You *HAVE* to watch this.

dillont

dillont

Well-known member
Virtual reality is already here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bytIGCeGxo

I'm still picking up the pieces of my jaw.

Would love to see a discussion of us filmmakers about this. It's going to affect everything. Education, communication, research&design, planning... etc). Limitless possibilities.

PS: watch the other video samples from this dude. Totally worth it.
 
woah. better than 4k.

This is why I hate trickling out technology. haha. There will always be something better.
 
This has so much potential, but honestly count me as someone that thinks the potential is mostly bad. Once virtual reality really takes off and becomes mainstream, our lack of genuine interaction with other human beings will grow even more. We think the internet and games are addictive already, wait until you can literally immerse yourself in it.
 
While very cool technology, when I see stuff like this I worry that movies could die if some sort of VR were to catch on someday. Perhaps I'm just being paranoid, but I wouldn't be shocked if 'movies' as we think of them today completely die out in my lifetime.

Now, I think for games and interactive entertainment or education, VR is certainly a neat tool. I would definitely miss traditional films though. I mean it can't be all VR can it? People just running around in some MMO type VR world, stopping to stare at stuff or go off the beaten path. One thing that movies (and novels) still have is that they are the vision of a singular artist. Even big budget movies with their army of craftsman and technicians, are still visions of the director. I know nowadays with video games we sort of get some of that at times (Hideo Kojima of Metal Gear Solid for example), but I still don't see that type of specific vision shining through with a game that audiences and readers get with movies and prose fiction.

Think about it. With a novel or short story, a writer tells us a story. With a movie a filmmaker shows us the audience a story. In a game or VR sim, we take control, and while we are nudged along certain pathways, we interact with the fictive world. We step over the threshold and break the fourth wall to become part of the tale unfolding. I hope that the different mediums can still coexist after the general public is wowed by VR. The way things are going now though, the younger generation is growing up in a world that is all about manipulating data with ever advancing tools of expression and social media. A couple more generations from now, will there be much desire at all for singular artistic visions versus the notion of complete control over imaginary places?
 
greymog said:
Bizarre. I've yet to use a smartphone... in denial. Now this. Dunno what to think...
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While I'm not anti-technology, somedays I feel like we are too connected with all the smartphones and social media. On one hand, a smartphone or tablet is a nice tool to have for both personal convenience and business use, but can be annoying as well. If you do want some peace and quiet these days, it is sometimes impossible as everyone expects to get ahold of you in seconds. I'm finding some people don't even tolerate a callback or text reply an hour or two later. They know I have a cell phone and I should be at their beck and call. Technology seems to be making us slaves to each other. We're not allowed to have any time to ourselves unless we are asleep in the middle of the night, on a vacation (even then not always free), or just go off the grid.

Next it will be Google Goggles. If those catch on I bet a pair will be nearly mandatory to stay on top of things in both the big business and small business realms.
 
Amen man. Nothing spells success like a landline and an answering machine in this day and age. That's my goal. I have a laptop. It's enough for me. I wonder how people are going to keep fit.
 
It will give all the graduates something to do as they can't get a job due to their inability to act as human beings but at least we won't have to put up with their attitude anymore in Macdonalds !:)
 
greymog said:
Amen man. Nothing spells success like a landline and an answering machine in this day and age. That's my goal. I have a laptop. It's enough for me. I wonder how people are going to keep fit.
Click to expand...

Imagine being on the tread mill hooked up to this and instead of just staring at CNN or E news on the TV at the gym you're hiking Mt. Everest or running from dinosaurs...faster! must go faster!
 
greymog said:
Bizarre. I've yet to use a smartphone... in denial. Now this. Dunno what to think...
Click to expand...

I had to get a new cell phone so I picked a used iphone 3gs on ebay, and then put in a no contract Net10 sim card, read some instructions online and changed the APN number so it bounces off the At&T towers for 3g and bingo, smart phone for the same price as a regular phone. I really like it. I use radar app all the time to look at incoming storm systems. Aborted a shoot the other day looking at the radar, and 30 minutes later it was pouring rain. This shoot required a 20 minute walk, so I would have been walking back in the pouring rain with camera equipment. Not good!

But yea, this looks really awesome. I'm sure its' in the early stages and not ready for games or movies just yet but I'm sure it will get there. And yes, it will be used for porn guaranteed.
 
I"m imagining this being used for movies with voice acting by really good actors just like animated movies are made now. We've already seen the Tron remake where the actors young face was put on a digital body so we know it's doable. I'm waiting for the first movie to release with a character people love and then later they producers release the info, surprise! It was a digital character and you didn't even know it!
 
Nektonic said:
While very cool technology, when I see stuff like this I worry that movies could die if some sort of VR were to catch on someday. Perhaps I'm just being paranoid, but I wouldn't be shocked if 'movies' as we think of them today completely die out in my lifetime.

Now, I think for games and interactive entertainment or education, VR is certainly a neat tool. I would definitely miss traditional films though. I mean it can't be all VR can it? People just running around in some MMO type VR world, stopping to stare at stuff or go off the beaten path. One thing that movies (and novels) still have is that they are the vision of a singular artist. Even big budget movies with their army of craftsman and technicians, are still visions of the director. I know nowadays with video games we sort of get some of that at times (Hideo Kojima of Metal Gear Solid for example), but I still don't see that type of specific vision shining through with a game that audiences and readers get with movies and prose fiction.

Think about it. With a novel or short story, a writer tells us a story. With a movie a filmmaker shows us the audience a story. In a game or VR sim, we take control, and while we are nudged along certain pathways, we interact with the fictive world. We step over the threshold and break the fourth wall to become part of the tale unfolding. I hope that the different mediums can still coexist after the general public is wowed by VR. The way things are going now though, the younger generation is growing up in a world that is all about manipulating data with ever advancing tools of expression and social media. A couple more generations from now, will there be much desire at all for singular artistic visions versus the notion of complete control over imaginary places?
Click to expand...

It would not die out or go away, just as paintings and books and sculpture are not dead. The real issue is that movies might be dethroned from the top spot of cultural relevance. We are lucky in a way to be in a field that is at the top of societies list of art forms. But perhaps if that changed it would free us up to focus more on making great films and not worry so much about the money. It will certainly be interesting. VR will change a lot of things, but I think it's still up in the air what those things are.
 
Gillvane said:
But yea, this looks really awesome. I'm sure its' in the early stages and not ready for games or movies just yet but I'm sure it will get there. And yes, it will be used for porn guaranteed.
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It's not as early as you'd think. It's called the oculus rift. They're already sending it out for developers to develop games, and many are in the process of being made. So far many games have announced they will be supporting it. The Eve creators even did a demo of a space simulator game with the oculus rift at E3. A new space sim game called Star Citizen is going to support oculus rift, which is out in 2014. I've been following it for a bit and I'm excited.

There is a problem though. Some say that for 'cockpit' style games it works because your body is stationary. However as soon as you move around and hold a gun, or some something with your hands, it's disorienting because you're not actually using your hands (say you're using a controller or a mouse+keyboard). The technology to accompany the oculus rift still isn't there, but I hope it comes soon. Such as a motion glove and something that tracks feet.

Maybe they can combine it with something like this:

http://www.emotiv.com/

Seen it on TED, where the person 'thought' of an action, then the program learned how you think that action, then you can just think something and it happens. Might take some time when you start a new game, but there is potential.

Oh and yeah... they have a few porn titles lined up for the oculus rift already... not that I'm following that... :Drogar-BigGrin(DBG)

-------

As for this being dangerous, I feel like yes and no. One way to think of it is in the dystopian dark sci-fi point of view, where no one will leave their homes anymore. This is a possibility, however that's what they said about TV (maybe even radio?). Then about video games. Then about tablets and facebook. Yes there is a problem these days with people becoming too connected, but they never went as far as some people assumed it would go. People still go out to parties, and suppers, and friend's houses, and experience life... just with a phone in hand. People go on trips and travel around the world. We're not stuck in our houses like people thought we would be with our magic boxes. Technology is moving this way, but it's not as scary as they made it out to be.

Yes there are some people that take it too far, but who's to say it's purely because of the technology? Some people are introverts, and they don't like to socialize (myself included). In fact technology is giving them a way to socialize that won't give them an anxiety attack. Let's say we don't have this technology. These same extreme cases may have translated to other mental problems. They may have still never left home and become depressed, or they may have taken up other things, like drugs or drinking. It's easy to say without technology these people would have learned to socialize, but I'm an introvert and I somewhat doubt it.

Also, without getting philosophical asking you 'what is reality', what does it hurt? Aside from not getting out for some exercise (wii fit anyone?), perhaps this is the solution to the 'facebook problem.' Where now instead of posting memes and talking online via messages, they can load into a digital scan of themselves and actually socialize, with full emotive faces, with their friends. It's a step forward from facebook, which no pun intended, is a bit faceless.
 
Great post OP and thanks for sharing this. Games are story telling too and I see them as interactive movies.
I'm a fan of the Unity Engine, adding 3d skin scans is a logical step forward.
 
Jon Starr said:
There is a problem though. Some say that for 'cockpit' style games it works because your body is stationary. However as soon as you move around and hold a gun, or some something with your hands, it's disorienting because you're not actually using your hands (say you're using a controller or a mouse+keyboard). The technology to accompany the oculus rift still isn't there, but I hope it comes soon. Such as a motion glove and something that tracks feet.
Click to expand...

I looked briefly at the development site and some of the discussions, and that is a problem. Two suggestions are a virtual keyboard that pops up in the game and a motion tracker like Xbox on your hands, or voice to text.
 
dillont said:
Virtual reality is already here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bytIGCeGxo

I'm still picking up the pieces of my jaw.

Would love to see a discussion of us filmmakers about this. It's going to affect everything. Education, communication, research&design, planning... etc). Limitless possibilities.

PS: watch the other video samples from this dude. Totally worth it.
Click to expand...

Just so people know, this video is about the people/models, not the VR goggles, which are called Oculus Rift.
 
Gillvane said:
I looked briefly at the development site and some of the discussions, and that is a problem. Two suggestions are a virtual keyboard that pops up in the game and a motion tracker like Xbox on your hands, or voice to text.
Click to expand...

Although I have seen this, the Omni. It's a step in the right direction, but it seems like a lot and you need room in your home office for it:

http://www.virtuix.com/

It's a system designed to work with the oculus rift. Basically it's a tiny version of something to track your walking in a small space. You can old a prop gun but it doesn't do much from my understanding, unless you have this:

http://sixense.com/wireless

which is launching it's kickstarter campaign soon. It's meant to be paired with the virtuix omni, and it tracks your gun and becomes a controller.

So there are solutions, just seems a bit clunky with the walking. But hey if it's affordable and works, maybe it'll be nice.

Maybe just the sixense without the omni would be enough?
 
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