Difference between revisions of "How to Get Started in VR Development"
From Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality Wiki
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Ask yourself: do you want to develop for a computer-driven headset like the Vive, or are you more interested in mobile applications such as GearVR or Google Cardboard? If you don't already own your hardware of choice, do some reasearch and think about what would be best for both your target market and most practical to develop on. If your idea requires motion controls or high-end graphics, stick to computer-driven VR. A list of currently available hardware that is supported by Unity, Unreal, and VR web implementations: | Ask yourself: do you want to develop for a computer-driven headset like the Vive, or are you more interested in mobile applications such as GearVR or Google Cardboard? If you don't already own your hardware of choice, do some reasearch and think about what would be best for both your target market and most practical to develop on. If your idea requires motion controls or high-end graphics, stick to computer-driven VR. A list of currently available hardware that is supported by Unity, Unreal, and VR web implementations: | ||
===Computer VR:=== | ===Computer VR:=== | ||
| − | * [[HTC Vive]], $799 - motion controllers ship with product. iFixIt will show you [[what it looks like]] when you take it apart. | + | * '''[[HTC Vive]]''', $799 - motion controllers ship with product. iFixIt will show you [[what it looks like]] when you take it apart. |
** [[VR Dev School's Vive Mini Course]] | ** [[VR Dev School's Vive Mini Course]] | ||
| − | * [[Oculus Rift]], $599 - motion controllers won't be available until fall. iFixIt [[has also autopsied a Rift]]. | + | * '''[[Oculus Rift]]''', $599 - motion controllers won't be available until fall. iFixIt [[has also autopsied a Rift]]. |
**[[Oculus Documentation Pages]] | **[[Oculus Documentation Pages]] | ||
**[[Oculus Rift in Action]], a blog about designing for the Rift | **[[Oculus Rift in Action]], a blog about designing for the Rift | ||
| − | *[[OSVR HDK 1.4]], $299 - no motion control | + | *'''[[OSVR HDK 1.4]]''', $299 - no motion control |
| − | *[[Razer Hydra]], $599 - general-purpose wired motion tracking controller for PC | + | *'''[[Razer Hydra]]''', $599 - general-purpose wired motion tracking controller for PC |
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===Mobile VR:=== | ===Mobile VR:=== | ||
(can use a smartphone as HMD) | (can use a smartphone as HMD) | ||
Revision as of 05:44, 3 January 2017
Contents
Beginner's Guide to Learning VR Dev
This page serves as a jumping-off point for new developers to find any resources they might need along their path to learning to make virtual reality experiences.
1. Learn about the hardware
Ask yourself: do you want to develop for a computer-driven headset like the Vive, or are you more interested in mobile applications such as GearVR or Google Cardboard? If you don't already own your hardware of choice, do some reasearch and think about what would be best for both your target market and most practical to develop on. If your idea requires motion controls or high-end graphics, stick to computer-driven VR. A list of currently available hardware that is supported by Unity, Unreal, and VR web implementations:
Computer VR:
- HTC Vive, $799 - motion controllers ship with product. iFixIt will show you what it looks like when you take it apart.
- Oculus Rift, $599 - motion controllers won't be available until fall. iFixIt has also autopsied a Rift.
- Oculus Documentation Pages
- Oculus Rift in Action, a blog about designing for the Rift
- OSVR HDK 1.4, $299 - no motion control
- Razer Hydra, $599 - general-purpose wired motion tracking controller for PC
Mobile VR:
(can use a smartphone as HMD)
- Gear VR, $99
- Google Cardboard, available as cheap as free
Web VR:
(can use a smartphone as HMD)
- Mozilla A-Frame is a markup language (as are HTML and XML) for making cross-platform VR software. To see it in action, visit their site on your smartphone, turn off orientation lock, and press the VR button that appears.
- Vizor is a web app that allows you to construct 3D scenes and view them across numerous platforms, including from mobile devices. Although it isn't as powerful as a game engine or open-source web platform, it is very straightforward and a great way to start creating in VR without an expensive headset. The Vizor blog has several tutorial posts.
- Responsive WebVR is a cross-platform, web-based VR platform available for modification on GitHub. You'll probably want to brush up on Three.js.
Unreleased, but preliminary development possible:
- Google Daydream - unavailable but supported by UE4 now, Unity support coming in the summer
- OSVR HDK 2, $399 - will be released in July; no announced motion control
