I don’t attend many conferences, but when I first heard about Oculus Connect I knew it was going to be awesome. An invitation only developer conference for something as world changing as VR is just too hard to resist. Now that it is over, I have to say that it has inspired me, and put a human face on Oculus and the larger VR community. I hope they do it the same way… Continue reading
Time for another take on Oculus, the Rift, and the new VR industry that is forming. Everything has pretty much exploded since Facebook purchased the company. That put Oculus on the map and brought a great deal of attention to the company and the new wave of VR technology now emerging. We even had the first official conference for consumer virtual reality put together by SVVR. For a complete and well written account of… Continue reading
The initial pre-release is still essentially the VR Jam game I created, although cleaned up and improved significantly. The gameplay is also still simple with only a few basic exploration and treasure hunting mechanics. My plan right now is to continue improving and enhancing the foundation of the game. I also intend to rework the terrain with new shaders, revise the art pack used for the island, and put in a procedural sky system with… Continue reading
So, what does it take to utterly blow your mind? VR! It has happened twice now for me. The last time was experiencing VR for the first time with the Rift a year ago. This time it was experiencing the famous Valve demos that everyone has been talking about since the beginning of the year. I am convinced more than ever that this new wave of VR technology is going to change the world. There… Continue reading
I have been busy fixing bugs the last few weeks and now have the first pre-alpha version of LOST LOOT ready to go. This version is more or less the same as the VR Jam game however it has been cleaned up, enhanced, and optimized to provide a much nicer experience. I hope you like it! The trailer… Some screenshots… Please try it out and give me feedback. It is… Continue reading
Well, the last few months have been another rollercoaster ride for the VR world. I think we are on a path to a very promising future for VR and as I have said before the next few years are going to be very exciting! Sony Legitimizes VR Things really started to heat up at GDC. We had Sony taking center stage with the unveiling of Project Morpheus (after the god of dreams) for the PS4,… Continue reading
It has been a while since the last update on Lost Loot. I have been hard at work on the game during the little spare time I have available lately and I wanted to show off some of the underwater effects that have been added and discuss some of the progress that has been made. I made a video so you can see the current version in action. I started off with some changes to… Continue reading
Well, it is that time again… There has been much happening in the VR world. I guess we are now calling it the second coming of VR with all the new technology showcased at CES and of course the huge Valve announcements at Steam Dev Days. Now for a little recap… Oculus showed off the Crystal Cove Prototype at CES which has a camera based positional tracking system and a low persistence display. I won’t… Continue reading
One of the major issues with Lost Loot was that when you are on the surface of the ocean your body did not rise and fall with the waves properly and as a result you could often see under the water without the underwater system turning on. This regularly broke the immersion and additionally there was no way to have anything floating on the water either, such as barrels, crates, or even the little red… Continue reading
Yes, you read that correctly! I have been using some of my spare hobby time lately to collaborate on something completely different. I have been working with my good friend Caleb from Part12 Studios to help take their game Sluggo and morph it into a super awesome arcade game for the OUYA, and hopefully other platforms! You can follow the official progress on the Super Sluggo Facebook page. OUYA you say? Yes the little console… Continue reading
It has been a while since my last Rift Ramblings. I was mildly burned out after pulling together Lost Loot for the VR Jam, but I have been busy developing the concepts for the successor to it. During this process I have been trying to grapple with what makes a true VR game. VR games extend beyond simply adapting current games to use a stereoscopic HMD. They also need to bring interaction closer to the… Continue reading
It is finally done! The last week of the jam was torture and I spent many late nights and two days with no sleep up until the final submission late Sunday. It has taken some time to recover and that is why this update is a week late. Here is a video of some random gameplay from the final version of LOST LOOT. It is rather long, but as a reward you get to find… Continue reading
So we have reached the end of week two. Things have been a little crazy – I am getting rather exhausted and turning nocturnal. The game is coming along, but still not anywhere near complete. I was able to complete the basic gameplay of diving for and recovering loot. This is my official milestone 2 progress video for LOST LOOT, which is just some gameplay segments diving for loot! Current gameplay involves parachuting… Continue reading
My entry in the Oculus and IndieCade VR Jam is taking shape. I am creating a casual treasure diving game designed specifically for VR. Here is the official description: “LOST LOOT: A casual exploration game designed for VR and the Oculus Rift. It combines relaxing gameplay with an interesting environment and a touch of adventure. Dive for lost treasure! Search submerged ruins and ancient shipwrecks for gold, jewels, and artifacts. Watch your air supply and… Continue reading
I am currently in the process of prototyping the character setup for my game. I am developing a game that has a first person perspective and allows you to look down and see the body of the main character you play. This main character is also wearing human/alien hybrid tech that is composed of a tablet/visor system. The tablet is used as a main control device for the related visor which acts as an augmented… Continue reading
