News
Welcoming 22 Newfound Virtual Influencers to VirtualHumans.org — VirtualHumans.org
In issue 14 of Other Realities we shared an article about the history of VTubers, and now we'd like to share a few VTuber influencers and what they're focused on sharing. Some new, some have been around for a while, but all of them doing things a little differently.
Niantic Launches Programme Supporting Black AR Developers – VRFocus
Black representation in gaming is fairly low, and the recent program from Niantic Labs (makers of Pokemon Go) is a step toward mentoring and funding more work created by and featuring the experiences of Black people. If selected, a team will get five months funding, executive mentorship, and development support. We're already excited about the work from their first partnership with Wicked Saints Studios.
Valve Reveals Partnership with OpenBCI to Make VR Gaming More Immersive
A brain-computer interface (BCI) enables a headset user to interact and control an experience without controllers or gestures, and just uses the power of thought and concentration to signal intent. Combined with eye and facial tracking (and built-in microphones on most headsets), you will have a headset capable of truly capturing all of the human cues for emotion and expression. This may be a few years away but Valve could put themselves very far ahead of other headset manufacturers.
Experiences
Catty Alter Ego Instagram lens
videorbit on Ello is one of our favorite lens creators, and this one is another very impressive full view takeover adding a bit of comic flair, inspired by the DC comics character Catwoman. Try out the lens on Instagram and prepare to be wowed.
Event
DJ SNOOPADELIC | Oculus
You've seen Snoop Dog rap, act, and advocate for his friend's release from death row by the former President, but on February 19th 6pm PCT, DJ Snoopadelic will spin a mixed set on Oculus Venues.
Business
Top 8 Questions For Teams Considering VR/AR Collaboration
There have been no shortage of articles discussing how to work in Virtual Reality but this is one of the few I've come across presenting some of the concerns and things to consider before introducing VR into a team workflow. Even if you're not thinking about moving into VR this is worth a read to see what the results of certain decisions could have for productivity and access.
Tools
Ready Player Me - Personal 3D Avatars for Games and VR.
Virtually every game and collaboration platform involves some kind of avatar creation, but being able to make one resembling yourself easily from your photograph will be one of those services that smooths the entry for a lot of people into Virtual Reality. Ready Player Me also has an SDK to pull your high quality avatar into an experience if it is supported. So if Bitmoji's acquisition is any indicator there could be a massive adoption of this kind of service and a very large valuation in the near future.
Bitmoji for Games
Speaking of Bitmoji, they also launched an SDK allowing you to take you existing 2D Bitmoji into the third dimension, and to use it in games and experiences that are supported. Since they are already in use for many Apps (Facebook, SnapChat, Google, etc) it will be interesting to see how Developers embrace the opportunity for additional user personalization and immersion.
One More Thing
videorbit on Ello
videorbit has been featured once before in the first issue of Other Realities and with the work they have been producing we feel they deserve to be featured again. Besides the lens already mentioned in this issue we feel you may also enjoy these:
Commentary
This week we found ourselves reading more articles about how we represent ourselves within Virtual Reality than game and gear releases. The decisions that we make for how we let others see us online, and the services that give us a choice for making those avatars are pretty interesting. Advances have been happening for a while that haven't gotten the press they deserve, so in this issue you'll see more a focus on represent online.
Thank you to everyone who's subscribed and continued to read and support us. if you're enjoying this newsletter please consider sharing it with others. We've continued to grow with each issue released and that is partly due to all of you. As always, if you want to recommend anything to us tweet your links. Our directory of companies, experiences, gear, and more is growing so visit our directory to find resources that also may not be getting major press.
Other Realities