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NFairbairn
NFairbairn

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VR AKA Virtual Reality AKA The Matrix

The goal of VR is really to create an entirely “new reality” you can enter and interact with.

VR Technology aims to utilize a combination of immersion and interaction to create a seemingly “real” experience for the user.

VR Tech is moving closer and closer to more realistic and immersive experiences, and while we aren’t quite on the level of the Matrix just yet, we’re certainly on our way.

I wanted to look into VR and what all it takes to pull something like this off, and how hard would it be to get into VR.

Here's a list of common things you'll need in order to play, and some options if you're feeling fancy.

VR set ups:

Headsets

-Oculus Rift
-HTC Vive
-Sony PlayStation VR
-Google Cardboard
-Samsung Gear VR

Controllers

-Samsung Gear VR Controller
-Oculus Rift
-HTC Vive
-HTC Steam Controller

Where to Play:

-Steam - a digital library and platform for video games for PC platforms.
-Oculus VR
-PlayStation VR

Notable Games

-Beat Saber - Guitar Hero with Lightsabers
-EVE Valkyrie: Warzone - Space Based Dog Fighting Game
-Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes - A Multiplayer Bomb Defuser Game with time limits
-Lone Echo - A Space Survival Game that takes place on a base orbiting Saturn
-Fruit Ninja - Hone your Samurai skills against impending bombardment from fruits

Skills to become a VR developer
-Languages Like C/C++/C#
-3D Modeling and Rendering Experience

Popular Game Engines
-Unity - uses C#
-Unreal Engine - Uses C++ and a node-based language called Blueprints Visual Scripting

Useful 3D Modeling Software

-Blender - Open Source 3D modeling software
-Autodesk Maya - Computer Animation Software
-Autodesk 3Ds Max - 3D Modeling Software catered more for games and visualization

Interesting 3D Scanning Softwares

-Structure Sense - used for 3D Scanning and Mixed Reality on Ipad

Places to get 3D Models
-TurboSquid - Library of already 3D modeled objects
-Free3D - 3D model library

How can I take my web knowledge to VR???
-WebVR is an open standard with a JavaScript API that makes VR in your browser possible
-A-frame. A framework for building virtual reality experiences with HTML and an Entity-Component-System approach. It was developed by the Mozilla VR team and provides one of the most powerful ways to develop WebVR content.
-React 360 - a React framework built to render 3D experiences in Browser
-Three.js - a javascript library used for rendering 3d objects in browser

Resources
Here is a great tutorial on making a real-time VR React APP
This is a Udemy Course on intro to VR, always a good place to start
Here is the link to the Unreal Engine documentation

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