Extended Reality (XR) - Page 63

The virtual reality market seems to be surging, but there is still quite a bit of confusion regarding what vertical will help drive interest. Initial signs point towards the gaming market, but a VR pioneer said there are much more important and practical uses for VR technology.

"I don't believe that video games are an appropriate market for this. Especially when you get into the highly violent games - do you really want to feel that blood splatter on you?" said Jeremy Bailenson, founder of the Virtual Human Interaction Lab, in a statement to the San Jose Mercury News. "I don't think it's the right use case."

"I don't believe VR should be used for hours a day. I think VR's great for really particular and specific moments that you try to learn about yourself and learn about others. Maybe I'm in a minority, but when these games come out, I don't think people are going to want to play them for eight hours."

While HTC might not be doing so well when it comes to smartphone sales, it has one of the most exciting products in it arsenal, with the Vive VR headset arriving later this year.

With no firm release date other than 'the end of 2015', HTC is now saying that it will sell Vive directly through its website, as well as various retailers. HTC.com and HTCVR.com will have the first Vive units available, but it will slowly reach other destinations. HTC's Head of Global Marketing, Jeff Gattis, talked with Polygon recently about Vive, where he said: "Everybody is excited about this: They see the potential for the market, the potential to sell the things around it. They see it as a great traffic driver to their stores".

Gattis said that "retail will be part of [their] strategy" but it won't happen until Q1 2016, but that doesn't mean the Vive is delayed from its 'end of 2015' release window. Gattis added: "I don't know if we're necessarily going to hit retail for holiday, but we're still very committed to that".

Virtual reality has potential well beyond just video games, and it looks like movies providing a more interactive experience could help the market surge even higher. Oculus recently signed a "multi-project, multi-experience virtual reality production deal" with Felix & Paul Studios to create custom content for the Oculus Rift.

If you're not familiar with Felix & Paul Studios, the company created Jurassic World and Wild VR experiences for the Samsung Gear VR headset. Working directly with VR headset manufacturers gives Felix & Paul Studios the ability to provide polished VR experiences directly to consumers - and will hopefully create interest for the VR industry overall.

"We believe in virtual reality's profound potential as an art form and storytelling medium," said Felix Lajeunesse, co-founder of Felix & Paul Studios. "Our studio's objective is to create content of the highest quality - both artistically and technologically - and to expand the boundaries of what can be expressed through the medium."

With gamers across the world excited for the endless possibilities of Microsoft's upcoming HoloLens wearable, it looks like the first iteration of HoloLens won't be aimed at gamers, and instead it will be targeted towards developers and enterprise scenarios.

The news comes directly from Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, during his recent interview with ZDNet, where he said that HoloLens will be "more about developers and enterprise scenarios". Nadella's statement on HoloLens rides directly from his demo on the wearable at Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference, where the CEO focused its concentration of HoloLens on tools like Autodesk and Maya.

Even with the big push of Minecraft on HoloLens at E3 2015 last month, the company isn't pushing HoloLens onto gamers anytime soon. Nadella added: "What we can uniquely do is bridge consumer to enterprise. That's in our DNA. I want every technology of ours to seek that out. In the HoloLens case, when I look at the interest, it's amazing how many are in hospitals, healthcare, retail. That's where I'm seeing the interest and we'll definitely go after it". He continued: "I wanted a hit game even for the new medium of mixed reality. And we will have that. Gaming will always be a scenario and there will be other entertainment broadly. But, with the V.1 of HoloLens, I want us to push a lot more of the enterprise usage".

HoloLens is one of the most exciting thing to come out of Microsoft in years, and while the company is laying off 7,800 people, it is still forging on with the release of Windows 10 on July 29, and its first wearable: HoloLens.

But, until now, we haven't really seen what type of field of view HoloLens has. In the latest video from Microsoft, where they announce their partnership with Case Western Reserve University, which we've embedded above, we can see that the field of view is quite limited. In fact, you can see a slight border on the hologram itself, which reminds me of the Now card that Google Glass had in the top right hand corner.

Microsoft has said that the limited field of view is there so that HoloLens wearers can continue to do things in real life, without the hologram obstructing their view. I'm sure it will get better as time goes on, with future iterations of HoloLens, but this is definitely going to take some of the steam out of some users' dreams.

Mozilla has begun external testing of its new Firefox browser 'MozVR' which is compatible with VR headsets, which will see the future of web browsing being in the same world as sitting on your couch playing VR games or watching movies with your VR headset on.

During an interview with USA Today, Mozilla CEO Tom Beard said: "If 'web video' gets turned into 'web VR,' it could be a game-changer". With two years of development on MozVR in secret, Mozilla has had its engineering director Vlad Vukicevic, who led the development of WebGL, working on MozVR.

Josh Carpenter, a user-experience designer who has been working closely with Vukicevic said: "VR is too big to be left just to (gamers)".

Microsoft and Sony continue to move forward developing their respective augmented reality and virtual reality headsets, but Nintendo still isn't convinced. Shigeru Miyamoto, creative director of Nintendo, recently discussed how the Japanese gaming company is focused on discussing titles - and technologies - that will be available to gamers sooner rather than later.

It looks like Nintendo is trying to portray VR as a technology that won't be fun and social, and could cause more problems. Miyamoto previously said he didn't feel VR is a good fit for Nintendo.

"The current software for these virtual reality devices cannot be played simultaneously by a number of people," Miyamoto said during a meeting in front of investors. "And since it is generally expected that the development for the applicable software for a high-performance device will take two to three years, there were a number of visual demonstrations for virtual reality devices."

For the last few years, I haven't preordered a game. This is mostly because 95% or more of games are not ready on launch, and after spending $60-$100 (living in Australia sucks for gamers), this is not how you should be treated as a consumer.

Well, it looks like the founder of Oculus has the same feeling about preorders as I do. Palmer Luckey, founder of Oculus, said that preorders are "a balance", he continued, saying: "you don't want to be holding onto people's money". He then attacked the entire industry and their preorders, saying: "we all know preorders are often a joke in this in this industry. We don't want to be a part of that and be taking people's money nine, ten months before we ship anything".

It's great to see Luckey taking that stance, especially with developers having no issues taking consumers' money months, sometimes a year in advance and then delaying the game, or having the game half-baked and not ready at launch.

Facebook may have over a billion daily active users, but where does the company see itself in 10 years time? During a Q&A on his profile yesterday, Mark Zuckerberg talked about what his company has in store for the future.

Zuckerberg says that he thinks the ultimate communication technology will allow you to send thoughts to another person, where he elaborated: "You'll just be able to think of something and your friends will immediately be able to experience it too if you'd like". But since we're not quite there yet, Facebook is putting its effort into artificial intelligence (AI), as the company "think[s] more intelligent services will be much more useful".

Not only that, but Facebook sees VR as the future - after all, it did acquire Oculus VR last year - where it says VR is the "next major computing and communication platform". The social network didn't leave out its Internet.org project, with Zuckerberg adding that it's "the most basic tool people need to get the benefits of the internet," including jobs, education and communication".

AMD has just announced a new partnership with Creative Artists Agency (CAA) in Hollywood, where it will provide Hollywood creatives with Liquid VR. This will allow Hollywood directors a better channel to work with AMD to create immersive VR experiences.

AMD's Corporate Vice President of Alliances, Roy Taylor, said that the most important part of VR isn't just about gaming. He said that the entertainment industry is investing "an order of magnitude more money and talent into VR than the game industry is". Taylor added: "Los Angeles has become the epicenter of virtual reality, not Silicon Valley. I meet a dozen new people every day in Hollywood that are interested in VR".

But with NVIDIA owning three quarters of the GPU market share, what can AMD do when it comes to VR? Taylor says that AMD has an advantage over its competitor, thanks to its "hardware asynchronous compute" technology, something we covered not too long ago.

Virtual reality seems to have hardware designers and software developers quite excited, even though there are plenty of skeptics. Joining the growing list of those excited about VR is Unity CEO John Riccitiello, and he recently shared thoughts about how his company is contributing.

Unity currently boasts "the best system for creating content for VR," Riccitiello said during his E3 keynote. He expanded his thoughts during a recent interview with GamesIndustry:

"We have the highest market share [in VR] right now, so we're already there. It's interesting that a company like Valve, which makes its own engine, is showing demos for VR, and all but one is built with Unity."

Virtual reality was one of the most popular topics during E3 2015 earlier this month, but Nintendo isn't quite on the VR bandwagon. Although the company is paying attention to VR developments, it's seen as a technology that doesn't fall in line with Nintendo's current game production philosophy: be fun and social.

Microsoft and Sony appear to be fully onboard VR hardware support - and game development - hoping consumers are okay with wearables designed to enhance the gaming experience.

"The current types of virtual reality aren't really a good fit for Nintendo's philosophy of trying to create entertainment that people can play together in the living room," said Shigeru Miyamoto, game design legend behind Mario, told Yahoo Games during E3. "We're constantly looking at different technology and experimenting with different elements of it, but we're not feeling virtual reality is currently in a place where it's ready to be released - as a product that fits with our philosophy of fitting in the living room."

It looks like you can't count game designer Warren Spector as one of those interested in developing VR video games, with the man best known for Deus Ex, saying VR won't be anything more than a fad. The Oculus Rift drew major attention during E3 2015 earlier this month, but Spector said he "didn't see much interest in VR or AR." However, he's an overall fan of the technology, but hasn't seen enough to become a "true-believer" in it... yet. Maybe?

"The other VR/AR stuff seemed like a big ho-hum to me. Maybe that's just my prejudice - I think VR's going to be a fad (again) and at best a minor part of gaming's future, not unlike stereoscopic 3D, which I also called out as a fad," Spector recently said in a blog post. However, he clarified his viewpoint in a follow up blog post:

"As an individual, I find VR cool, interesting and compelling. I'm not anti-VR. The content is coming, I have no doubt - I know too many super smart, super creative people working to create the unique content that will make the VR experience desirable if not irresistible."

It's impossible to tell when virtual reality will go mainstream - if it does - but the companies pushing VR hardware hope its sooner rather than later.

Re/code recently caught up with Palmer Luckey, Oculus co-founder, to see what he thought about the future of VR.

"In these early days, probably for at least two years, VR is going to be primarily for gamers and enthusiasts that are willing to invest in high-end machines," Luckey said while speaking with Re/code. "VR is going to become something mainstream, but it's not going to happen right away. You just don't have the horsepower to make it happen on a device, much less a cheap enough and comfortable enough device that a normal consumer is going to want to have."

Ready or not, a wave of virtual reality hardware is right around the corner. As gamers learn more about the choices we have in front of us, trying to figure out how long to wear the VR headsets during each session.

Some people will only be able to use it for a few minutes at a time, while others will be good to go for a few hours.

"We're not recommending 20 straight hours of gameplay in the Rift. We're looking at 30, 60, 90 minutes," said Brendan Iribe, head of the Facebook Oculus VR division, in a statement to GamesBeat. "Maybe an hour or two. Then you should be able to enjoy it every day. When you come out of it, if you don't feel good, you're not going to want to do it the next day. We want you to come out of the experience like you want to get right back in."

Cirque du Soleil Kurios used a custom camera to record its show, providing a 360-degree version for guests wearing virtual reality headsets. If you're wearing the headset, and turn your head, you'll receive an entirely different view of what you're seeing. The Samsung Gear VR headset was chosen in the demo, and allowed for an entirely new perspective of the show.

"So every time you turn around, you realize that someone is really close to you and they're doing something very, very interesting," said Jeronimo Carbi, electronic maintenance coordinator for the Kurios show, in a statement published by CBS4.

As a huge fan of Cirque Soleil, I think there is some appeal to seeing a VR experience with the high-flying acrobatics. Each show is unique and entertaining in their own right, so adding VR into the mix should only make it better.

Microsoft has teamed up with NASA to help develop the Sidekick project, designed so astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) can use commercial technology to be more productive. Ideally, astronauts will be able to successfully complete tasks in a more efficient manner, while also reducing the amount of crew training before missions.

Expect astronauts to use HoloLens so they have a digital virtual aid - with HoloLens blasting into space aboard a SpaceX commercial resupply mission on June 28.

"HoloLens and other virtual and mixed reality devices are cutting edge technologies that could have drive future exploration and provide new capabilities to the man and women conducting critical science on the International Space Station," said Sam Scimemi, director of the ISS program at NASA. "This new technology could also empower future explorations requiring autonomoy on the journey to Mars."

Sony wants its Project Morpheus virtual reality headset to help revolutionize gaming, and spent a lot of time promoting the platform during E3. However, some gamers wonder if VR will be nothing more than a gimmick, in a similar sense to how 3D TVs were expected to be the next big thing - and quickly fizzled.

When asked about how Sony plans to promote VR, especially to users that think it's a gimmick similar to 3D TVs, here is what Shuhei Yoshida, President of Sony's Worldwide Studios at Sony Computer Entertainment, said while speaking with PlayStation LifeStyle:

"Yeah, so people ask me 'is virtual reality the next 3D TV?' And I say, 'No, it's not.' The experience that we are creating is totally different from 3D TV and games on 3D TVs. When you look back, games you played on 3D TVs are almost exactly the same as you've played on 2D TVs. You just get depth simulation inside the TV but it's the same game."

Virtual reality is booming right now, and the overall market is expected to reach $15.89 billion by 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of 63.18 percent from now until 2020, according Marketsandmarkets.

Oculus VR, Sony, HTC and Valve, Microsoft, and other manufacturers are currently developing VR hardware, with consumers anxiously waiting for more consumer choices. With Sony and Oculus admitting they are "sharing notes" with one another regarding VR, the two frontrunners in the hardware market could help drive interest in the market.

Most of the attention on VR is dedicated to video games and movies, but the technology will likely be disruptive for the medical, industrial, education, retail and marketing, and other verticals. VR will grow to be even more competitive, but opportunities exist as there are new large scale collaborations, partnerships and agreements among software and hardware developers.

Nintendo was quick to embrace eSports before it evolved into the massive business it is now, with championships and tournaments in the early 90s.

Although the company's focus shifted towards console and portable gaming units, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime wants to show more support for eSports in the future. In the first four days the Nintendo World Championships was available online, it was viewed more than 5 million times - and Fils-Aime expects even more views.

"We saw success last year with the Smash Bros. Invitational, and Smash Bros. has always been a game in the eSports community," said Fils-Aime, in a statement published by Fortune. "What we're really gratified to see is that the community has now embraced Super Smash Bros. for Wii U because it has the speed and customization they like. We're also seeing them embrace Mario Kart 8, as well as Splatoon, in a competitive environment. We've always been close to the eSports space and will continue to be."