Monthly Archives: April 2018

Personal Work, Programming

Augmented Reality

[2017] - Augmented Reality.png

Over the 2 week Christmas break at the end of 2017 I set myself a challenge to create an augmented reality game which would incorporate multiplayer functionality for the Android mobile device.

In order to achieve my goal, I took it upon myself to learn, at the time, Unity’s new integration with Vuforia* alongside a third-party networking plugin called Photon Unity Network (PUN)**. As this was a one man project, I wasn’t able to implement all my intended functionality for an immersive gameplay experience but I did manage to achieve the goal I set out to complete.

I would say in hindsight it was an interesting experience. A few challenges presented themselves but of course I was able to overcome these by doing my research and being persistent. Most of the issues arose when setting up the intended software/plugins but once these issues were resolved implementation of the utilities was pretty straight forward.

 

*Vuforia allows a developer to create a Augmented Reality application by projecting a virtual model onto a live images or a simple 3D object using image detection algorithms.

**Photon Unity Network (PUN) is a multiplayer engine with a networking plugin for Unity which allows developers to create an application which includes the capabilities of cross-platform real-time gameplay.

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EmergeWorlds, Game Development, Programming

Dance Collider

[2017] - Dance Collider

Mid 2017, following Cupid’s Bow, I worked with EmergeWorlds on a second video game prototype called Dance Collider.

Dance Collider is a reactive rhythmic dance game within the virtual reality environment. The player would dance while hitting nodes which were created to match the beat of the music. What made this game an interesting experience was the ability to allow the user to select which songs they want to dance to and generate a new gameplay experience for each song.

Compared to our previous project, Dance Collider produced more challengers during production with the addition of music and beat reaction. Although these challengers seemed tough when first encountered with our team collaboration and brainstorming we were overcome any obstacles in our way.

It was a unique experience in which I was lucky enough to gain amounts of knowledge mixing the VR world and music to create what the industry calls a “Reactive” game. A game which differs on the gameplay experience depending on the music chosen by the player.

 

Below you can watch some of the teaser video for the upcoming game Dance Collider on the EmergeWorlds youtube channel.

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EmergeWorlds, Game Development, Programming

Cupid’s Bow

[2017] - Cupid's Bow

At the beginning of May 2017 I was given the opportunity to work alongside the great people at EmergeWorlds to create Cupid’s Bow, a video game prototype for the HTC Vive.

Cupid’s Bow allows the player to assume the role of the Roman God Cupid as he is placed upon a cloud looking over a city below. The objective is to shoot the floating hearts as they ascend upwards towards the sky. Three different game modes were implemented during development which all consist of their own unique twists and challenges.

The technologies we utilised during the production for the Cupid’s Bow prototype included the game engine Unity and the HTC Vive virtual reality headset. As it was my first experience working on a game within the VR world, I learnt a lot while enjoying the new and exciting experience that only can be achieved within the virtual reality world.

 

Below you can watch some of the gameplay footage of Cupids Bow on the EmergeWorlds’ Youtube channel.

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