Paleoart Process: Feathered Rex

Paleoart Process: Feathered Rex Modeling a dinosaur pits artistry against accuracy. Which is more important, popularity or plausibility? Perception or reality? Art or science? For the paleoartist, science is of utmost importance. A paleoartist strives to depict prehistoric life according to the latest scientific findings. A paleoartist should only take artistic liberties to address questions

Developer Blog – VR Design Document Part 3

While a good deal of this post remains redacted, it should still serve its purpose as a sample design document. All will be revealed in due time! III. Narrative Synopsis Shoot stuff and avoid being shot. III. Game Mechanics “Space Blast” is a mobile VR [redacted for the time being]. The game is played [redacted

Developer Blog – VR Design Document Part 2

Part 2 of the sample VR Design Document. I. Gameplay Synopsis “Space Blast” is a mobile VR [redacted for the time being]. The game is played [redacted for the time being]. The player takes the role of a transformable space mech with two modes: spaceship and robot. [redacted for the time being]. [redacted for the

Developer Blog – What is VR and What Makes It Awesome? Part 4

The new improved prototype debuted as the Oculus Rift at E3 2012. It was a hit and the rest is history; dev kits were successfully crowdfunded on Kickstarter.com and Facebook purchased Palmer’s Oculus Rift company for over $2 billion dollars. VR was suddenly back in a big way. Compared to the VR systems of yesteryear,

Developer Blog – What is VR and What Makes It Awesome? Part 3

VR’s mainstream media presence would shortly share a similar fate; by the mid 90’s VR seemingly vanished from the cultural landscape. Virtual Reality may have been a victim of its own success, having over-saturated the news and entertainment. As likely its epithet was its epitaph. It simply wasn’t possible for Virtual Reality to deliver on

Self-Promotion Saturdays! No-Code Virtual Reality Development Using Unity and Playmaker!

I’m pleased to announce that the ink has dried on my latest book deal with Taylor & Francis! This time next year I’ll be finishing up the second installment of the No-Code series. In order to stand alone it will reprint Sections I (Unity) and II (Playmaker) of No-Code Video Game Development Using Unity and

Developer Blog – What is VR and What Makes It Awesome? Part 1

On May 3rd I linked to a brief history of VR. It wasn’t comprehensive enough to be considered accurate. I’m researching and writing a slightly less-brief, kind-of more comprehensive history of VR. About a chapter’s worth. Here’s part 1. What is VR and What Makes It Awesome? Virtual Reality has long existed as more of

Developer Blog – An outline of technical/design accommodations and considerations for VR

This post summarizes 6 or 7 other posts on the subject. Check back as I intend to update this as new #VRdev tips and tricks emerge! To clarify the difference between accommodations and considerations: Technical accommodations must be made in order for the game to be, design considerations must be made in order for the

Developer Blog – VR design accommodations and considerations part 2

The aforementioned UI design considerations are necessitated because, again, VR is distinguished by the fact that the display sits only a few centimeters from the eyes. VR is also unique in that input is sourced primarily from head (and eventually, head and eye) movement. This too necessitates its own series of design considerations. While a