Until You Fall launched in Early Access on Steam and Oculus back in August 2019; the game impressed us with its excellent VR melee combat system. Despite consistently high reviews, the game hasn’t attracted a critical mass of players, pushing developer Schell Games to shift development focus toward support for new headsets. With most PC VR headsets already covered, the studio is likely considering Quest and PSVR.

Earlier this month, Schell Games offered up a look at its 2020 roadmap for Until You Fall. Though the game is one of the best rated VR titles on Oculus PC and Steam, it doesn’t seem to have achieved the traction the studio was hoping for. As such, the studio makes clear that its top priority is getting the game onto more headsets, while simultaneously readying the title for a ‘1.0’ launch out of Early Access.

While the response to Until You Fall has been amazing, the best way to ensure that we can still keep adding content to the game is by ensuring more Rune Knights can take the fight to Rokar.

Fittingly, one of the most frequent requests we’ve received is to bring the game to more headsets. So, we are currently inves­ti­gating the time and resources needed to bring the game to addi­tional platforms (specifics will be announced soon, we’re still pretty early on in our inves­ti­ga­tions).

The studio hasn’t said which new headsets its targeting, but with the game already available on both Oculus PC (Rift) and SteamVR (Index, Rift, Vive) it’s clear that Quest and PSVR are in the studio’s sights for Until You Fall.

We’d guess that Quest is a near certainty—given its input and tracking parity with major PC headsets—while PSVR is more of a wild card due to its restrictive, front-facing tracking volume and the fact that its host system, PS4, is reaching the end of its lifecycle.

SEE ALSO

‘Until You Fall’ Early Access Review: VR Hack & Slash, with Depth

From our reading, it sounds like Schell Games aims to reach a 1.0 version of Until You Fall that it’s happy with and then launch that version across existing headsets and whichever new headsets the studio settles on.

Since the game’s launch in Early Access, the studio has made a number of large updates including adding new enemies and weapons. In the near-term the studio says it’s still working on some smaller updates for the Early Access version of the game.

During the first part of 2020 the team will be working on some balance updates, tutorial tweaks, quality of life improve­ments, and updating the in-game music with our new mastered tracks.

Timeline and specifics for these updates are still in flux, but we’re shooting to get the first of them out by the end of March.

In the long run, Schell Games says, the studio wants to continue to expand the game, but it needs a critical mass of players to do so, and believes that prioritizing launching the game on more headsets is the best approach to reach that goal.

Like I Expect You To Die [another VR game from the studio], we want to try and continue supporting the game beyond launch with new content.

As such, getting us on as many platforms as possible and ensuring we have a solid 1.0 offering will give us a better chance at making addi­tional content going into the future.

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VR streamers and those capturing VR gameplay footage with Oculus PC headsets know about OculusMirror.exe which lets you customize the VR view displayed on the monitor, including showing things like Oculus Dash and Oculus Home which don’t normally appear in the external window. While OculusMirror.exe is a powerful little tool, its command-line interface made it a hassle to use. The latest update to the Oculus desktop software finally adds a simple graphical interface, making the tool much easier to use.

What Does OculusMirror.exe Do?

When you launch a VR game, you’ll also see a window on your computer monitor which shows a view of the game. Unfortunately this window isn’t configurable (except for a few games with built-in options), and if you’re hanging out in Oculus Home you won’t get any window on your screen at all.

OculusMirror.exe is a built-in tool which replaces the external game window with one that gives you much more control over what’s show on your monitor. It several very useful capabilities for configuring the external VR window view for streaming or video/screenshot capture.

• Optional display of system-level elements like Oculus Dash, Oculus Home, Guardian, and notifications.
• Configurable perspective between left, right, or both eyes
• FOV expansion up to 150%
• Captures high-quality screenshots
• And more

OculusMirror.exe GUI Menu Update

Once upon a time, configuring any of these options meant manually typing commands into the command-line interface to change various settings.

With the latest update, a simple GUI menu has finally been added to OculusMirror.exe, making it much easier to dial in your desired settings. Simply click inside the window to expand the menu and access the settings.

The new version also makes it easy to save your settings so that you can hop between different configurations for different games and use-cases.

When to Find OculusMirror.exe

Though it’s now easier to use thanks to the GUI menu, OculusMirror.exe is still hidden away inside of Oculus folders.

You can find OculusMirror.exe in C:Program FilesOculusSupportoculus-diagnosticsOculusMirror.exe.

It’s great that this powerful tool is now easier to use, though it would be even better if Oculus would bake these features directly into the external view window from every VR app by default. This would make it easy for general users to configure their external game view for local spectators, and make it that much easier for users to capture and share better looking VR footage and screenshots.

The post Update Makes OculusMirror Much Easier to Use, But It’s Still Hidden Away appeared first on Road to VR.

New bone research kicked off on the International Space Station today to improve human health on and off the Earth. The Expedition 62 crew also practiced an emergency simulation with ground controllers.

Living in space causes bone loss and scientists are studying ways to offset the negative effects to ensure long-term mission success. Results from the new OsteoOmics-02 study aboard the orbiting lab also have implications bone diseases on Earth.

NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan spent Thursday morning setting up the bone experiment hardware for operations in the Life Sciences Glovebox. Doctors will be observing the mechanisms of rapid bone loss in microgravity and extend that knowledge to learn more about osteoporosis on Earth.

The duo then joined Commander Oleg Skripochka of Roscosmos in the afternoon and practiced their emergency response training. The three crewmates coordinated their communication, roles and responsibilities with mission controllers in Houston and Moscow. In the unlikely event of a fire, chemical leak or pressure leak, the crew would need to locate safety gear, close module hatches and possibly evacuate the station aboard a Soyuz crew ship.

Before the training session, Skripochka spent the morning on an experiment exploring how long-term spaceflight impacts the professionalism of a crewmember. Results will help Russian scientists understand how a cosmonaut will react to different phases of a mission such as docking to another spacecraft or landing on another planet.

VAL and Oculus are offering cash money to the world’s best Pistol Whippers.

Since the launch of Cloudhead Games highly anticipated VR shooter Pistol Whip, gamers have been hard at work mowing down waves of low poly bad guys to the beat of a thumping EDM soundtrack. Its fast-paced action has you shooting, pistol-whipping, and ducking bullets; giving you a full-body workout and testing your reflexes in the process. It’s for this reason, along with many others, that competitive gamers have quickly flocked to the precision-based experience, filling the leaderboards with superhuman scores.

Consider yourself one of these top-level players? Thanks to a new partnership between Oculus, iBUYPOWER, and several other companies, you now have the chance to test your skills against the very best as part of the first-ever Pistol Whip tournament.

This March, the Virtual Athletics League (VAL), the world’s largest VR eSports league, is launching a worldwide Pistol Whip VR tournament in which the very best players can compete for a chunk of a collective $10,000 prize pool provided by Oculus and iBUYPOWER, in association with the largest names in the VR community; VRespawn, SpringboardVR, LIV, VRML, and Splitverse.  

While speaking to VRScout, Vivian Chazen, Partner and Producer at VRespawn, shared her excitement surrounding the tournament, saying, “I am so hyped for people to actually see players in the game, moving around, and breaking a sweat.” Chazen adds, “It’s what makes VR sports different from traditional esports and can really take gaming to the next level as a spectator sport.”

Kicking off March 13-14, the competition will be split up into three different sections. The first section is an at-home online event that people from all over the globe can watch; the winner of this competition will take home a solid $2,500. The second event is the global VR arcade division co-hosted by SpringboardVR. Running March 19-22, the winner of the arcade section will walk away with another $2,500. The top 3 players in the arcade section will advance to the pinnacle Grand Finals where they will be given an all-expenses-paid trip to Salt Lake City on March 29.

Upon arrival, the elite 3 will be treated to the ultimate gaming weekend, including a bunch of gaming swag, custom mixed reality avatars from Wolf3d, and other awesome VIP packages. Then they will go head-to-head to finally crown the best Pistol Whip player in the world. The winner will gain full bragging rights, another $2,500 check to put in their pockets, and an Oculus Rift S. 2nd place will get $1,500 and an Oculus Rift S. 3rd receives $1,000 and an Oculus Rift S. 

“We have always considered that home players and arcade players are part of an interconnected ecosystem that supports our core mission of VR esports taking place anywhere,” described Ryan Burningham, CEO and founder of the Virtual Athletics League. “This tournament is our largest yet, and we are deeply grateful to all those we are working with, to bring this VR esports revolution to the world.”

Not quite good enough to compete but still interested in taking part in all the action? During the tournament, visit AltspaceVR for a virtual party hosted by Chazen. She will be in-world interviewing players, chatting with organizers, and breaking down of the latest tournament standings.

“It’s so meta!”, according to Chazen.

If you think you’ve got what it takes to be a Pistol Whip champion, head over to the VAL website and sign up for your chance at internet glory.

Image Credit: Virtual Athletics League, Oculus 

The post First-Ever Pistol Whip Tournament Offering $10K Prize Pool appeared first on VRScout.

A handful of new headsets and swappable faceplates breathes new life into HTC’s lineup of modular VR hardware.

When HTC released its Vive Cosmos back in October last year, it came with some much-needed improvements to the original HTC Vive design; a flip-up visor, all-new RGB LCD panels, a wide tracking FOV, and a revolutionary design that allows you to augment the device with new abilities via interchangeable faceplates.

Today, HTC revealed a handful of new headsets and faceplates joining the Cosmos family, each of which designed to serve the needs of both consumers and businesses, whether it be in the home, the classroom, or the office. Alongside these new headsets comes three new modular faceplates that expand the functionality of the Vive Cosmos.

VIVE Cosmos Elite – The definitive PC VR experience

The Vive Cosmos Elite aims to provide the highest-quality immersive experience to PC VR users. Powered by Base Station 1.0 external tracking, users can move about up to 160 sqft of space as they interact with the virtual world with pinpoint precision.

To make things easy, Vive Cosmos Elite also supports Vive’s ecosystem of peripherals including the Vive Tracker—delivering unprecedented input freedom for VR controls—and Vive’s Wireless Adapter for an untethered VR experience.

Vive Cosmos Elite includes a pre-installed External Tracking Faceplate, 2 SteamVR base stations, and two Vive controllers. The External Tracking Faceplate can be used with base station versions 1.0 or 2.0 as well as the original Vive or Vive Pro controllers and can be easily swapped with the original inside-out tracking faceplate that ships with Vive Cosmos.

Vive Cosmos Elite is built for precision gaming titles such as Pistol Whip, Superhot, and Audica as well as multiplayer VR titles like Battlewake.

The Vive Cosmos Elite bundle will retail for $899 USD and be available Q1 2020. The External Tracking Faceplate will also launch later in the year for $199 as a stand-alone accessory for both the Vive Cosmos and Vive Cosmos Play.

VIVE Cosmos XR – Mixed reality on Cosmos

Available as either a standalone package or interchangeable faceplate, Cosmos XR brings high-quality XR passthrough cameras to existing Vive Cosmos headsets. Debuting as a developer kit in Q2, the Vive Cosmos XR will allow a near-complete passthrough field of view that utilizes the majority of the VR display (up to 100 degrees FOV).

Using Vive Sync, HTC’s VR collaboration tool, Vive Cosmos XR will allow users to bring virtual objects into real-world environments and vice-versa, making it an excellent tool for teams working remotely.

Ditching the Cosmos’ original up-and-down cameras, the Cosmos XR instead features four forward-facing cameras: two for tracking and two for passthrough. By expanding the technological capabilities of the original Cosmos design, Cosmos XR could breathe new life into the Cosmos family by allowing users to upgrade their existing hardware.

VIVE Cosmos Play – Entry-level VR

Referred to by the company as an “entry-level” headset, Vive Cosmos Play is designed for those completely new to VR technology. Four onboard cameras remove the need for external trackers, allowing users to move freely within their playspace via inside-out tracking. The headset is ideal for basic VR games and applications, such as Viveport Video, Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs, The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets, and A Fisherman’s Tale.

In terms of enterprise use, the headset could prove useful for businesses looking for new ways to train their employees or engage with consumers. The Vive Cosmos Play also offers a more affordable and simple-to-use VR option for public VR experiences.

Play owners can easily upgrade their Vive Cosmos with Vive’s host of VR accessories, such as Vive Cosmos’ full range of faceplates. Additional details on Vive Cosmos Play will be released in the coming months.

In an official press release, Yves Maître, CEO, HTC said, “Our customers want an incredible VR experience and we are proud to announce a new family of products tailor-made for VR use-cases of all types,” said Maître. “Vive Cosmos is truly the most versatile headset yet. From consumers just discovering VR for the first time to the demanding business user, Vive Cosmos offers stellar quality, comfort, and the ability to evolve VR and XR journeys over time – from changing faceplates to adding options like wireless.”

When the HTC Vive Cosmos was first released, some owners complained of poor tracking due to lighting issues. As stated during our hands-on review, I personally didn’t encounter any tracking issues with the headset; even in my own lab at home. However, HTC did release a beta patch to address several persistent issues. The Vive Cosmos Elite will be available for pre-order via www.vive.com beginning February 24^th.

Additional pre-order dates, pricing, and availability for the Cosmos Series will be announced in the coming months. For more information, please visit the HTC Vive website.

Image Credit: HTC

The post HTC Unveils New Vive Cosmos Headsets And Faceplate Upgrades appeared first on VRScout.

Die Studie „Beyond Realities“ will den Status quo der Einführung von Virtual, Augmented und Mixed Reality in die Markenkommunikation zeigen. Die Ergebnisse sind ernüchternd.

Die Studie „Beyond Realities“, die die Kommunikationsagentur Phocus Brand Contact aus Nürnberg in Kooperation mit dem Famab Kommunikationsverband vorlegt, befasst sich mit dem aktuellen Zustand virtueller Realitäten im Marketingkontext. Um den zu ermitteln, wurden über eine Onlinebefragung Einschätzungen von Kundenunternehmen und Dienstleistern gleichermaßen eingeholt. So ergibt sich ein Bild, das nicht nur technische Begeisterung, sondern auch nüchterne Kundenanforderungen widerspiegelt.

Studie zeigt Ambivalenz im Umgang mit VR, AR, MR

Dabei erhebt die Studie nicht den Anspruch, repräsentativ zu sein. Dafür ist die Herkunft der Teilnehmer zu wenig divers und die Stichprobe insgesamt zu klein. Dennoch sind die erfassten Trends so eindeutig, dass sie als wahrscheinlich repräsentativ plausibel erscheinen.

Auffällig ist dabei, dass das Interesse an VR, AR und MR von den Befragten durchweg als sehr hoch bezeichnet wird, während die entsprechenden Kompetenzen, vor allem die der anderen, als gering eingeschätzt werden. Zudem schätzen selbst jene, die bereits für sich oder Kunden entsprechende Projekte durchgeführt haben, deren Erfolg als eher durchwachsen ein.

Dabei sind die Dienstleister zuversichtlich, dass die Bedeutung der modernen Realitäten in den nächsten fünf Jahren zunehmen wird. Besonders der Augmented Reality, also der erweiterten Realität, bei der virtuelle Infos in das reale Bild eingeblendet werden, bescheinigen die Kommunikationsexperten Potenzial. Weniger enthusiastisch schätzen die Experten reine virtuelle Realitäten (VR) oder die gemischte Realität (MR), bei der rein virtuelle Elemente mit realen oder umgekehrt vermischt werden, ein.

Hemmschuhe sind Mangel an Wissen und Personal

Als Hemmschuh für die Umsetzung sehen die Dienstleister vor allem einen Mangel an Wissen, Personal und Zeit auf Kundenseite, während Kunden eher einen Mangel an Kreativität und Geld erkennen.

Insgesamt werden die neuen Technologien nach wie vor als Innovation wahrgenommen. Das beträchtliche Potenzial der Technologien begründen die Befragten vor allem mit der Möglichkeit, den Kunden in eine neue, unbekannte oder auch erklärende Welt eintauchen zu lassen. Vor allem dann, wenn die Technologie in den richtigen konzeptionellen Gesamtkontext gesetzt wird, könne sie den Besucher intensiver und damit stärker erreichen als andere Maßnahmen mit Live-Erfahrungscharakter.

Virtuelle Realitäten sind nicht risikolos im Einsatz

Schlussendlich zeigt die Studie sehr deutlich, dass der Einsatz virtueller Realitäten für das Markenerlebnis nicht ohne Risiko ist. Gerade die hohe Emotionalität, die mit 3D-Visualisierungen einhergeht, wird als zweischneidiges Schwert erkannt. So könnte etwa eine virtuelle Testfahrt in VR so gut umgesetzt sein, dass der Interessent danach keine reale Testfahrt mehr machen will. Auch die Möglichkeit von Traumatisierungen oder die Suchtentwicklung dürfe ob der immer überzeugender werdenden immersiven Verfahren nicht unterschätzt werden. Derzeit fehle es zudem noch an Einsatzbeispielen, die über den reinen Selbstzweck hinausgehen.

Erkenntnisgewinn abseits der Befragungsergebnisse

„Beyond Realities“ bietet neben den Auswertungen der Befragung auch Fachaufsätze und Langform-Einschätzungen von Experten im Bereich der virtuellen Realitäten. Wer Interesse am Einsatz von Virtual, Augmented und Mixed Reality für die Markenkommunikation seines Unternehmen hat, sollte sich die bis zum 28. Februar 2020 kostenlos erhältliche Studie als PDF herunterladen.

Quelle:

Foto: Jacob Lund / Shutterstock

https://t3n.de/news/virtuelle-realitaeten-studie-quo-1252060/

Valve will have “far fewer” units of the Index VR hardware to sell during the coming months due to the impact of the Coronavirus.

In a statement released to UploadVR, Valve confirmed it is working to meet demand for the high-end Valve Index VR headset and they are reassuring prospective buyers that the system will be available to purchase again prior to the March launch of Half-Life: Alyx. The company says to receive a notification when the hardware is available again click “Notify Me” on its Steam page.

The Valve Index hardware includes a high-end PC VR headset and controllers which strap to the hands. They’ve been in high demand since the announcement of Half-Life: Alyx in November, and unavailable to purchase in recent weeks. Alyx was made alongside the Index controllers and fans are highly anticipating its release on March 23 as the first new game in the groundbreaking Half-Life franchise in more than a decade. Half-Life: Alyx should work with all PC VR headsets with tracked controllers, including Oculus Quest via the Oculus Link, but some optional interactions are only possible with the Index controllers.

Here’s the full statement from Valve:

With Half-Life: Alyx coming March 23rd, we are working hard to meet demand for the Valve Index and want to reassure everyone that Index systems will be available for purchase prior to the game’s launch. However, the global Coronavirus health crisis has impacted our production schedules so we will have far fewer units for sale during the coming months compared to the volumes we originally planned. Our entire team is working hard right now to maximize availability. To receive a notification as soon as the Valve Index is back in stock, please visit Steam and click “Notify Me.”

Broader Coronavirus Impact

Sony and Oculus will no longer appear at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco in March due to concerns related to the virus. The Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona, meant to be held next week, was completely cancelled for similar reasons.

Facebook also said production of its Oculus Quest headset was likely to be impacted by the virus as the headset became unavailable to purchase in recent weeks.

The post Coronavirus: Valve Index Production Impacted, Fewer Units Coming Soon appeared first on UploadVR.

A new mod for the original Witcher game allows you to walk around Kaer Morhen in VR. Sound like a fantasy dream come true? Well, it kind of is — the only problem is there’s nothing else to do in the mod except walk around. And shoo some pigeons.

The Witcher is becomingly an increasingly popular franchise — after the success of the trilogy of Witcher games by CD Projekt Red, interest in the property has been revitalized once again thanks to the Witcher TV series released by Netflix late last year. This recent surge in popularity might explain why now, of all times, we’ve finally received the first-ever Witcher VR mod.

Made by Patryk Loan, this VR mod is designed to work with the original Witcher game released in 2008 by CD Projekt Red. If you’ve got that game installed, you can head over to Nexus Mods to download the Witcher VR mod installation files. After extracting the RAR file, just run Install.bat and follow the instructions.

After installation, plug in your headset and go to the installation folder of The Witcher game, find the ‘System’ subfolder and then launch the witcher.exe file. This will bring up a launcher with the option to start the game in normal or VR mode.

Once the VR mode launches and you select Kaer Morhen (the only available area for the VR mod at the moment), you can then roam around the castle grounds and shoo some pigeons away. That’s pretty much all there is to it — you can’t go inside the castle or make any other movements or actions beside walking. That being said, Loan stated he might add more maps in the future, along with a playable campaign, such as the game’s Prologue or a playable level of his own creation. Watch this space!

The Witcher VR mod is available over at Nexus Mods. 

The post New Witcher VR Mod Lets You Walk Around Kaer Morhen appeared first on UploadVR.