.
It is puzzling why the developers went in this direction, since most hardcore rhythm game players are very familiar with and love the typical style of eastern electronic music. Perhaps they wished to appeal to the larger western market which might not have as much experience in rhythm games.
The Beat Saber community clearly recognises this as a big problem, as there is a large community with more than 250k members on their discord channel completely focused around modding the game to add their own songs to the game. However this is also a big draw of the game: being able to make your own charts and play your favourite songs. The PC rhythm game osu! also does this, and it is also a big draw of the game.
The future of VR rhythm games
Rhythm games in classic platforms like the phone come in many forms: classic vertically scrolling games like Deemo, having the judgement line move like in Cytus, playing in a circle like Lanota, or having notes come in multiple directions like Dynamix.
It would be nice for Beat Saber or other VR rhythm game titles to not only experiment with ways that the notes are hit, but also how the notes approach the user. This is the key aspect in keeping the gameplay of rhythm games distinct from each other, and I fully anticipate to see a whole array of innovations in this aspect as VR technology matures.
Conclusion
Beat Saber is a great adaptation of the classic rhythm game formula to fit the VR context. The controls are intuitive, and with a satisfying way to hit each note and a scoring system that rewards the cleanest slices, Beat Saber sits solidly among the top few rhythm games in terms of the fun factor.
It makes good use of the unique characteristics of VR, immersing users in the experience of grooving to the music while slicing to the beat the approaches you in the third dimension.
It’s a great game that many enjoy playing, and one that I would love to try out someday too.
The Dagger of Time is a 2-4 player virtual reality escape game created by Ubisoft. The game requires players to make use of the tools found inside the virtual world, interact with the objects and solve the puzzles.
I enjoyed this game a lot because the puzzle design are very intuitive, and the game attempted to design the tools in a way where it’s usage is not achivable in reality (such as stopping and going back in time).
Why is it engaging?
Escaping from an open space
Escaping in the virtual world is a total different experience compared to doing it in reality. In the physical world, players are usually given a realistic story, brought to an enclosed space and escape by exploring around a few rooms. However, VR allows the game designers to be imaginative so that the players are now able to explore an open space, which is a lot more spacial. Players can also use their controllers to grab onto things and do actions such as climbing and swinging, which can be extremely fun and engaging, especially for first timers.
Creative usage of tools
In the game, each player gets a different special tool that gives them distinct abilities, so that every individual can be useful in some part of the game. When I played the game, I got the dagger of time, which allows me to control the time in the game. My friend got a sword which allows her to break things and explore more. Here, communication and collaboration becomes extremely important as players will not be able to progress without one another.
Easy to learn
The game controls are designed in a way such that first timers are able to learn it without reading much text and introduction, which might affect their experience in VR games. This game made use of a one-button control system, so that players can interact with objects and do actions just by pressing one single button on their controller. By doing this, players are able to understand how to play in five minutes, and explore the world without needing too much actions (in reality).
Possible Improvements
Although the gameplay experience is interesting and enjoyable, I personally felt that there are still space for improvement. In The Dagger of Time, players will only be able to walk to a very near distance with their feet. If they want to travel to a location that is further away, they will need to use their controller to ‘teleport’ themselves to that place. This feature gave me a less immersive experience since I always tend to walk to any specific place (by habit), and will need to be constantly reminded by the VR shop staff that I am physically walking out of range. I believe the game could provide a even better experience if it supports equipments that allows players to travel ‘inifinitely’, such as the KAT-VR Omini-Directional Treadmill.
Conclusion
Ubisoft have published escape games that have similar gameplay with connected background stories, which could attract players to look forward to explore more about the virtual world that they are escaping in. The fact that VR allows the design of escape games to be more creative amazes me.
Rec Room is a free, social virtual reality game that allows people to get together, join one of the many worlds offered, and enjoy a wide variety of activities; most of the said activities and worlds, are also, in fact, user-created.
Rec Room’s content is mostly user-generated, similar to games such as Roblox or VRChat. The users create the world, model the objects, and script the necessary behaviours before sharing their creations for others to enjoy. Players have even gone on to recreate well-beloved games or franchises in Rec Room, such as Five Nights at Freddy’s, Uno, Wordle, Harry Potter and many more. The only limitation of what they can create is their imagination.
With many users developing content daily, it allows for a seemingly limitless number of activities for other players to engage in. Players can bowl with one another, play laser tag, do stand-up comedy and much more. With so many different activities, there is bound to be something for everyone.
But what makes this game different from Roblox or VRChat besides the graphics?
All of the games share a similar concept, players can join their friends in various activities, and they can create content and share it.
However, one of the key differences is that, unlike Roblox or VRChat where the player has to download external tools to create and script the world (VRChat uses Unity, while Roblox uses a tool called Roblox Studio), Rec Room tools are built into the game. This not only allows for a much gentle learning curve for beginners compared to the other two games but also allows users to immediately view and interact with their creations, making the process more efficient.
Rec Room. (2020, September 2). How to create in Rec Room using the Maker Pen! [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/x8WeiOfXE20
An immersive experience
While the game is available on various other devices such as mobile phones, PC, Playstation, and many more, the experience is simply not the same as compared to playing it on a VR headset.
Rec Room makes full use of the motion capture system of a VR headset. Players can freely look around the world just by moving their heads around instead of having to manually pan their screen.
The arm motions through the controllers are also replicated in-game, such as waving your arm in real life will result in your in-game avatar’s arm waving. Users can also use this functionality to interact with in-game objects; for example, to play in-game basketball, players would just need to perform actions they would normally do in real life. This also allows for more expressive and unique interactions with the world and other players.
In the game, there is also an in-game microphone that enables players to communicate with one another. The volume of their voice changes dynamically depending on the distance between their avatars.
All this makes the game feel immersive as the motions and actions in the real world are also closely reflected in the virtual world.
Rec Room. (2022, September 11). I 1v1’d THE ORIGINAL BASKETBALL MAP CREATOR | Rec Room Basketball VR Gameplay [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/0sQ3qPlxkwI
Motion Sickness? What if you don’t have your VR legs?
Motion sickness is something many suffer when they first enter virtual reality, especially so when it is their first time. This happens when users aren’t accustomed to the mixed signals received by the brain from the eyes and the inner ear (contains ‘sensors’ to help keep the body balanced).
Visually, the players see themselves moving in the virtual world, however in reality the body is stationary. This disparity between what the inner ear and eyes senses causes a disconnect among users, which in turn, causes the feeling of motion sickness and nausea. (This can also happen for first-person games, not just VR games)
Of course, one way to fix this would be to use an omnidirectional treadmill, but that’s not exactly something that can be readily obtained by most consumers. (It’s pricey and big)
Rec Room like many other VR games and applications uses the joystick of the controller to move around the world. However, Rec Room also added an additional feature, the ability to “teleport” around as a substitute for walking in the world.
This feature helps to reduce motion sickness as users are no longer forcing their inner ear to constantly adapt to the artificial motion since the visuals comes to them. Thus, making the experience much more enjoyable.
During the height of covid lockdowns, Rec Room was one of the few ways I could engage in activities with my friends.
The motions and controls are intuitive as they closely replicated the physical world. With this, my friends and I were able to play a wide variety of games without much confusion.
The user interface was also easy to understand and did not feel intrusive. All I had to do was look at my Avatar’s wrist, and a simple menu will pop up. I was even able to use hand gestures to invoke certain actions, such as shaking hands with another player to become friends or putting up a stop gesture to ignore a player. Not having to open a separate menu to perform those actions made interacting with the world much more enjoyable.
And while the visuals were simplistic, it was visually appealing and the low poly graphics suited the wide and wild variety of activities offered.
I had a fun time with my friends trying out the different activities and getting immersed in the world.
Possible Improvements
While I did have a lot of fun with Rec Room, my biggest gripe was the lack of options to adjust the volume of other players’ microphones.
Some of my friends had a softer mic, and it was hard to hear them from time to time even when their avatars were standing close by. It can also be quite disorienting in VR to hear the different volumes of voices even when the avatars are standing at the same distance from you.
There is a universal volume setting for the players’ voices, however, raising it meant every player’s microphone sound volume will also be raised. The players with a louder mic will still end up talking over those with a softer mic, thus, defeating the purpose of turning up the volume.
A possible solution will be to have a setting similar to what Discord has, where you can adjust the volume of a specific player. This will make it so that we can better hear one another and the experience won’t be ruined when you’re barely able to hear someone, or when someone with a particularly loud mic starts shouting beside you.
Rec Room is able to take advantage of what a virtual headset can offer to provide a fun and immersive VR experience for players. The controls are intuitive, the user interface and experience are pleasant, and it has a wide range of activities for players to engage in.
It is a fun game and a great experience in the virtual world that I, along with many others greatly enjoy!
Resources
Courtney, A. (2022, October 11). Rec Room Vs VRChat: Which Is The Best Social VR Game. VR Lowdown. Retrieved January 17, 2023, from https://vrlowdown.com/rec-room-vs-vrchat/
For anyone who has done some research on gaming with VR systems, Beat Saber is a title that is almost impossible to miss. Officially released in 2019, the rhythm game has since accumulated great popularity, with its Steam version currently sitting at an overwhelmingly positive review with a whooping 60,924 total reviews count[1] (as of 15th Jan 2023). Being a huge fan of all kinds of rhythm games myself, I too have tried it out myself and quickly became addicted to it too. In the following passage, I will try to explain what made Beat Saber a successful VR experience and maybe convince you to try it too.
So, what is Beat Saber?
Just as most rhythm games go, Beat Saber requires the player to follow the rhythm of a chosen piece of song, and react to the beats by swinging an imaginary lightsaber. Once the game starts and a song is selected to be played, the player is immediately immersed in a futuristic neon-lit setting. As the music starts blasting, notes represented by glowing blocks will approach the player from the front, requiring the player to swing the controller in a designated direction just as the notes reach the player. Depending on the difficulty chosen, players may also need to squat down to avoid obstacles or maintain various poses.
Adapting the pros of traditional rhythm games into virtual reality
In the world of rhythm games, a deciding factor that determines the satisfaction a player gets is the feedback provided after hitting a correct note. This feedback can appear in various forms depending on the platform of the game, and it is particularly important as it serves to ‘reward’ the player for hitting a right note. Such interactions usually happen through simulating the sense of sight and hearing, but sometimes the sense of touch is involved too. For example in the popular pc rhythm game osu!, notes glow brightly when hit at the right timing and produce a loud ‘cluck’ sound. Notes hit outside of the perfect timing window (aka a good instead of a perfect) will produce a lighter glow as well as a duller sound compared to that of a perfect hit. In the arcade rhythm game Taiko no Tatsujin, the motion of the drum stick bouncing off the drum is in itself a form of feedback through the sense of touch to the player as well.
Compared to the above titles, Beat Saber has done an equally extraordinary job in interacting with the players to provide such positive feedback. When a player hits a note at the correct timing, the glowing block will be sliced swiftly into two halves and subsequently fly over the player’s shoulders. At the same time, a clean cutting sound will be played to indicate the successful hit, further stimulating the release of dopamine. Beat Saber also enables controller vibration when encountering obstacles, which is used to provide negative feedback to the player. Given that Beat Saber is a VR title, all the gameplay happens within the front field of view of the player. Compared to a mobile rhythm game where visual feedback could be blocked by the player’s finger, a note in Beat Saber grows in size as it approaches the player’s player model and eventually takes up a significant portion of the view space. This means that any form of visual stimuli in the game is almost impossible to miss, thus greatly enhancing the intensity of interaction between the game and the player. These interactions are vital in providing positive feedback on the player’s actions and making sure that the players will continue to play the game.
Immersing in the world of music
As a game hosted on VR platforms, Beat Saber also provides a great level of immersion that allows the player to indulge in the world of rhythm and dancing beats. In order to achieve that, Beat Saber implemented a series of outstanding feature that serves to enhance immersion. Firstly, the game places significant emphasis on simplicity and reduces the instances of unnecessary information in most parts of the game. Throughout the duration of a song, the gameplay information displayed on the screen is limited to the models of the sabers, the track the notes travel on, as well as the notes/obstacles. Other than that, the only UI elements shown are the combo multiplier, the current combo, as well as the current score, and the current hp. In terms of representational fidelity, Beat Saber is highly iconic and all representations used in game are very intuitive to the player. By minimizing distractions, the player is encouraged to focus on the notes themselves while dancing to the rhythm.
Beat Saber also makes use of carefully crafted background scenes during gameplay that further enhance the level of immersion experienced by the players. Compared to the bright glowing colors of the notes and the saber, the background usually takes on a darker hue and seemingly lacks in detail. However, throughout the duration of the song, the background will also pulsate and change in color, all in sync with the tempo of the music. Even if it is just a subconscious part of the player’s view space, the background ‘breathes’ with the music and is continuously engaging with the player as well.
Areas for future improvement
As much as I would like to spend multiple hours daily on this amazing VR title, there are quite a few areas that need further improvement. Firstly, Beat Saber on higher difficulties can get very physically intensive, and it can be quite a torture to play in VR headsets that doesn’t come with in-built fans. On top of that, given the headset’s limited battery life, attaching an additional power bank is often needed in order to support longer play duration. All these add up to a decent weight that needs to be carried on the player’s head, and this can be very immersion-breaking when the player begins to experience discomfort from wearing the headset for extended durations.
Beat Saber also sets great limitations on the kind of headphones/earpiece that can be used. Bluetooth earpieces, while convenient, are horrible options due to the unbearable delay they can cause. Beat Saber’s timing window for hitting a note is speculated to be around 44ms[2], and Bluetooth earpiece has a much longer delay than that. While wired headsets do not have that issue, it is much more cumbersome to wear, and the wire management can get messy if not done properly. A possible improvement to this would be to add a function to detect Bluetooth delay and adjust gameplay accordingly.
Another issue with the game in its current stage is its lack of content, specifically the choices of songs. While the game regularly releases DLC packs with new songs every few months, the songs are largely limited to western pops and rocks, which is a shame for fans of J-pop and K-pop. While modding support is available, it is more troublesome to set up and maintain, and modded songs also come in varying qualities.
Conclusion
Overall, Beat Saber is an absolute must-get for fans of other rhythm games, as it provides a totally new and immersive experience that is different from all existing rhythm games on the market. Even for those who never played rhythm games before, Beat Saber is still worth a try as one of the best-rated VR games available. Just slide on a VR headset, and enjoy the sensory feast while dancing to the beats!
References:
[1]: “Beat saber on steam,” Beat Saber on Steam. [Online]. Available: https://store.steampowered.com/app/620980/Beat_Saber/. [Accessed: 17-Jan-2023].
The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly changed people’s lives around the world. Despite the real-world inconvenience caused by the coronavirus pandemic, applications utilizing XR technology are booming to create convenience and enhance user experience.
In the post-pandemic world, people are reluctant to walk into crowded stores and rather purchase anything they want online. According to Statista, more than 20% of the sales are bound to take place on the internet by 2022. Brands like IKEA were among the first to realize and jump in on the opportunity. They refined their e-commerce side of things to prove an all-around better experience for their customers.
IKEA has created an entire app from the ground up dedicated to XR. The app, called IKEA Immerse, helps users and customers to create, experience, and share their own configurations in a virtual living and kitchen room set.
Why do I like it?
I like this application because IKEA Immerse invites consumers to experience, design, and create in mixed reality. Instead of choosing from what has been provided, we become part of the designers ourselves. We can feel free to design what we want before purchasing.
Why is it engaging?
Enhancing in-store experience
Thanks to XR technology, IKEA Immerse has made it simpler for customers to view and try different furniture before purchasing. Compared with traditional offline shopping, people can more efficiently try different combinations of colors and styles, and customize their preferred lighting and shading.
Social interaction and sharing
With transferable VR equipment, customers could share their instant feelings with friends more conveniently and at a lower cost. In a virtual environment, people could also interact with furniture items through vision, and obtain instant feedback.
Extending the relationship beyond purchase
XR is still playing its role even after purchasing. After-sale service and support can be far more helpful with XR user manuals, instructions, and feature guidance. Instead of having a user interface directly into these physical products, users could engage with their smart refrigerators or ovens via an XR app on their own digital device.
What features are well done and what can be improved?
I think the following features are well-constructed:
Photorealistic representation of the physical world. All the real items are projected into the virtual world in a 3D and highly realistic manner. Textures are rendered so well that you can feel no visual difference between viewing and experiencing virtual reality and the offline store.
More adaptable and diversified features than the physical world. You can adjust the lighting and shading freely by virtue of real-time rendering, beyond physical limits. Eg, night mode can be chosen during the daytime and you can add more shading without having to draw the curtain.
Meanwhile, I think there is still room for improvement regarding the following features.
Adding a sense of touch. When purchasing furniture, both visual and tactile communications are essential for customers. IKEA Immersive has done quite well on vision, but if customers cannot feel if the bed is soft enough, it would definitely affect their purchase decisions merely based on virtual viewing.
Making it more trustworthy. For online shopping and remote experiencing, it is easier for sellers to exaggerate their product effects and attract customers in a dishonest way. If IKEA Immersive could prove the authenticity of products and experience shown in XR devices, I believe it will gain them more advantages compared with similar products.
AR stands for Augmented Reality. It is a technology that superimposes computer-generated images, sounds, or other information over a user’s view of the real world, in order to enhance or augment their perception of it. If we want to catch Pokemons in our real world, we need AR to create those virtual characters. Luckily, Pokémon Go has made this possible for us.
What is Pokemon Go?
Pokemon Go was one of the first mainstream examples of AR technology being used in a mobile game, and helped to popularize the concept of using AR in gaming. The game uses the player’s smartphone camera and GPS location to display Pokemon characters on the screen as if they were in the player’s real-world surroundings. Players can then catch the Pokemon by “throwing” virtual Poke Balls at them.
For me, the story of Pokemon accompanied me throughout my childhood. And The Pokemon Go is the earliest AR technology application I have learned. So let’s go back to 2016 and find out why is this game so engaging?
Why is Pokemon Go engaging?
Pokrmon Go became extremely popular upon its release in 2016, with millions of players worldwide catching Pokemon in their neighborhoods, parks, and other public places. There are many reasons behind its success：
Gamification of reality: The game uses augmented reality technology to superimpose virtual Pokemon characters on the player’s real-world surroundings, which creates a sense of excitement and immersion for players.
Social interaction: The game encourages players to go outside and explore their neighborhoods and communities, providing opportunities for social interaction with other players.
Nostalgia: The game is based on the popular Pokemon franchise which has a large fan base, many of whom grew up playing the original games, watching the anime and collecting the cards. So it brings back childhood memories for many people like me.
Convenience: To catch Pokemon in real life, all you need to do is pick up your phone and use the camera to explore the surrounding scenes
Collecting and Progress: The game has a collecting aspect where players can catch different Pokemon and add them to their collection, this creates a sense of progression and accomplishment for players.
Rewards: The game also rewards players for catching Pokemon, visiting PokeStops, and battling at Gyms, which helps to keep players engaged and motivated to play.
What can be improved?
Gameplay: Some players have complained that the gameplay can become repetitive and lacks depth. Adding more diverse gameplay mechanics and activities could help keep the game interesting for players. We want to see more vivid Pokémon, not Pokémon that only poses with a few fixed actions.
Social features: While the game encourages social interaction, the in-game features that support this are limited. Improving these features, such as the ability to trade Pokemon with other players, would encourage more social play.
Accessibility: Some players have criticized the game for being too physically demanding, as it requires players to walk around to find and catch Pokemon. Improving the accessibility of the game for players with mobility issues, such as providing more PokeStops and Gyms in one area or including more options to play the game from home, could help make the game more inclusive.
AR improvements: Pokemon Go’s AR implementation is not perfect, it can be improved for example by making the Pokemon appear more natural and realistic in the real-world environment, and allowing players to interact with them in more ways.
VR: a way to walk into the game world
Virtual Reality (VR) is a technology that allows users to experience a simulated environment through the use of a headset and other equipment. The user’s movements and actions in the virtual world are tracked and translated into corresponding movements and actions in the simulation. If you have ever imagined entering an exciting game world, like the Pokemon game, then you must not miss the following movie.
What is Ready Player One?
Ready Player One is a science fiction action adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, and released in 2018. The film is based on the 2011 novel of the same name by Ernest Cline. The movie is set in a dystopian future where the majority of the population spend their time in the virtual reality world of the OASIS, a place to escape the real world. The plot centers around a virtual treasure hunt set up by the creator of the OASIS, in which the winner will inherit his fortune and control of the virtual world. The movie deals with themes such as escapism, the impact of technology on society, and the power of virtual reality.
Why is Ready Player One engaging?
One of the main reasons is the visually stunning and immersive special effects used to bring the virtual world of the OASIS to life. The movie does a great job of capturing the feeling of immersion and presence in the virtual world, making audiences feel like they are actually inside the OASIS. And that’s one of the goals of future VR technology.
Many familiar game characters appeared in this movie. The protagonist in the movie uses VR equipment to enter one wonderful game world after another. I think no one can refuse the exciting experience of driving Gundam in the game world. For those who grew up with games, this movie fulfills their desire to enter the real game world.
This movie has also changed people’s views on VR to a certain extent, presenting people with a wild possibility of the future VR world. We know that some of the wildest ideas in sci-fi movies and TV shows are now reality. People also look forward to one day being able to enter the game world in this movie.
What can be improved?
Although the movie shows us a beautiful world built with VR technology, there are still some shortcomings in the plot. Some of the characters in the movie use simple glasses and hand devices to enter the VR world, and some use expensive equipment to get a more realistic experience. They use 360-degree treadmills to play games indoors, and people who can’t afford such equipment can only run on the street, which has also caused some traffic accidents. But if you want to complete the magical movements of the VR characters in the movie, it is not enough to have a treadmill. It’s like when you do a backflip or something like that, you don’t feel comfortable wearing these devices. You want the device to be able to recognize these difficult movements, but the reality is that such a sensitive device will become a burden on you. Especially wired hand and leg motion capture, their presence will hinder the movement. VR devices still take a long time to develop and update if we want to get that kind of future VR experience.
