10 tips to develop Virtual Reality games
Virtual reality experiences are becoming more common across a wide range of industries, from healthcare to retail. However, gaming still stands out as a leader in this technological development. Development of virtual reality games (Virtual Reality) - Today's most valued market from 7 billion dollars - Expected to bring in 53 billion dollars by 2025. and in the report game development For 2023, 13% of the developers surveyed indicated that they were working on a Virtual Reality game.
The world of virtual reality is a natural extension of the gaming industry: by making the players part of the game through Virtual Reality glasses and other technology, developers can achieve new levels of graphics, realism and innovation.
This enhanced experience means the potential for VR game development is almost limitless.
Here we will learn about virtual reality game development and the development tools needed to create a virtual reality game.
Table of Contents
• What is Virtual Reality game development?
Virtual reality game development is the process of creating games that can be played using virtual reality glasses. Most Virtual Reality games require the glasses that simulate 3D reality using stereoscopic displays.
The virtual reality glasses are equipped with sensors that allow tracking the player's movements and eye movements. The player's movements are translated into in-game actions and have an effect on their virtual environment. VR game development allows players to also experience 3D sound and vibration feedback from the controller.
In short, virtual reality games give the player an immersive experience in a fictional environment, and provide a very realistic first-person perspective.
• The benefits of developing Virtual Reality games
Virtual reality games are becoming more and more popular.
According to estimates by PC Mag, there are currently in the world about-5 million gamers who are addicted to virtual games.
While this number is much lower than the population of traditional video game players, it represents an increase of over 3,000% in the last decade.
New players are regularly attracted to virtual reality games thanks to many advantages:
- More immersive experiences – The most obvious advantage of virtual reality games is also their main selling point: the ability for players to feel as if they are inside the game, experiencing different worlds and exciting stories on a deeper level.
- Increased potential for innovation - Virtual reality game development allows developers to overcome some of the limitations of game stories. Since there are fewer VR titles, it's easier for studios and teams to differentiate themselves and deliver truly new VR experiences.
- More social gameplay - Gaming publications like The Gamer and GameRant regularly publish lists of The best virtual reality games to play with friends. These games bring groups together with laughter, new experiences and healthy competition. Research conducted in 2023 and published in the Association for Computing Machinery Journal also found that virtual reality interactions can promote social connection and reduce loneliness. In interviews with research participants who used virtual reality platforms, virtual reality gamers described themselves as more talkative, more comfortable starting a conversation, and more confident.
- more physical activity - According to a report of Games for Change, a non-profit organization promoting games as a means of social change and advocacy, training in virtual reality has a similar effect to training in the gym.
An increased supply of games makes it easy to carry out your daily training in virtual reality: the game Supernatural, for example, lets users choose between workouts like boxing, yoga, and dance, and also lets them set those workouts to their favorite music. These workouts are guided by certified fitness trainers. and the world's first virtual reality gym, Black Box in San Francisco, opened in 2019. In Black Box workouts, gym members battle opponents in virtual reality while incorporating chest presses, squats, rows and other exercises.
• Challenges of developing Virtual Reality games
The biggest challenge facing the virtual reality game development industry is its high barrier to entry. According to Statistics for 2023 According to Statista, less than 2% of people worldwide regularly play virtual reality games, compared to 45% who play traditional video games. This slow adoption can be attributed in part to the high price of the hardware. Apple has become a trend in social media with my glassesApple Vision Pro Hers, which costs $3,499, is slated for launch in 2024. Although this is an extreme example, virtual reality games are expensive on most popular models:
Sony PlayStation VR: $499
Meta Quest 2: $299
HTC Vive Pro 2: $799
Although cost is one of the main concerns in developing virtual reality games, there are other challenges for both developers and players:
- Difficult development schedules - The traditional video game development schedule is a long and complex process. Programming followed by creating a story and running tests should change significantly for VR projects.
The development of virtual reality games also includes the additional step of choosing the platform for development, because each of the virtual reality lenses differ significantly in terms of processing power. - Increased potential for graphical problems - Virtual reality games have richer graphics, which is an advantage for players, but it is a quality that has challenging implications for game developers. As the players are immersed in the game, cohesion and accuracy become more important.
- Inconvenience of the user - Virtual reality experiences can lead to eye strain and motion sickness.
to deal with it, while creating a game virtual reality, developers can focus on reducing the rendering time of their game and optimizing the frame rate of the animation.
They can combine action-packed moments in a static mode to let the player not move. Continuous innovation in virtual reality glasses technology also helps ensure that the glasses become more comfortable and lighter.
How are favorite games created? Find out now!
• Examples of developing Virtual Reality games
Big names like Meta, Google, Apple and-Sony They have already started investing in the development of virtual reality games, and have even purchased several virtual indie game studios. Along with these established companies, prominent indie studios such as Psytec Games, Survios, and Cloudhead Games have begun to establish their brand recognition.
Similar to traditional video games, virtual reality game development can be extended to all types of games for a wide variety of users, from pleasant games to stories full of adventures.
These are just a few of the latest best-selling VR game releases:
- Beat Saber
Indie game studio Beat Games, acquired by Meta, first launched Beat Saber in 2019.
The players are surrounded by lighting and neon colors and must match their movements to the rhythm of the music as they "cut" the beats coming towards them.
Players must match the color and direction of the beats and can progress to different levels, in addition to choosing favorite songs to play during the game.
Beat Saber is one of the most successful games among VR games, with The Wall Street Journal reporting that it reached255 million dollar in revenue. - Half-Life: Alyx
Leading gaming company Valve Software launched Half-Life: Alyx in 2020.
A sequel to the best-selling game Half-Life, this game allows the player to step into the shoes of Alix Vance, a revolutionary who fights alien invaders alongside her father.
This game represents one of the great strengths of VR games – their ability to create high stakes for the player – as the players fight a war against an empire. According to UploadVR, Half-Life Alyx surpassed the2 million units sold. - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR
Bethesda Game Studios, known for its epic high fantasy games, launched a virtual reality version of its popular Skyrim series in 2018.
This demonstrates a common trend in virtual reality game development – developers release virtual reality versions of games that players already love and allow them to live in these familiar worlds in a deeper way.
In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim virtual reality, players live in a medieval world, crossing mountains and fighting dragons.
• Creating a Virtual Reality game: essential tools
One of the most important considerations in creating a virtual reality game is identifying the right tools for your project. One of the biggest differences between creating a traditional video game and creating a virtual reality game is that virtual reality games are not portable between different types of technology, meaning you will have to decide which virtual reality glasses you want to create a game for.
Unreal Engine 5 technology is essential for next-generation consoles. It has also become critical to help design 3D worlds that are simple, robust and scalable for a wide range of industries – including architecture, broadcast, live events, automotive and transport, and film and television.
Here are the benefits of UE5 that people are raving about.
game engines
game engines Essential for VR game development. Using a game engine allows you to aggregate assets and serve as a powerful 3D editor. They work alongside tools for artists and designers, as well as CAD software, to help you build realistic experiences. Unreal Engine 5 (UE5) andUnity They are the most common game engines.
Unreal engine 5(UE5) Unreal engine 5
Unreal Engine 5 (UE5) Offers teams a powerful set of tools for developing virtual reality software. It works with a variety of virtual reality technologies.
With UE5 you will get:
Unity
Unity is known for developing games with a specialization in mobile. But it can also be used to design virtual reality solutions.
With Unity you will get:
- 3D editor.
- Built-in tools for artists and designers, as well as support for CAD tools.
Unreal Engine VS Unity: a mystery only you can solve!
Software Development Kits (SDK)
A software development kit (SDK) consists of a set of tools and software programs used for specific platforms. It can include libraries, examples, processes, guides, tutorials, charts, and more. Here are some of the most popular SDKs that can be used to develop VR games:
HTC Vive
OpenVR SDK is an open virtual reality software development kit (SDK) and API that supports the HTC Vive and related devices for other virtual reality glasses. SteamVR SDK and-VRTK (Virtual Reality Tool Kit) Also used for HTC Vive. These offer additional benefits such as access to controls, accompaniment, models and previews
Sony Playstation Sony Playstation
To create virtual reality games for Sony's PlayStationVR glasses?
you must get PSVR Dev Kit and become Registered key. The features of this virtual reality software include 360 degree vision, superior visuals/audio and enhanced tracking.
Oculus Meta Quest Developer Center
Developer Center of Oculus Meta Quest Streamlines the development of virtual reality games for Meta Quest glasses. It allows developers to download a wide variety of software development kits (SDKs). They can also take screenshots, record videos, perform uninterrupted testing, and upload various apps and tools to a developer control panel.
OpenVR from Valve Software
This open source SDK integrates with the SteamVR platform and is supported by the Unreal Engine and Unity. Through OpenVR, you can work on developing VR games for best-selling goggles such as Valve Index, Windows Mixed Reality and others.
Design Software
In order to develop successful VR games, teams need to use design tools capable of creating immersive, hyper-realistic environments, unique characters, High quality graphics and animations. Some of the most popular options include Blender, Autodesk Maya and-Tilt Brush.
• How to create VR content
How is VR content created?
Depends on its type. There are different processes for video content and for creating 3D virtual reality content.
Create a VR video
A standard video viewed in virtual reality glasses can be considered VR content.
But to create a more immersive experience, the steps are slightly different.
- Capture a scene using a camera capable of capturing 360-degree panoramic video, also known as an omnidirectional camera.
- Stitch the video and process it using stitching software (which may be provided by the camera manufacturer). This process combines video shot from multiple angles into one file. The edges of each screen are "stitched" together so that the scene looks seamless in VR.
- Edit the video with video editing software, just like you would edit a regular video. Here you can adjust the lighting and color, cut scenes, add transitions and so on. This is also the stage where you can make specific changes for a more immersive experience. For example, you can add directions to indicate when the viewer should look behind them.
Creating VR Assets: Basic Steps
The basic steps of creating a VR asset are similar to creating a 3D game asset:
- concept – The first step is to develop the concept of the property. This is your opportunity to think about the look and feel of the property, as well as the role it will play in the virtual experience.
- sculpture – Once you have a clear concept, you can start sculpting the property.
This is usually done using 3D design software. - UV mapping – The next step is to create a UV map for the asset. A UV map is a 2D map that scales the 3D model so you can apply textures.
- baking and mapping - Once you have a UV map, you can start baking the asset textures. This is the process of transferring details from the 3D model to the UV map.
- lighting and editing - The last step is to light the property and edit it as needed.
This is the stage where you can add special effects, such as shadows and reflections.
Things to consider for creating VR assets
There are several differences between creating standard 3D assets and creating VR assets.
These include:
- Scale: It is important to make sure that the size of the objects in VR is realistic and comfortable, especially if there will be direct interaction with them.
- Number of polygons: VR assets should have a much lower polygon count than PC/console game objects. This is because everything has to run at a higher frame rate in VR (to prevent motion sickness) so they have to be rendered twice (one for each eye).
- Textures: Avoid using too many textures. Combine multiple textures into one large texture - it's easier to prevent the game from loading one large texture than many small textures.
VR creation software
There is a lot of overlap between VR content creation software and software game development.
Some of the software involved in creating VR content include:
- game engines Like Unreal or Unity. Game engines are used to create game logic and gameplay, but they can also be used to create VR experiences.
- Art programs like Photoshop. Art programs are used to create textures, models, and other graphical elements of VR content.
- software 3D animation/modeling programs like Maya. 3D animation/modeling programs are used to create 3D characters, environments, and objects for VR content.
• Unreal engine 5 VR game development
Dreaming of creating fascinating virtual worlds? Want to turn your vision into an unforgettable experience for players from all over the world?
If you want to learn how to create games for all platforms.
KVers game development with Unreal Engine 5 is the perfect place to start!
With the knowledge and tools you will get from the course, you will be able to create different types of VR games, including adventure games, educational games and social games.
In this course you will learn:
- use the game engine Unreal Engine 5 - A powerful and advanced tool that enables the creation of amazing VR experiences.
- Design and build VR environments - using advanced 3D design and lighting techniques.
- To program games for all platforms - Creating fascinating interactions and a unique user experience.
- and more .
Upon completion of the course, you will have the necessary knowledge and tools to create engaging and professional VR games.
Sign up today And start your journey to a new world of creativity and technology!
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