Anthony Tang

VR development 4

For this session, I asked Steve, a learning adviser, to help me code and trigger certain events such as the camera switch and the blowing leaves trigger.

Steve imported a package that allows me to code easier without having to physically type out the commands but instead through nodes.

This greatly improved the workflow and saved valuable time in having to typing out the code to trigger events. It also made resolving issues easier has it is clearly mapped out on a slate with arrows which lights up in real time when it is activated as the simulation is being played.

Music

After the interview with Richard, I look through the soundtracks he recommended me that I should implement in my project. I listened through “Buddhattitude” an album used for guided meditation, however none were suitable for the theme I was originally intending as  it was either contained too many layers that may distract the user away from the virtual reality or too heavy in terms of how complex the melody is.

I then looked at the other recommendation Richard suggested which was called “Sounds of relaxation”. This was specially made for spas and so Richard thought I should look into these sort of soundtracks. After listening to a few, it was far from what I was aiming for as the music was extremely modern and contained a lot of electric instruments.

I searched online for royalty free music on soundcloud or YouTube and found a generic relaxation soundtrack on YouTube that consists on traditional instruments and a simple medley which was what I was searching for. I also added background sounds such as trees rustling in the wind and birds chirping to further make the environment immersive for the user.

Through Adobe Audition, I cut up the audios to the parts I want to include in the simulation.

Then applied it to its respected assets.

VR Development 3

This session, I continued adding more features to the environment such as rocks, waterfalls and particle effects to make it more authentic and visually appealing.

On top of that, I also started to use another software called “Blender” that allows me to create 3D models using simple shapes as assets such as a birds nest and the stem of the feather. By creating and manipulating a basic cone shape, I managed to stretch it to form the stem that resembles to that of a feather.

 The nest was also made through Blender by using a simple sphere as the basic outline for the nest. I then manipulated the top vertices and made a concave sphere until it looks similar to a nest. So then by applying the “sub division surface” effect to the 3D model allows the surface to smooth and become more realistic.

  

To complete the feather, I used an existing feather as a reference and drew one side of the feather on Adobe illustrator.

I then attached the sides to the stem in unity so that I can animate them individually to achieve the effect that it is fluttering in the wind.

As for the animations, I mapped out where the key points of interest are on the terrain such as the start, middle and end.

So then after mapping out the key points of interest, I added the animations that the feather will execute during its flight through the terrain.

Colour theme

I considered many colours to work with but I believe that the ideal colour theme to use is an warm orange tone as it represents a warm atmosphere as opposed to blue, which can feel extremely cold and isolated or green which I came close to settle with however it lacked visual appeal as it looked like an ordinary field of green land.

By going through different types of orange tones, I liked the colour #f38602 where it looks vibrant and visually appealing then set it as my main pallet that I will be referencing.

From here, I set the colour theme of the grass, rocks and details to the same shade of colour.

For the details of  terrain, I attempted to make my own grass as the stock images given to me didn’t achieve the look I aimed for. My first attempt wasn’t successful as it drew many blades of grass to replicate the stock image however when I applied it to the terrain, it looked bunched up and unrealistic.

 

To resolve this issue, I simply made just one blade of grass and applied it individually.

This made a significant change to the look, making the grass subtle and visually more appealing as the player walks past every patch of grass.

Budget

Greyed out costs are cheaper optional alternatives.

Direct costs	Price
Oculus Rift Dev kit	£519.95
Samsung Gear VR	£92.95
Google cardboard	£12.99
Unity Pro	£53.95 per month
Reclining chairs	£300
Massage table	£159.95
Total:	£1,033.85

 

Indirect costs	Price
3D Animators	£1,400
3D Modeller	£1,225
3D Technical Director	£1,925
Total:	£4,550
Reflexologist	£1,600 per month
Massage therapist	£950 per month
Total:	£2,550 per month

 

Other costs	Price
Facebook advertisement	£107.70 per month £1,292.40 per year
YouTube advertisement (1000 views, £0.11 per view)	£110 per month £1,320 per year
Total:	£217.70 per month
Promotional  pens (250 units, 16p each)	£40
Promotional key rings (100 units, 73p each)	£73
Flyers (1000 units)	£15
Total:	£128

 

 

Annual cost:

£38,924.25