VR Sea Legs – Update 7

Project status:
This week we integrate Unity’s event system into a 3rd party dialogue system. This allows us to run unity events based on dialogue nodes. We added sample dialogue interactions, more art, and a few sound effects to the Seaside Town.

One quîche

On a personal note, I have a real problem with sharks, which is to say that I really, really love them, and I hope you will too after you play with Chomp! We added interactions, adjusted the movement style, and added prototype art for the sharks on your arms. The sharks aren’t even animated and it’s beyond fun to just run around mouthing everything…see for yourself:

Seriously, we are making this.

Methodology:
There is no universal VR movement that works for every situation. Every movement type has its own strengths and weaknesses and should be applied to a game or experience based on the best fit for playstyle, immersion, and fun.

VR Sea Legs will expose players to a large variety of movement styles because the longer someone plays in VR, the more comfortable they become.

The methodology in a nutshell is: Learn, use, reinforce, acclimate.



Content Unlocked!
This week starts our more specialized movement systems: hand-guided flight and rubber-band flight.
Shadows of the Vault uses our rubber-band system. Hand-guided flight is all about speed, while rubber-band’s big strength is its precision. Vault’s gameplay focuses on exploration and puzzle solving: The player is a hovering wisp, and rubber-band reinforces this floating feeling, combining it with the fun of flying short distances.

Shadows takes place in a mystical forest; you have grounds and trees. Flying in a grounded world can increase our general lack of ease in the game – being high above the visible ground makes you feel like you might fall. Rubber-band reduces this issue by giving the player fine control, with substantial speed and accuracy.

Purrtropolis is a god game where your primary mission is converting a city into a cat heaven. This uses a “drag flight” mechanic. Drag movement works by reaching out with your hand, grabbing the world, and pulling yourself in the direction you want.

Drag Movement in action

This is natural and intuitive for players, but it does require a lot of movement. Purrtropolis is designed with this fact in mind: the City is a floating island, and you do not travel to the City so much as orbit around the city.

We’ll unlock some more areas next week!