In gaming, its all about immersion. The audio, graphics, and storyline fuse together to create a massive virtual world. Its a sophisticated blend of art and technology that blends together and creates some of the world’s most fantastic, mesmerizing games.
Let’s look at how that happens.
Virtual Reality (VR) is without question one of the most significant advancers for the gaming industry. It continues to help lift the gaming industry into a state of immersion so deep, it rivals Hollywood cinema in the ratings. And that’s no small feat.
But with the VR state, comes unique challenges to gaming developers.
A Short History of VR and Gaming
The relationship isn’t as new as many people may think. But overall, the gaming industry has continued to drive new iterations of VR which has helped many industries.
In the 1960’s, there was Ivan Sutherland’s “Ultimate Display” concept that laid the groundwork for VR.
In 1968, we had “Sword of Damocles” which was the first mounted display. This was a combination of Ivan Sutherland and Bob Sproull.
But it was the 1990s that really turned a page for VR when Sega VR headseats were supposed to hit arcades, but never did. Seems a bit odd to cast this as a big turning point, but this was the point that developers understood VR’s true potential in gaming. Shortly after that, VR arcade machines came along, followed by Nintendo Virtual Boy.
Of course, it’s all a lot more advanced in terms of arcade and VR experiences.
n the 2000s and 2010s, we got the development of motion sensors which led to Oculus Rift’s famous kickstarter campaign that eventually raised $2.4 million. Nope, you can’t still donate to that campaign, folks. But its a cool Internet memory lane.
Obviously, VR is a robust technology that’s built into all types of industries today, but the gaming industry continues to lead the charge in development. And rightfully so, gamers judge games by how immersive they feel the experiences are and nothing add more immersion than VR or AR.
Game Developer VR Advancements
There’s a whole lot on the table when it comes to VR. Its no longer just visual, the audio and feelings matter a whole lot.
Hardware advancements famously led to haptic feedback, the ability to feel experiences through controllers or chairs.
There’s also development projects aimed at reducing motion sickness, which is no easy task.
And then there’s sound. Alas, sound can be a key function in a virtual world. Nailing it means really hitting the mark in a VR experience.
A big one is spatial audio, or sound designed to utilize a 3D environment. This means sounds can be heard coming from specific directions, like in your real life.
There’s environmental soundscapes or the creation of rich and dynamic environments through very precise background sounds. For example, a forest may have leaves blowing and wind and even animal sounds. It all contributes to the greater VR experience.
Then there’s interactive sounds, such as weapons clashing, or even walking through leaves.
But it doesn’t stop there…
Advances in audio technology, such as binaural audio and object-based sound, allow for more precise and realistic soundscapes.
Overall, between haptic feedback and sound, the goal is a completely immersive, 3D experience that comes at you from all directions, just like in your real life. And it’s a huge selling point for game companies.
But none of this is easy.
Designing for haptic feedback and sound presents a lot of challenges. If you’re off slightly in any aspect, you’ll completely miss the experience for the gamer.
In adult games, such as Call of Duty, or adult games here, you need all the details aligned so that the experience is powerful.
The cool thing in all of this is that the upside to VR technology in gaming is barely upon us. We’ve got a very high ceiling and a long ways to go in achieving it. In 20 years, VR technology will be quite a bit different and we’ll look back at today’s advancements as old. Because we always do.