Jump to content
VIVE Forum
Need to reach the Vive support team? - Click here

Rockjaw

Verified Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    1,120

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Blog Entries posted by Rockjaw

  1. Rockjaw
    
     
     
    General FAQs for Vive Tracker
     
    How do I connect the dongle to my computer?
     
    Connect one end of the supplied USB cable to the dongle cradle, and then attach the dongle to the cradle. Connect the other end of the USB cable to your computer.
     
    How do I charge Vive Tracker?
     
    While in VR, you can check the battery level of Vive Tracker when no apps are running, or when the System Dashboard is up. When the battery is low, the indicator will show a single red dot.
     
    To charge, make sure to use the USB cable that’s in the box. Connect the USB cable to the power adapter that came with your Vive controllers, and then plug the power adapter to a power outlet to charge Vive Tracker. You can also connect Vive Tracker to a computer’s USB port to charge it.
     
    When Vive Tracker is fully charged, its status light either shows white if it is off or green if it is turned on.
     
    How do I pair the dongle with Vive Tracker?
     
    1. Turn on HMD and pair with 2 controllers
    2. Connect dongle to your computer
    3. Turn on Vive Tracker to have the pairing process is finished automatically
     
    Warning: If Vive Tracker cannot be automatically paired the first time, the dongle may pair with other equipment.
     
    To manually pair Vive Tracker, open the SteamVR app, tap the down arrow, and then select Devices > Pair Controller. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.
     
    What does the status light on Vive Tracker mean?
     
    The status light shows:
     
    • Green when Vive Tracker is in normal mode
    • Blinking red when battery is low
    • Blinking blue when Vive Tracker is pairing with the headset or dongle
    • Blue when Vive Tracker is connecting with the headset or dongle
    • Orange when charging
     
    How can I update Vive Tracker?
     
    1. From your computer, open the SteamVR app.
    2. Using the supplied USB cable, connect the Vive Tracker to one of your computer’s USB ports. The firmware update will start automatically once tracker is detected by the SteamVR
    Warning: Do not unplug the micro-USB cable any time before the firmware update is complete. Doing so could result in a firmware error.
    3. When the update is complete, click Done.
     
    Why does Vive Tracker automatically turn off?
     
    When Vive Tracker turns off, some of the possible reasons might be:
     
    • The battery is drained
    • Pairing has timed out after being idle for more than 30 seconds
    • There was no user movement for 5 minutes"
     
    Can I use more than one Vive Tracker?
     
    Multiple Vive Tracker hardware can be used, but limitations apply.
     
    Why can't I see Vive Tracker on SteamVR?
     
    Check that your SteamVR app is the latest version.
     
    How do I reset Vive Tracker?
     
    To reset Vive Tracker, connect it to your computer using the supplied USB cable, and then press and hold the Power button for 10 seconds.
  2. Rockjaw
    Eight fantastic VR titles have already been announced as Viveport Developer Award (VDA) nominees, all potentially able to share in $500,000 worth of prizes. Today we're adding to that total with four more titles, all great examples of how you can explore worlds, create things, connect with friends and experience stories in VR, via Viveport.
     
    The nominees are:
     
    
    SurrealVR, by SurrealVR
     
    Firebird - La Peri, by InnerspaceVR
     
    (A note for anyone who picked up Firebird - La Peri in our launch sale: an initial language issue has been resolved. Update or re-download Firebird for the latest version.)
     
    Apollo 11 VR, by Immersive VR Education Ltd.
     
    
    Fantastic Contraption, by Northway Games
     
    Congratulations to all of our nominees, and we wish you all the best of luck in the upcoming VDA finals!
     
    If you haven't checked out these experiences on Viveport, click the links above to see them for yourself. We'd love to hear your comments and see your reviews - feel free to leave comments below.
     
    Did you miss our previous nominees? Check out our first and second blog posts to see what other VR experiences have been nominated.
     
    We'll see you in VR!

    The Viveport Team
  3. Rockjaw

    Fright Fest on Viveport

    By Rockjaw,

    
     
    Our team loves Halloween, so we’re stoked to announce Fright Fest on Viveport with some new, scary destinations at spooktacular prices. Get these spine-tingling titles this week:
     
    A Chair in a Room: Greenwater, by Wolf & Wood Interactive – 25% Discount
    Daylight’s End VR Edition, by Groove Jones - 80% Discount
    Emily Wants to Play, by SKH Apps – 80% Discount
    The Night The Carsons Disappeared, by NostalgicBear VR – 50% Discount
    Horror Experiences Invisible & The Game in Jaunt VR, by Jaunt – Free
     
    Our Halloween promotions are available now, and the sale ends on Tuesday night (11/1). Be sure to visit http://www.vive.com/setup/ to install and set up the Vive software, which will also install the Viveport desktop app on your computer.
     
    If you are out trick-or-treating, you can use the Viveport app on your Android phone to choose anything in the store and queue it up in your library for when return.
     
    Whether you spend Halloween in VR or the real world (or a combination of both) we hope you have a fright-tastic time! Happy Halloween!
     
    The Viveport Team
  4. Rockjaw
    
     Congratulations, you’ve just been nominated for a Viveport Developer Award. How do you feel?
     
    We are super happy! A tremendous amount of work and care has been put in by the whole team in France and in the US to bring Firebird : La Péri to life, and it feels terrific to know that our experience is being nominated alongside other great pieces!

    Where did the idea for Firebird: La Péri come from?
     
    It all came from Paul Duka's music, which essentially became the script for the whole experience. The music stirred up images of a grandiose, magical story in the mind of Balthazar Auxietre, Innerspace's co-founder and CCO. How could we bring justice to such a beautiful piece ? How could we enable the viewer to experience the music, the story and the "on-stage" experience of this ballet piece ? Those were the key questions that drove the creative process.
     
    Paul Dukas who composed La Péri, is also the composer of The Sorcerer's Apprentice, the key piece of Disney's Fantasia. Back then Fantasia was something new, the love child of Walt Disney's creative ambition and drive for innovation. It was made from the beginning to exploit a medium, animated motion pictures, which faced skepticism as a viable entertainment platform and eventually took the entertainment world by storm. In that way it seems quite fitting to use Duka's work in VR, which is facing similar challenges while showing unprecedented potential.

    How big is your team and how long did Firebird : La Péri take to develop?
     
    Firebird : La Péri was developed by a team of 10 people over the course of 12 months. Crafting this experience was a long process, since the project was in constant R&D mode, with new ideas coming up and being implemented along the way. The team at Innerspace is growing and we are much more efficient now but taking the high road was an essential part of creating the experience and honing our skills as VR entertainment creators.

    Tell us something about Firebird : La Péri that we wouldn’t know from just experiencing it on Viveport.
     
    The book, which is so central in Firebird : La Péri, was actually a very late addition in the development process. It fits so naturally in the narration and the experience that it might seem unthinkable that it was not present until the final release. But now it's here, right at the center of the piece, and our artists and designers have done an amazing job on it - I suggest viewers actually take the time to scroll through the pages and look at the illustrations in it!
     

     
    During the development process, did anything surprise you along the way you didn’t expect?
     
    The overwhelming feeling of immersion the motion-captured ballerina brought to the piece, was a great surprise. We felt like we had something really cool that surpassed our expectations, and that it was essential to get it out of our studio and bring it to audiences worldwide.

    What do you hope people take away from Firebird: La Péri overall?
     
    First and foremost we hope that users love the experience, and that it feels fresh and new and beautiful to them. The second thing we want people to realize is that VR can truly be a platform for meaningful and compelling entertainment for everyone, not just an amazing technology.

    Are you planning future updates and adding more features to Firebird: La Péri? Or what’s next for InnerspaceVR?
     
    Firebird is VR's franchise for classical music and visually stunning entertainment pieces. We are already hard at work on the future episodes to be released in 2017 so if you love Firebird : La Péri and want to see more, stay tuned !

    What's been the best reaction you’ve heard about Firebird: La Péri?
     
    I love that people immediately personify the characters in Firebird : La Péri. Many times we've had users tell us they wish they could stay longer with La Péri, that they were falling in love with her.

    What’s one piece of advice you’d give to other developers?
     
    Be daring. Try things that are new, that seem scary, and test your ideas early at a small scale before expanding them. There are a lot of amazing VR pieces out there, but still innumerable new ideas that haven't been tried out yet - the tools and technology are here and more affordable than ever, so there is no reason not to try building something crazy!
     
    Firebird: La Peri is available to download on Viveport.
  5. Rockjaw
    
     
    Vive is kicking off a huge presence at CES 2017, by introducing two new accessories and new services that will lay the foundation of the VR ecosystem for years to come. 
     
    If you’re a current or future VR owner, there are a lot of things to be thankful for this New Year. Available in Q2 2017, the Vive Tracker and Vive Deluxe Audio Strap are all new accessories that will greatly enhance your Vive experience, and we’re expecting wireless accessories to be available in 2017.  In addition, Viveport will be launching a subscription service as well as app stores for arcade and enterprise customers in early 2017, ensuring you’ll have many options to access the best content on Vive that matters to you.
     
    Let’s start off with the hardware news:
     
    The Vive Tracker, available in Q2 this year, enables motion tracking for entirely new form factors within the VR world. It is the the foundation for building a new accessories ecosystem for  Vive.  In fact, there are many partners in our space at CES showing off their Vive Tracker integrations including multiple rifles built for VR shooters, a baseball bat, a firehose and haptic gloves for a truly immersive VR experience.
     
    
     
    (We’ll be showing you a sneak peek at some of these apps and products during our Live Stream happening both Thursday and Friday from 12-2pm PST. Click here to visit our Facebook Page, where the live stream will be hosted.)
     
    At its core, the Vive Tracker will integrate with any number of future VR accessories via a simple connection, ensuring developers and consumers will have a single accessory to unlock thousands of new experiences .  The Tracker weighs just under three ounces (90g) and is 99.65mm (Diameter) x 42.27mm (Height).
     
    The Vive Deluxe Audio Strap is designed with adjustable headphones, allowing you to enjoy even more comfort and convenience.   The headstrap features integrated headphones and a new customizable sizing dial for quickly adjusting the fit of the headstrap, ensuring a tighter and more comfortable fit.   The Deluxe Audio Strap will also be available in Q2.
     
    
    Pricing for both the Tracker and Deluxe Audio Strap will be announced soon.
     
    Wireless and VR  - We showcased a product many of you may have heard about recently from TPCast, a wireless adaptor which was incubated through the Vive X accelerator program. It includes a one and a half hour battery, and latency as low as 2ms. TPCast will be shipping in Q2 2017 and will retail for $249 USD.
     
    Now that you have this great hardware, what are you going to do with it?  We’ve got you covered with some exciting things coming up from Viveport as well amazing content from Vive Studios and more than 30 partners showcasing content in our CES space.
     
    In early 2017, Viveport will be launching a subscription service to help you navigate and find the best VR apps in the world, as well as introduce a new channel through which VR developers can monetize their content. There are currently thousands of apps available on Vive globally. Viveport’s subscription service will help people navigate this growing marketplace and discover new apps, providing access to an ever-growing library of content for a low monthly fee. More details will be announced soon.
     
    Viveport also announced at CES that it is expanding services for enterprise VR customers and arcade operators by launching dedicated VR app stores for professionals in 2017. Viveport is evolving the Viveport Arcade platform announced last November to create a digital storefront that can distribute VR content to businesses globally. The app store is designed for arcades, cinemas, amusement parks and other location-based entertainment centers eager to introduce their customers to VR. The rapid expansion of VR into arcades is creating an important touch point for people to experience high-end VR for the first time.
     
    Lastly, Viveport’s dedicated enterprise app store will target a different set of customers. Some of the biggest industrial sectors are quickly adopting VR, led by major categories such as healthcare, engineering, real estate and retail. Viveport’s enterprise app store will both curate content for enterprise customers and support developers leveraging the immersion of VR to create apps and tools for professionals in areas such as medicine, architecture, design, 3D modeling and workforce training.
     
    VR fans and existing Viveport customers can sign-up today to be the first to get invited to a free trial of the subscription service when it launches at https://www.viveport.com/subsignup
     
    2017 will be a great year for VR.  At Vive, we’re laying a strong foundation for how VR will grow for years to come.  Keep an eye out on this blog and our Facebook and Twitter channels for more great news this week.
  6. Rockjaw
    Existing owner? Get Fallout 4 VR plus three free months of Viveport Subscription.
     
    HTC VIVE is glad to announce that starting today, October 2nd, customers who purchase an HTC Vive, will receive a free redemption code for Fallout 4 VR, a $59.99 value, which launches on December 12, 2017 (vive.com/fallout4-vr).
     
    Fallout 4, the legendary post-apocalyptic adventure from Bethesda Game Studios and winner of more than 200 ‘Best Of’ awards, including the DICE and BAFTA Game of the Year, and most recently ‘Best Virtual Reality Game’ at gamescom 2017, finally comes in its entirety to VR. Fallout 4 VR includes the complete core game with all-new combat, crafting, and building systems fully reimagined for virtual reality.
     
    “Fallout 4 VR is the most anticipated title for VR this holiday, and the game development team at Bethesda Game Studios is delivering on the promise with a full-length AAA open-world game that takes advantage of Vive’s incredible room-scale immersion for a mind-blowing experience in the Wasteland,” said Joel Breton, GM of Vive Studios. “The promise of a game with near endless content, including hundreds of locations, characters, and quests, fully playable in VR, is something that we have been focused on providing for the VR gaming community. We are now thrilled to provide this incredible game to new Vive owners and eagerly look forward to game’s launch on Vive this December.”
     
    The freedom of exploring the wasteland comes alive like never before when experienced using Vive’s superior room-scale technology. Vive’s submillimeter tracking for responsiveness and accuracy makes it the most immersive way to experience Fallout 4.
     
    Existing Vive customers who purchase Fallout 4 VR, will be able to sign up for a bonus 3-month Viveport Subscription offer that will be available prior to the game’s launch. Viveport Subscription allows consumers to choose from over 250 pieces of content, giving consumers the best value to discover VR content. Visit Viveport.com/Fallout4VR for purchase details, launch dates, and additional offers.
    Players must be 18 or over to redeem Fallout 4 VR code. Please check your local vive.com for details and availability.
  7. Rockjaw
    
     
     
    You’ve just been nominated for a Viveport Developer Award - how do you feel?
     
    It's an incredible honor to be nominated for a Viveport Developer Award. The entire development team is ecstatic as this is something very much unexpected. Congratulations and good luck to all of the other nominees.
     
    Where did the idea for Cloudlands: VR Minigolf come from?
     
    When we got our hands on one of the first HTC Vive prototypes we went on a prototyping spree of about 10 different unique-to-motion-control game mechanics such as golfing, baseball, bowling, sword fighting, racquet sports, throwing games, and more. We're a relatively small game team and many of us love golfing. We initially attempted a full on golfing game but settled on the more accessible minigolf genre. Minigolf allowed us to keep the core "golf" mechanic, while exploring much more fantastical environments that wouldn't be possible in the real world. The game started small in scope but after concepting the level editor we realized putting the creative power into the hands of our players was going to produce infinitely more creative levels than our small design team could ever create.
     
    How big is your team and how long did it take to develop?
     
    The Cloudlands core dev team consisted of about 7 people, though we had 14 people touching the project at different times throughout the dev cycle helping with the multiplayer programming, marketing, and performance testing. We started development of Cloudlands in August 2015 and released our launch version in April 2016. The level editor was in development from February 2016 until September 2016 and is still on-going.
     
    Tell us something about Cloudlands: VR Minigolf that we wouldn’t know from just experiencing it on Viveport?
     
    The game art in Cloudlands had to be completely re-done about a month before launch. Stress! We had been developing under the impression that the min spec for VR would be a GTX980 graphics card and we had good performance on that card. However, upon discovering the min spec would be GTX970 graphics cards it forced us to re-create our entire lighting pipeline, redo all the levels, and also change a lot of the art to be more performant. The art team was working around the clock to get it ready for launch. It turns out hitting 90fps can be quite challenging when you also want to push visual quality.
     

     
    During the development process, did anything surprise you along the way you didn’t expect?
     
    Our initial vision for what the level editor would be, was more of a grid based block snapping tool with the pieces in a menu attached to your hand. It was meant to be fairly simple and a quick addition to the game. However, our designer/engineer working on the level editor had different plans and ended up prototyping this really fantastic and intuitive system for grabbing pieces out of a shelf and snapping them free-form at a smaller scale, which you can then play instantly. The tool continued to grow and ended up being a much more complex feature than originally intended but I think the final product is something we are all extremely proud of.
     
    What do you hope people take away from Cloudlands: VR Minigolf overall?
     
    It's pretty common to have people play and say "Wow, that was way better than I thought. Really fun!" We get it. It's minigolf. And for VR it seems like it wouldn't be anything special, but so many players come out having had a really fun time playing a game they're familiar with, but thrown into crazy impossible real world user generated golf courses.
     
    Are you planning future updates and adding more features to Cloudlands: VR Minigolf? Or what’s next for Futuretown?
     
    The level editor is still relatively new and we're continually listening to the community and incorporating game feedback into the build. We're currently spending the majority of our time on a new unannounced project.
     
    If you could have anyone famous play a round of Cloudlands: VR Minigolf who would it be?
     
    It would probably be Fumito Ueda or Jonathan Blow. Both game design legends and we've learned a lot from them over the past 10 years as independent developers. I'd love to hear their thoughts on the game and interaction design we've crafted.
     
    What’s one piece of advice you’d give to other developers?
     
    The VR market is extremely small at this time. Make sure your game design considers who the VR market is and make sure you have a realistic understanding of how many copies you'll be able to sell. This will inform your development design and schedule to make sure you're creating a product that can be financially successful and allow you to continue creating games.
     
    Cloudlands: VR Minigolf is available to download on Viveport.
  8. Rockjaw

    Talking Arcade Saga

    By Rockjaw,

    
    Arcade Saga was recently released on Steam and is as the first ever game published by Vive Studios. Developed by 2 Bears Studio, an internal HTC team, we decided to sit down with David Sapienza and J Epps - neither of whom are bears - to talk about the development of this fast paced, energetic retro-styled VR experience.
     
    Hello 2 Bears! Tell us about yourself and a little about your careers.
     
    David Sapienza: I'm Executive Producer of Arcade Saga. I’ve worked on 30-plus games throughout my career, from small GameBoy Advance titles, to huge PC RTS titles like Company of Heroes, to new endeavors like Minecraft on Hololens, and now I’m thrilled to be working on the Vive. I have a long time passion for video games and the art of game creation. 
     
    J.Epps: I am J. “Jay” Epps, Design Director for Arcade Saga. I've been making games as a designer for 25 years. I have worked on Gex, Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen, Lord of the Rings: Two Towers, Gears of War 2 & 3, Fable 2, Ryse: Son of Rome. 20 years ago I knew I wanted to work in VR and worked hard to forge and temper my design skills so that I would be ready when VR finally became mainstream.
     
    The name, the look and the feel of Arcade Saga all hark back to ‘classic’ arcades and games. Is there anything you would specifically list as inspirations?
     
    David Sapienza: Yes! Pretty much any arcade game where the player faced off against a boss that was 50x larger. Musically, I love the NES and SNES days and you will hear some of that through the levels. As for movies, I’d be remiss not to mention The Lawnmower Man and Tron.
     
    J Epps: Arcade Saga is really a ‘love letter’ to classic arcade games like Sinistar, Track and Field, Mappy, Heavy Barrel, Street Fighter 2, Galaga, Outrun Turbo, Star Wars, Star Trek, Space Invaders, Gyruss, Rygar, Ninja Spirit, etc.
     
    Given those inspirations, did the game mechanics of Arcade Saga seem like a natural fit for that style of game, or did you think of them before then?
     
    David Sapienza: For me it all started with room scale and the motion controllers. My first time in true VR (i.e. room scale) all I wanted to do was move around and use the motion controllers to interact with objects. Focusing on the movement and the motion controllers was our first goal, everything else was secondary.
     
    J Epps: The mechanics came first. We wanted three games that all used natural motion mechanics: hitting a ball, shooting a bow, blocking a ball with a paddle. In classic games, the player actuates the main mechanic by pressing a button, which is an abstraction. The motion controllers and room scale offered us a way to make fun more straightforward and organic. Incidentally, this is why Bowshot has a bow and not a gun: a gun is an abstract mechanic because you pull a trigger to cause an interaction.
     
    
    What’s your favorite game of the three in Arcade Saga? (Of course, we have to ask, what’s your high score?)
     
    David Sapienza: My favorite game hasn’t been released yet. :smileyhappy:
     
    J Epps: Bowshot is my favorite. My gamer tag is thejammy and I have a LOT of high scores!
     
    What engine was Arcade Saga developed in?
     
    J Epps: Arcade Saga was developed in Unity, which is a great engine. It allowed us to get up and working quickly. The engine is robust and allowed us to put our energy into the game and not the engine. It also allowed us great flexibility, as the three games in Arcade Saga are vastly different.
     
    Did you have any ideas early in the development process that didn’t make the final game?
     
    David Sapienza: We actually had nine prototypes that were being developed and then we narrowed down to the three that we have today. Although a lot of the prototypes were fun, we wanted to make sure everything we released was fun the first time, and the 101st time. I think the three games we have now exceed that goal.
     
    J Epps: The first version of Smash had a more open environment where you threw different pitches to try and score on your opponent. It was a decent concept and we spent a while trying to make it fun enough but in the end we felt like it was better to put the game in a tight corridor.
    
     
    You’re heading up 2 Bears Studio, an internal HTC studio. How big is the studio and how long did development of Arcade Saga take?
     
    David Sapienza: Our studio is actually split between San Francisco and Taipei and the size has transformed a bit since we started, so it’s hard to answer but 30 is somewhat accurate. As for how long, we’ve been working on these games for around 9 months and are continuing to support the project.
     
    What was the hardest thing to get ‘right’ during development?
     
    David Sapienza: VR is a whole new medium that is attracting new types of consumers. Finding that balance between traditional gamers and new VR adopters was challenging but still fun. 
     
    … and what was the easiest thing to get right?
     
    David Sapienza: The natural motion of the mechanics. People ‘just got it’ and understood exactly what they needed to do.
     
    If money and time was unlimited (never going to happen…), what game genre would you like to see in VR?
     
    David Sapienza: I’d love to see a historical battlefield reimagined from Genghis Khan to the U.S. revolution. I’m a military history nerd and proud of it!
     
    J Epps: I would like to see what the ‘traditional’ gaming fantasies that we’re used to feel like in VR. Gunslinger, Samurai, Soldier, Assassin, Sniper, Surfer… they’re all fantasies that will feel different in VR and I would love if 2 Bears could take a stab at all of them.
     
    Of all the games you previously worked on, is there a game you wish you could go back and realize in VR?
     
    David Sapienza: A few years back I worked on a game that allowed players to make their own game called Project Spark. I was a really fun and approachable way to create a game, but I think adding the VR would be mind blowing. 
     
    J Epps: I have worked on many beat’ em up games - Lord of Rings, Demonstone, Ryse, etc - and I can’t wait to make a VR game in this genre.
     
    Thanks to David and J for their answers! If you haven't had a chance to check out Arcade Saga yet,
     and pick it up on Steam. 
    Or, see below for a chance to win your own copy in our comment competition!
     
    David and J will be live in AltspaceVR today at 4PM PST - click here to get details and RSVP! 
  9. Rockjaw
    
     
     
     
    How do identify whether Vive Tracker or the controller is being tracked?
     
    You can use the class type of SteamVR SDK to identify if Vive Tracker or the controller is currently being tracked.
     
    Does Vive Tracker have a different coordination system compared to the controllers?
     
    Yes. Content developers need to apply different coordination settings based on the position where the Vive Tracker is mounted.
     
    How can I replace the controller with Vive Tracker if I already created content meant for the controller?
     
    Content developers need to apply different coordination settings based on whether Vive Tracker is mounted on the same position as the controller. If its position is different, content developers need to recalibrate for Vive Tracker.
     
    What's the equivalent of Vive Tracker's hardware button to the controller?
     
    The hardware button of Vive Tracker maps to the System button of the controller.
     
    How can I simulate the button event when I connect Vive Tracker to a computer through USB?
     
    Check the "Data format" section in the developer guidelines, and follow the SetFeature 0xB4 format to fill your simulated data in "Button byte" data.
     
    Why is tracking lost when I connected Vive Tracker to a USB cable?
     
    When you connect Vive Tracker to your computer using a USB cable, it enters data sending mode. To resume tracking while connected to a USB port, follow the developer guidelines to send the SetFeature 0xB3 command to fill Host type byte.
     
    Can we implement our own data into Vive Tracker's data stream?
     
    Vive Tracker only supports data that's compatible with the controllers.
     
    Can I customize the POGO pins?
     
    Yes, you can. For information on how to customize the POGO pins, contact our Support team in the first instance via email.
     
    What's in the downloadable 3D CAD file for the Vive Tracker?
     
    The ZIP file (attached to this article) contains the .IGS and .STP for Vive Tracker. It's not a requirement to use the files, but it can help if you have 3D modeling software.
  10. Rockjaw

    VDA Q&A: Arcade Artist

    By Rockjaw,

    
    You’ve just been nominated for a Viveport Developer Award, how do you feel?

    It feels amazing to be nominated. As an artist and creator it is wonderful to be recognized. We put so much time and love and energy into our work and it's great to have that be appreciated.

    Where did the idea for Arcade Artist come from?

    We wanted to make a world that you could feel transported to and also create something that was just a fun escape. I love the feeling of holding a tool in your hand in VR and being able to look at the details and for that tool to be something that you can actually use.

    How big is your team and how long did it take to develop?

    There were two main developers and then a small amount of additional artists as we needed them. In all, the team at its largest was probably eight people. We spent about six months on it.

    Tell us something about Arcade Artist that we wouldn’t know from just experiencing it on Viveport?

    I guess that the amount of hours that went into it would be surprising to most people.

    During the development process, did anything surprise you along the way you didn’t expect?

    We are constantly pushing the envelope artistically so we are learning everyday how to balance the art and performance aspect.

    What differentiates Arcade Artists from other creativity experiences?

    I think the quality of our work is at the top and I am very proud of the team and the work.

    What do you hope people take away from Arcade Artist overall?

    The biggest thing that I want people to do when they play Arcade Artist is smile!

    Are you planning future updates and adding more features to Arcade Artist?

    Absolutely! We have some really fun new features in store and we are also going to be making Arcade Artist a full multiplayer and social experience.

    If you could have anyone experience Arcade Artist who would it be?

    Hmmm....I guess Steven Spielberg!

    What’s one piece of advice you’d give to other developers?

    Just do it. It's trite, but jump in and fail fast and learn and go for it.
     
    Arcade Artist is available now on Viveport.
  11. Rockjaw
    It’s been a big summer for Vive and our ever-growing VR Ecosystem, and we’re ramping up for a fantastic holiday season.
     
    Starting today (8/21), we are reducing the price of Vive by $200. The high-end, PC-based consumer Vive that is in market today, and will be for the foreseeable future, will now be available for $599.  All Vive purchases come with a free trial to Viveport Subscription, where consumers can choose up to 5 titles per month to experience, and copies of some of the most popular pieces of VR in Google’s Tilt Brush, EverestVR, and Richie’s Plank Experience.
     
    Vive is the leader globally in high-end VR, and this new entry price will make the system available to an even broader audience. When customers purchase Vive, they are getting superior VR technology and the most complete ecosystem in VR. Vive has the best tracking technology and most compelling content. We work tirelessly to continue to iterate and improve on Vive to deliver on the promise of VR. And developers are taking full advantage of this tech in delivering the best software on the market and bringing it to Vive owners.
     
    We have continued to invest in growing the Vive hardware ecosystem. Google, Apple, Intel, UPS, Volkswagon, SalesForce and dozens of other global brands have all lined up with Vive for their VR efforts, and there’s more to come in the back half of the year.
     
    New Tracker software and hardware is coming online daily, and we’ll have more to share on consumer launch timing soon. In addition, many partners are working hard on wireless solutions to bring even more freedom for Vive owners.
     
    On the software side of the house, we offer the only subscription service for VR today in Viveport Subscription, which has not only changed the way consumers get their VR content, but also provided an incremental revenue stream for developers. We’ve signed up over 200 titles on Viveport Subscription, and we’re making a host of improvements that will improve and deepen our store experience.
    This is just the beginning stages of what Vive has in store. We’ll soon see more AAA content coming to Vive with Fallout 4 VR, Doom VFR, as well as some other titles to be announced.
     
    We know price is just one component of a purchase decision, but when you line up all that Vive offers, we’re building a complete VR ecosystem that customers can rely on today and for years to come.
  12. Rockjaw
    Today, we’re announcing the early release of the Viveport Scene SDK, a new toolset that will help developers create immersive VR Previews that will be showcased in Viveport. The Viveport Scene SDK will allow developers to engage customers with their content before purchase or rental, by generating:
     
    VR Previews: Rich and interactive 3D environments streamed dynamically to the viewer on Viveport to increase engagement and customer conversion. VR Skyboxes: Immersive "360 preview images" that surround the user as they browse the content grid in the Viveport store.  We believe that the tools contained in the SDK will help developers increase conversion, drive discoverability, and engage users prior to download. Content that includes a VR Preview will be showcased in a special category across Viveport endpoints when we launch our new immersive Viveport discovery experience for consumers this Fall.
     

     
    Download the Viveport Scene SDK, including documentation, directly here - 385Mb ZIP
  13. Rockjaw
    If you haven't tried Viveport Subscription yet, there's never been a better time! Over 375 VR titles are waiting for you, with more being added every week.
     

     
    In less than a year, Viveport Subscription has grown enormously, starting with a little over 50 titles available to over 375 now. As a member you can check out five titles a month - which means it would take you over five years of subscription to experience everything that's currently available!
     
    We believe Viveport Subscription is the absolute best value offering in VR today, and we want to make sure you get the best value. That's why we're letting you know that the monthly price of Viveport Subscription will increase from $6.99 to $8.99 on March 22nd.
     
    New Viveport Subscription members who sign up before March 22nd will enjoy a 14-day free trial, then pay the current price of $6.99 per month. (If you are a returning member, you are not eligible for a free trial, but you'll still only pay $6.99 a month if you sign up before March 22nd.)
     
    Members who join us after March 22nd will also get a 14-day free trial, then pay the new price of $8.99 a month.
     
    (And if you're a developer? Yes, you'll be getting more - 28% more per member subscribed to your title, per month.)
     
    OUR GUARANTEE - AND NEW MEMBERSHIP PERKS!
    First, if you sign up before March 22nd, we guarantee your Viveport Subscription will continue at the original price of $6.99 until at least the end of 2018.
     
    Second, we're rolling out new perks for all Viveport Subscription members:
     
    All members will receive exclusive FREE codes for games and apps, starting in February and then regularly during the year All Weekend Deals on Viveport - offering discounts on apps and games you'll want to add permanently to your Viveport library - will now only be available to members  
    Viveport Subscription members will be seeing their first members-only Weekend Deal soon. More membership perks will be announced in future, so stay tuned!
     
    Whether you're joining Viveport Subscription as a new member, or locking in your pricing through 2018, we're excited to have you with us!
     
    GETTING STARTED WITH VIVEPORT SUBSCRIPTION
    With over 375 titles to choose from, it can be tricky to figure out what to choose for your Viveport Subscription's first month! If you're in that position, allow us to make some suggestions.
     
    Fantastic Contraption
    A superb puzzle game, Fantastic Contraption has just been updated with over 50 new levels and other new features. Devilishly simple, all you need to do is move an object in virtual space... but what kind of machine will you build to make that happen?
     
    Overkill VR

    The name might give you a clue: Overkill VR is all about shooting stuff, in an appropriately over the top way. With a massive range of customizable weapons and a horde of killer robots out for your blood, Overkill VR has kept many Viveport Subscription members on their toes since it first released.
     
    The Wizards
    As one of our reviewers said, "If you want to throw fire balls and shoot ice arrows at some orcs this is the game for you!" And who doesn't? Master magical forces, explore an entire campaign and, well, throw fire balls and shoot ice arrows at orcs!
     
    Earthlight: Spacewalk
    Quite simply, the closest you'll get to being on the International Space Station without being an astronaut (or, we suppose, a very rich tourist!). Earthlight: Spacewalk will astound you with a simulated spacewalk and some of the most amazing views you can imagine. (Read our review here.)
     
    theBlu
    Arguably still the best introduction to anyone first experiencing virtual reality, theBlu takes you below the ocean waves to stare into the eye of a whale, reach out to touch giant jellyfish or perhaps discover even more terrifying beasties in the dark.
     
    Sign up for Viveport Subscription now for your FREE 14-day trial. Experience these five titles and lock in the monthly rate for 2018!
  14. Rockjaw
    It’s time to get creative. Two weeks ago we debuted the Vive Tracker, which allows developers and accessory manufacturers to bring new form factors to VR with full motion tracking. As part of the news, we announced that we’d kick-start development of the Vive ecosystem by seeding 1,000 Vive Trackers to the developer and creative community.
     
    Starting today, we’re accepting applications for the initial batch of Trackers. Applications will be open through February 7.  That’s two weeks to tell us why your project is going to help the world rethink VR.
     
    Ready to debut a new product in VR? Want to create an API to track a pet (or your coffee table) within the VR world? Want to track a keyboard in VR? Tell us how and why.
     
    At CES, we showcased Vive Tracker Integrations with haptic gloves, the first VR camera, firefighting and baseball training applications, VR rifles for arcade and home use, and much more.
     
    The possibilities are endless, so let’s prove it.

     
    Apply now: http://link.vive.com/tracker/apply
     
    Want to discuss the Tracker with other developers? Need advice on how to work with the Tracker, developer guidelines or more? It's all in our Developer Forums, open specifically for registered Vive developers. (Not registered? Do so here.) We look forward to talking with you!
  15. Rockjaw
    Want more? You got it. Today we've added over 75 new titles to Viveport Subscription, bringing our total number of apps to over 150. Let's see what's new!
     

     
    You probably already know Viveport Subscription includes some of the best VR apps around including theBlu, Everest VR, Fantastic Contraption, MakeVR and Tilt Brush - as well as our Vive Studios titles. Today's content expansion adds a host of incredible titles that will take you to new worlds, including some apps never before seen outside of Asia. Here are our picks (in alphabetical order, natch) for some of the titles we think you can't afford to miss - available for one low price per month.
     
    Cosmic Trip
    Developer: Funktronic Labs

    Ever been stuck on an alien planet with a bunch of hostile aliens? I know, right? Just in case it hasn't happened to you yet, start training yourself now with Cosmic Trip, which will teach you how to command an army of cosmo robots and wipe out the opposition. Designed to be a no-compromises real-time-strategy experience for VR, Funktronic Labs' totally cosmic... uh... game has been tripping (aha!) over plaudits since liftoff. Treat yourself to a trip.
     
    Add Cosmic Trip to your Viveport Subscription CyberThreat
    Developer: Enigmatic
     
    We love shooting robots. We love it even more in VR. While we might have some sort of personal vendetta against robotkind, what we've always wanted to do is fly, run, climb, teleport and even fly around a massive open area, shooting robots like they're top of our Most Wanted list. What's that? You do exactly that in CyberThreat? Sold.
     
    Add CyberThreat to your Viveport Subscription Ghost Town Mine Ride & Shootin’ Gallery
    Developer: Spectral Illusions

    If the Haunted Mansion left you unruffled and your average shooting gallery only elicits yawns, you want to strap in and grab your six-shooters for Ghost Town Mine Ride & Shootin’ Gallery - which does exactly what the title suggests. You're out to investigate an abandoned tourist attraction (Hey, at least there's no lines) which some people claim is haunted. Spoiler: it totally is. All you have is a flashlight and a revolver, so hold on tight....
     
    Add Ghost Town Mine Ride & Shootin’ Gallery to your Viveport Subscription Kittypocalypse
    Developer: Bolvërk Games

    Honestly, Bolvërk Games had us with 'Evil alien kitties'. We love our cats, but the opportunity to blow up a bunch of virtual fur-babies who are trying to invade our floating island home was too good to pass up. Developed exclusively for VR and taking full advantage of room-scale, Kittypocalypse has more than enough fun and strategic depth to keep you entertained for a long time. Also: kitties.
     
    Add Kittypocalypse to your Viveport Subscription Overkill VR
    Developer: Starloop Studios / Game Troopers

    If there's one huge thing that separates any VR cover shooter from the flat-screen equivalent it's, well, the requirement to actually dodge and take cover. It may be virtual but you'll still be flinching from the bullet impacts in Overkill VR, as you test your real-world skills with an accurate recreation of aiming, while also dodging the enemies who'll be shooting back at you. For a bit of variation, toss a grenade over the wall.
     
    Add Overkill VR to your Viveport Subscription Pierhead Arcade
    Developer: Mechabit Ltd

    If you're of a certain age, you probably had dreams when you were younger about being set loose in the arcade with all the machines on free play. Either that, or you dreamed of being buried in prize tickets so you could grab that giant stuffed monkey you'd had your eye on. Either way, you need to play Pierhead Arcade, because as well as a load of arcade games to play with no virtual quarters required... there's even a prize gallery!
     
    Add Pierhead Arcade to your Viveport Subscription ROM: Extraction
    Developer: First Contact Entertainment

    We already told you we love shooting robots, so shooting even more of them in ROM: Extraction is kind of a no-brainer - but there's more to this game than just blasting away at bots. As an Extractor you're able to slow down time with your 'Reflex' power, which means before too long you'll be using your 'throw, slow and shoot' abilities to blast away the bad guys in the most stylish manner you can imagine.
     
    Add ROM: Extraction to your Viveport Subscription Sairento VR
    Developer: Mixed Realms

    The Matrix. Kill Bill. Two of our favorite movies and just two of the most obvious influences in Sairento VR, which casts you as a holy-cow-can-you-believe-it cybernetic ninja. (Two words that don't find themselves in the same sentence nearly often enough.) You'll be slashing, shooting, leaping, wall-running and generally acting like the baddest bad-ass alive as you battle your way through a futuristic Japan. If this game was any cooler it'd turn your VR machine into a block of ice.
     
    Add Sairento VR to your Viveport Subscription Virush
    Developer: Arcturus
    If I say 'snake', well, some of you will say "Where?!?" Others might say "Ah! My first real game." For those of you who remember the never-ending winding critter that occupied mobile phone screens (and plenty of other platforms) for years, then Virush will be familiar. Sort of. This is a 'snake-like' that's amped up to 11, in a completely 360-degree environment. Not quite the same as your ol' dumbphone.
     
    Add Virush to your Viveport Subscription Windlands
    Developer: Psytec Games Ltd.

    Y'know, maybe shooting stuff - whether robots or not - just isn't your thing. We can get behind that. So that's where something like Windlands is perfect, because all you need to do here is take to the sky, exploring some fantastic environments with a grappling hook and a reckless disregard for gravity. Yes, you'll want to make sure you have your VR legs for this one, but oh boy, it's worth it.
     
    Add Windlands to your Viveport Subscription And there's more...
    We said right up top that we had apps being added to Viveport Subscription that have only been seen in Asia. Here's a couple that we'll let speak for themselves...
    Eternity Warriors VR (Beta)
    Add Eternity Warriors VR (Beta) to your Viveport Subscription
    Tales of Glacier
    Add Tales of Glacier to your Viveport Subscription
    And it doesn't stop there...
    If you're math-inclined you've probably noticed we haven't listed over 75 titles above... but here's everything else, from A-Z. Deep breath:
    AI Rebellion All-Star Fielding Challenge VR Alpine Ski VR aMAZEing adventures Asteroid Blaster VR Audio Arena Baseball VR Beyond the City VR Blackjack Bailey Brain Voyagers: Ricochet BreakDownVR (The Outlaw) Building Panic Cargo Cult: Shoot'n'Loot Clash of Vessels VR Cosmos Crash Crystal Rift Cube Monster Dawn Deathlike: Awakening Dinosaur Park Dogfight Elite DragonwingsVR Drone Fighters Earthquake and Fire Simulator VR EnterVR Escape Bloody Mary Escape from Dinosaur Island Evil Robot Traffic Jam HD Fairvalley FILE 9 Galaxy Golf Glaive Grave VR High Noon HordeZ Hover Skate VR InfiniteHorror Just VR Slingshot Target Practice Keep Balance VR Killer Klownz MageWorks Manastorm: Champions of G'nar Merry Snowballs Moving Maze 1.1 Munch Off-Road Paradise: Trial 4x4 Paper Toss VR PingBall VR PIRATADO Power Solitaire VR RollerForce run Slingshot Cowboy VR Smell Of Death Sonic Hunter Space Fist SPACE RIFT Episode 1 Spacecats with Lasers VR Special Delivery Sword and Shield: Arena VR TacoFace The Walker Killer TRANCE VR Trigger Happy Shooting Unearthing Mars Vision Origin Void Rangers VRZ : Torment Waddle Home Wings of Peace VR: DayBreak Woeful Woebots Worldy Cup Of the above titles, the following are currently only available on Viveport:
    Baseball VR Brain Voyagers: Ricochet BreakDownVR (The Outlaw) Building Panic Cargo Cult: Shoot’n’Loot Cube Monster Dawn Dinosaur Park Earthquake and Fire Simulator VR Escape from Dinosaur Island Eternity Warriors VR BETA Evil Robot Traffic Jam HD Fairvalley High Noon InfiniteHorror Moving Maze 1.1 run Slingshot Cowboy VR Tales Of Glacier The Walker Killer TRANCE VR Unearthing Mars Virush Vision Origin Wings of Peace VR: DayBreak Woeful Woebots Is your Vive desktop client up to date?
    If you haven't used Viveport for a while, you may find you can't even see Viveport Subscription in your Vive desktop client. Never fear! We have an FAQ that tells you how to get up and running in no time. (If you need more help, make sure to post in that Community Forums thread, too.)
     
    What new apps are you adding?
    Tell us below! We'd love to hear from you.
  16. Rockjaw

    Introducing Vive Video!

    By Rockjaw,

    HTC Creative Labs presents Vive Video—a video player for virtual reality. With support for 2D, 3D, 180˚ and 360˚ content, Vive Video turns your personal video library into a virtual home theater.
     
    Virtual reality adds a delightful, immersive element to watching videos regardless of the format you choose. While viewing 2D videos, you can resize the screen to fill your entire field of view, orient it to your gaze, and even turn off the ambient lighting for a truly cinematic experience. Things get more exciting with 180° and 360° screen modes where, thanks to digital tracking, you can move and look around in the virtual environment while the content adapts to your viewing perspective.
     

     
    One of our favorites in this genre is the award-winning VR animation INVASION! 360 VR from Baobab Studios. From the director of Madagascar and narrated by Ethan Hawke, INVASION! is a VR story about two bumbling aliens, Mac and Cheez, with grand ambitions to take over our world. Instead, they are greeted by two adorable, white bunnies….and YOU are one of them!
     

     
    We’ve included a sneak peek of the INVASION! 360 video in the Vive Video download so you can see for yourself.
     
    Vive Video is available now from Viveport.
     
    INVASION! image courtesy of Baobab Studios. © 2016
  17. Rockjaw

    Introducing our VDA jury

    By Rockjaw,

    
     
     It's time to reveal our eight person jury, who will be voting on the nominees for the first-ever Viveport Developer Awards (VDAs).
     
    These eight jurors, along with your Viveport Community Choice vote, will determine the ultimate winners of a total of $500,000 in cash and prizes that will be revealed in January 2017.
     
    Twenty apps were nominated for their pioneering work in VR that best represent four of the key pillars of the Viveport platform: Explore, Experience, Create and Connect.
     
    The judges include:
     
    Brent Bushnell, CEO of Two Bit Circus
     
    Marcie Jastrow, SVP Immersive Media and Head of Technicolor Experience Center, ‎Technicolor
     
    Geoff Keighley, Journalist and Executive Producer of the Video Game Awards
     
    Nathaniël de Jong (Nathie), VR Content Creator on YouTube
     
    Rajeev Puran, Business Development - Commercial VR, Intel Corp
     
    Justin Roiland, Writer/Animator and Co-Creator of Rick and Morty
     
    Taryn Southern, internet personality and founder of Tribe of Good
     
    Reggie Watts, Comedian/Musician CBS' The Late Late Show with James Corden and Netflix's SPATIAL
     
    Don't forget - whatever our jurors decide, the community has their choice too. One of our VDA nominees could win a $10,000 bonus prize if they get the most votes from you, our community members.
     
    Check out our Community Choice Awards page, and cast your vote for your favorite VDA-nominated app today!
  18. Rockjaw
    
     
     For those of you in the US - Happy Thanksgiving! To kick off the holiday celebrations, we’re pleased to announce our Black Friday & Cyber Monday deals.
     
    Save on HTC Vive
    
     
     On both Black Friday and Cyber Monday wherever Vive is sold, you will save $100 (£100/€100 or equivalent local currency) either directly off the price, or through an in-store coupon, while supplies last. 
     
    Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals are available online and in all retail locations where Vive is sold, including Microsoft Stores, Amazon.com, Gamestop, Newegg.com, Micro-center, and Vive.com. In addition, for the first time, Vive will be available for sale in 34 Fry’s locations across the US and online. To find a location to purchase Vive near you, click here.
     
    Vive Online Availability: 
    Vive.com
    Microsoft Stores
    Amazon
    GameStop
    Newegg.com
    Micro Center
    Frys
     
    Save on VR apps in Viveport
     
    Our deals don't stop there! Build up your VR library with some great titles from Viveport this holiday weekend. Here's how you can save.
     
     
    The Black Friday Viveport Bundle
     
    Get three VR titles for just $5 (or equivalent). Make some noise (virtually) with SoundStage; paint in ways you've never experienced with Arcade Artist and relax during your holiday with Lumen.
     
    Separately these titles retail for almost $20, but this weekend you can pick them all up together for just $5.
     
    Click here to get this Black Friday Bundle!
     
    Save 50% on over 20 apps on Viveport
     
    As well as the Black Friday Bundle we're letting you save 50% on over 20 VR apps in Viveport this weekend. The full list of titles is as follows:
     
    A Chair in a Room: Greenwater Adventurous Life VR Apollo 11 VR C O S M Worlds Within Worlds Cloudlands: VR Minigolf Cmoar VR Cinema Daylight’s End (US only) DrumKit VR Emily Wants to Play Firebird - La Péri The Grand Canyon VR Experience Heaven Island Life Konrad the Kitten Oneiric Sculptures – Rodin Potioneer: The VR Gardening Simulator Ricerca VR Star Chart Stars Think Space Toon Ocean VV player World of Diving  
    Spend $30 on Viveport, get $10 credit back
     
    Feel tempted by those titles above? Here's another great reason to stock up: if you spend $30 (£25/€30 or local currency equivalent) or more between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, you will get $10 (£10/€10 or local currency equivalent) back in your Viveport wallet as credit, 10 days after the promotional period ends. (Please note, you can only receive a maximum of $10 credit.)
     
    New to Viveport?
     
    If you've just picked up your Vive and are about to experience virtual reality for the first time, or if you've never installed Viveport - click here and select 'Download Vive Software' to get Viveport.
     
    Need some help finding your new Viveport purchases? We have an FAQ for that.
     
    We hope you enjoy these Black Friday deals. Join us in the forums to discuss what you picked up!
     
    The Viveport Team
     
  19. Rockjaw

    VDA Q&A: Mars Odyssey

    By Rockjaw,

    You’ve just been nominated for a Viveport Developer award - how do you feel?
     
    We’re exhausted! Also very excited that Mars Odyssey has been well received. We’re very proud of the team and the passion project they’ve brought to life.
     
    Where did the idea for Mars Odyssey come from?
     
    We’ve always had a strong passion for education and science. Joshua Qualtieri, one of our studio co-founders, studied Astrophysics in college with the goal of eventually working for NASA on their Mars missions, but instead he ended up making films and games. Using VR to experience Mars and simulate space exploration has been a dream come true for Joshua and Steel Wool Studios.
     
    Do you really think there is life on Mars?
     
    We think it’s possible. If there is life on Mars, it is some form of super hardy microbial organism that’s yet to be discovered. There’s a lot of interest in Mars these days. If Mars Odyssey can add to that excitement and motivate someone in the not too distant future to get on a rocket to have a look around on Mars, that would be awesome.
     
    How big is your team and how long did it take to develop?
     
    The Mars Odyssey team is relatively small. About eight or nine members were involved with the project from beginning to end. In total, it took about 10 months to develop and put final touches on the project working on it part-time for most of the Mars Odyssey team.
     
    Tell us something about Mars Odyssey that we wouldn’t know from just experiencing it on Viveport?
     
    Mars Odyssey was built to possibly be part of a larger educational narrative structure. In Mars Odyssey you are simply “The Traveler” and your guide is “Athena”. Our concept is to continue developing educational simulations in which the Traveler and Athena jump from experience to experience, not just space exploration themes. Think “Quantum Leap” meets The Discovery Channel.
     
    During the development process, did anything surprise you along the way you didn’t expect?
     
    Actually, we never realized how large Olympus Mons and Valles Marineris truly are. Mars is a little over half the size of Earth but it is home to the largest volcano and canyon in the solar system.
     
    What do you hope people take away from Mars Odyssey overall?
     
    I hope that people find Mars as fascinating as we do. We get so focused on our lives that we sometimes forget to look up at the night sky. We are amazing, albeit flawed, creatures. We have landed humans on our Moon, shot probes deep into space, and sent robots to Mars, concepts that even now sound insane if you really think about it. Mars is an incredible world and worth exploring. Landing humans on Mars will teach and further inspire us. We are not meant to stay solely on Earth; hopefully we’ll soon take those first steps towards the Red planet.
     
    Are you planning future updates and adding more features to Mars Odyssey? What’s next for Steel Wool?
     
    There are some tweaks we have in an upcoming patch to allow the player to replay the Rover and Lander sequences without having to accomplish the tasks -- tourist mode, essentially. Beyond that, we’re gearing up for our next project coming out later this year, Bounce. It’s a VR physics-based puzzle adventure that’s getting great feedback. It’s totally different from Mars Odyssey, but that’s one of the best parts about being an independent studio - we get to work on cool stuff that excites us.
     
    If you could have anyone experience Mars Odyssey who would it be? Has Matt Damon tried it yet?
     
    Unfortunately, Matt hasn’t returned our calls, yet. If we could have anyone experience Mars Odyssey, we’d be honored to help Buzz Aldrin to virtually step onto the surface of the red planet.
     
    What’s one piece of advice you’d give to other developers?
     
    Keep your artists and engineers collaborating at all times. It’s important for us that both groups understand each other's concerns, and learn from each other.
     
    Mars Odyssey is available now on Viveport.
  20. Rockjaw
    We're thrilled to announce the second wave of nominees for the Viveport Developer Awards (VDAs). Each of these VR experiences brings a new and exciting dimension to Viveport, and we're proud to support them. The nominees are:
     
    
     
    Allumette, by Penrose Studios
     
    
    Cloudlands: VR Minigolf, by Futuretown
     
    
     
    Mars Odyssey, by Steel Wool Studios
     
    
     
    Arcade Artist, by Groove Jones
     
    Fantastic titles like these enable VR fans like you to Explore Worlds, Create Things, Connect with Friends and Experience Stories, so we congratulate these developers on their accomplishments. If you haven’t installed these titles already, check them out via the links above.
     
    We can’t wait to see your feedback about these apps on Viveport. Remember that we also have a Community Choice category, so make sure to let us know about your favorite VR content.
     
    We are grateful to all of you for joining us on this journey to amazing destinations.
     
    The Viveport Team
  21. Rockjaw
    The invasion of Normandy is over. The fiercest firefights of World War II have just begun.

     
    Vive Studios and Fantahorn Studio are taking you to the front lines of World War II with Front Defense, premiering today on Viveport and in Viveport Subscription.
     
    Set in the waning days of World War II, Front Defense puts you in the boots of an Allied Forces soldier facing an ongoing onslaught from Axis forces. As you defend strategic positions in a small European town, you'll engage with infantry using a wide range of firearms, from pistols to mounted machine guns.
     
    Soldiers aren't the only threat you'll face. With the full power of an Axis armored division deployed against you, you'll need to use bazookas, grenades and even call in airstrikes to destroy tanks, armored cars and dive bombers.
     

     
    Think that's all the Axis can throw at you? Think again. With whispers of a mysterious superweapon about to be deployed, an epic confrontation awaits for those able to hold the line.
     
    Developed by HTC first-party studio Fantahorn Studio, Front Defense has been designed explicitly for room-scale VR on Vive. You'll need to duck, dive and reload in order to survive on the front line, making Front Defense one of the most intense war games you've ever experienced.
     

     
    Front Defense is available now on Viveport, and is included as part of Viveport Subscription. Start your free trial today!
  22. Rockjaw

    VDA Q&A: PaintLab

    By Rockjaw,

    
     
    You've just been nominated for a Viveport Developer Award... how do you feel?
     
    Bart Burkhardt, LAB4242: I feel very honored and excited!
     
    Where did the idea for PaintLab come from?
     
    I remember when I was young going to the library looking for books about stereo photography. It was like I was naturally attracted to this technology.
     
    This was amplified when I got a ViewMaster from my father, I still remember it, it made a deep impact on me. I also remember that I was fascinated about the 360 painting in The Hague called the 'Panorama Mesdag'.
     
    Then later around 1995 I bought Virtual Reality magazines and I went to arcades to check it out.
    My hope was to get a Forte VFX1, but I never got one and soon after VR disappeared from the radar.
     
    Then 20 years later I was happy to see the light of the Oculus DK1 so I got one and started developing for it. 
     
    I started to make a voxel based creation environment where you could paint cubes using the mouse and showed it at the Amsterdam VR meetup.
     
    It was great but I really missed hand input and so I bought a Razor Hydra and started to explore what you can do with it. 
     
    I created many experiments and found that creating things out of nothing in mid air was such a great feeling that I continued working on that. 
     
    I gave the project the name Paint42 and shared builds to get feedback. I joined the Oculus Mobile JAM in 2015 with a GearVR port, but it didn't make the finals.
     
    Then I got the HTC Vive and ported to this great platform and we renamed the app to PaintLab. 
     
    How big is your team and how long did it take to develop?
     
    The team is two, where I do development and Gijs helps with media and doing events.
     
    Not counting the learnings it took 2 months to create PaintLab. 
     
    Tell us something about PaintLab that we wouldn’t know from just experiencing it on Viveport?
     
    We show PaintLab at events and found that its works great at festivals like the
    . Music and VR painting go together great.  
    We plan to do more events so if people are interested they can reach us at events@paintlabvr.com
     
    Also PaintLab will be featured in the documentary 'Dream the Future' for the French TV-Channel CANAL+
     
    The film will be broadcast beginning next year in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Austria, Canada, China, Finland and very probably in the USA.
     
    This summer we had two days of film recording where also graffiti artist Zeky from Paris created a 3D artwork.
     
    During the development process, did anything surprise you along the way you didn’t expect? 
     
    One of the things that I didn't expect is that when you create errors in your code, these errors could do things visually that sometimes bring new ideas. 
     
    What do you hope people take away from PaintLab overall?
     
    I hope that PaintLab will bring people joy and offers a great way to create art. 
     
    Are you planning future updates and adding more features to PaintLab? Or is there something new coming from the team?
     
    Yes there are many updates in the works. We're experimenting with new effects and possibilities and we're actually fixing bugs to release these new features. 
     
    After the update we will continue developing because its fun and want to improve the app and the possibilities are endless.
     
    What’s one piece of advice you’d give to other developers?
     
    My advice would be to listen to people but mostly listen to yourself. Do what you think is best, if you believe in something, and others don't see it, just follow your heart and create what you love. 
     
    PaintLab is available now on Viveport.
  23. Rockjaw
    Viveport Arcade, HTC’s software distribution and content management platform for arcades, is launching a new pricing structure from March 7th.
     
    If you have content opted-in to the Viveport Arcade program, you will now be able to set your own ‘per station, per month’ license fee through the Developer Console. This means an operator would pay a guaranteed amount for each PC running your content, at a license fee value set by you.
     
    Once you’ve chosen your per station, per month license fee, a price per hour cost is automatically created and associated with your title. This alternative fee allows arcade operators to purchase content either via the per station, per month license fee, or based on the hourly fee.
     
    This gives operators the flexibility to offer more content and developers control over pricing. This new pricing will be available to arcades in mid-April. We encourage you to update your pricing before April, otherwise your per station price may initially be set at a default value (this may be changed later).
     
    If you have further questions, please comment below, or elsewhere in the Developer Forum.
     
    Please note, legal terms and conditions for Viveport Arcade are updated with this change. Read these changes in the Developer Console.
  24. Rockjaw
    As we celebrate one year of the HTC VIVE, VR developers sent us their perspectives on where VR started and where it's going.
     
    Thanks to Google, Owlchemy Labs, Survios, Big Box VR, Against Gravity, Cloudgate Studio, Cloudhead Games, Radial Games and IBM for sharing their views!
     

  25. Rockjaw
    Yee-haw! Saddle up with Hopalong: The Badlands
     
    If you’ve ever played at being a cowboy or pretended a broom was a horse (Wait, just us?) then you’ll be right at home in the wild, weird west of Hopalong: The Badlands. With Hopalong now available as part of Viveport Subscription, we talked to (appropriately enough) Texas-based developers From the Future about their rootin’ tootin’ shootin’ VR experience.
     

     
    Well howdy there, partner. What’s yer name and what brings you to these parts… or in other words, what gave you the idea for Hopalong: The Badlands?
     
    Howdy! My name is Mike Christian and I’m the CEO and one of four founders of From the Future (here we are on Twitter). The idea for Hopalong: The Badlands fell out of my head one Labor Day weekend and resulted in a prototype. The rest of the Future crew couldn’t help but laugh when they saw the idea, not to mention me hopping around the room in VR gear. The idea quickly evolved from everyone else’s input, and became much, much more than the original concept. My role on the team has mostly been the executive designer, with the occasional bit of programming.
     
    Is it fair to say that Hopalong … doesn’t take the history of the American West that seriously?
     
    Them there is fightin’ words, hombre! Hopalong takes American West history very seriously and we faithfully created that history… if it had been all stick-horses and wooden villains.
     

     
    After your initial idea, what brought Hopalong to fruition?
     
    Hopalong was an idea that bubbled up from the horse watering trough of desire – a desire to introduce a fun and novel way to traverse large landscapes in VR without teleporting. We figured since people look a little silly playing VR already, why not go the full silly?! People told us ‘never go the full silly’, but we thought that advice was, well, silly.
     
    The original idea was to not only prance around on a stick horse, but to also wave a lasso over your head as you tried to rope in stray bossies. (For you non-Texan types, bossies are cattle.) However, we lost several interns during testing due to CLS, AKA Carpal Lasso Syndrome, so that got cut.
     
    Visually Hopalong is quite unique! Were you inspired mostly by kids and their play, or something else? (I keep flashing to the coconut hooves of Monty Python’s Holy Grail, myself.)
      
    Thanks! Actually, we were inspired by Kid ‘n Play, the famous 80’s hip-hopalong duo. Monty Python’s infamous fish slapping dance was also a HUGE inspiration.  Tell us how the Oscillot system works. What makes it different from other locomotion systems in VR?
     
    At first actually, fully hopping in place was mandatory. However, being game developers we were not in the best shape, so we quickly resorted to shaking our fists...which came much more naturally. Oscillot, also known as O.S.C.I.L.L.O.T.,  is the science of moving like a bouncy cat. The cat that inspired the name, is known for its sinusoidal-like motion as it pounces on its prey. These cat facts are all well documented on the internet and are assuredly not made up by us.
     
    We found that physical movement helps reduce motion sickness because it allows people to make more of a connection to motion in the game versus motion in the real world. By limiting all the movement to one hand, both velocity and direction, that frees the other hand to wield weapons.
     
    What kind of cool moves can people pull off in Hopalong?
     
    You can shoot dynamite out of the air and back to the enemy that threw it. You can also use your grit to slow down time and multiply the mayhem exponentially. Once you defeat Boss Boomity you earn his flying pig, Pigasus, and hover one meter in the air!!! Oh the places you’ll go! Assuming those places are about three feet above you.
     
    Why is an Eight Shooter inherently better than someone’s trusty six-shooter?
     
    Six plus two times more fun! ™
     
    What weapons did you invent for Hopalong?
     
    The Brimstone Gun for when it's dark, or when you need to light a bandit on fire. Whichever comes first.
     
    The Iron Falcon is an 1880’s style hand-mortar that you can use to blast a bushel of Boomity’s out of the bushes.
     
    What kind of environments can people expect to see in Hopalong?
     
    Hopalong takes players both high and low through an expansive cliffside chock full of narrow paths, perilous edges, and more than a handful of hazardous outhouses. Aside from the wide-open spaces, the Badlands also hosts a number of caverns, rivers and other vistas.
     

     
    Ahem. What do stick horses eat? Are they easier to train than a normal horse?
     
    The only fuel your stuffed companion craves is the fear of your enemies. It’s like sugar cubes to them. They are much more difficult to train than a four legged horse. Good luck.
     
    Have you any plans for further development of Hopalong? Additional features you’d like to include?
     
    Heck yeah, buckaroo! Multiplayer and VR arcade features are in the planning stages. We have also explored a medieval theme where you are a horse riding wizard that storms all the castles.
     
    What’s next for you guys? I expect you already know considering your studio name.
     
    We have more ideas than you can shake a stick horse at. A couple of ideas in the works are: Flying Blades, a martial arts and sword fighting game that takes place in the air, and a Roman-inspired giant robot game. In Flying Blades, the Oscillot system is used to propel you through the air by flicking a magic sword and using another sword for direction as you battle giant demons. The Romanesque robot game has you commanding a giant mech-like contraption to defend a Rome that never fell...thanks to the robot!
     

    Speaking of that, what is the future like? Are there jetpacks? We were promised jetpacks.
     
    Well, it's not all flying cars and musical toilets. Jetpacks ARE a thing but they are only in fanny pack form. Bell bottoms are back but the bells are reversed. Walt Disney has been resurrected...and man is he angry! Those are the highlights.
     
    Thanks for talking to us, Mike. We’ll let you return to the future now!
    Hopalong: The Badlands is available in Viveport Subscription.
     
     
×
×
  • Create New...