Game Development Giant

In the era before Jester was reborn, VR technology was not considered mature, at least there were no suitable commercial products in the world.

Although many companies have announced their own VR equipment through various channels.

But even Microsoft, which has the best technology, said that it would be difficult for their Hololens to be fully promoted within five years. As we all know, Microsoft has conducted several Hololens demonstrations. It can be seen that this should be the world's largest Hololens at that time. The best VR equipment. Although during the demonstration, the audience felt that this thing was perfect, Microsoft still felt that this thing has not yet reached the point of official commercial use.

Of course, Sony's VR equipment does not require Microsoft's high technical content.

For Microsoft, their Hololens is not only used as an accessory for their Xbox, but also for office use. It is an artifact that changes the designer industry and a tool that improves productivity as the saying goes. Well, when Apple said in its 2015 press conference that their big-screen pro is a camera-friendly product, it was Apple's tools that would improve productivity. That's what they were talking about, not entertainment tools, but office tools.

Just like the positioning of Su Feipo in the tablet.

But Sony’s VR equipment does not need to be considered so much. Their VR equipment was formerly called Memphis, but was later renamed ps4vr. Just look at its name and you will know that this thing is a peripheral hardware developed purely for ps4. Its function is for game entertainment, and there is no need to consider as many AR enhancements as Microsoft's Hololens.

Um. AR is a technology that can be used in conjunction with VR technology to achieve an outstanding effect.

The full name of ar is augmented-reality, which is also known as augmented reality or augmented reality device. This thing is actually developing a little faster than VR equipment. The specific meaning of this thing, a more professional description is this. It is a new technology that "seamlessly" integrates real world information and virtual world information. The physical information (visual information, sound, taste, touch, etc.) that is originally difficult to experience within a certain time and space in the real world is simulated and then superimposed through computer and other science and technology to apply the virtual information to the real world. . Perceived by human senses, thereby achieving a sensory experience beyond reality.

To put it simply, you are in many movies. I have seen the kind of display technology that directly projects images into the air.

What Microsoft wants to do is a combination of VR and AR, while what Sony wants to do is just one. It can be shared with their ps4. VR monitors, the technical gap between the two is still quite large, so Sony said that their Memphis helmet can be released in one or six years, and the price will not be too expensive, at most it will be the price of a new game console.

But Microsoft's Hololens is not that simple. In the entire Microsoft system, this thing has a much higher status than Xbox. Considered by Microsoft to be their future, Microsoft's newest CEO, Asan, is particularly concerned about the success or failure of Hololens. Not long after Sony announced the price of their VR equipment, he also quickly told the media about Hololens.

The information made fans who were looking forward to this product unhappy. Asan CEO said directly that it would be difficult to sell this thing to the public within five years.

That's a bit far.

Carmack heard Jester talking about VR equipment, and he was also very interested in this thing. During this time, the concept of VR equipment was not too mysterious around the world, especially in several fields.

Including the gaming field, many people are interested.

Of course, most of these people don’t think that this thing can be put into commercial use right away. Jester thinks so too. In Jester’s vision, this is the game console after the somatosensory game console. In terms of generations, at least It will be three or even four generations of game consoles later.

In fact, in Jester's memory, it was during this period that Nintendo, in order to regain their lost share in the console war, also had some illnesses and sought medical treatment indiscriminately. At that time, under the insistence of Hiroshi Yamauchi, Nintendo's hardware team was replaced by Yokoi Jun. Under Ping's leadership, the development of the world's first generation of VR gaming equipment began. Of course, the outcome of this gaming equipment is predictable.

Gunpei Yokoi left Nintendo in order to take the blame for Hiroshi Yamauchi, and Hiroshi Yamauchi admitted that it was his request that allowed the VR game console that far fell short of the design requirements to be put on the market.

At that time, Gunpei Yokoi begged Hiroshi Koyamauchi with fierce words not to put VR into the market.

In fact, even if it was not put into the market at that time, Nintendo's VR game device would not end well if it continued to be developed at the insistence of Gunpei Yokoi. In this era, we are far from the era when VR devices can truly be popularized. Technology The gap, especially the performance gap in hardware, is simply impossible to reconcile. If the performance does not meet the requirements, naturally many things cannot be done.

Jester saw that Carmack was interested in the topic of VR equipment, so he chatted with him about this topic in detail.

In fact, virtual devices are highly anticipated by players and have evolved. It was only after players lost interest in monitors that they became so interested in virtual devices.

As we all know, virtual reality games will show its advantages in simulation, which will fully demonstrate the verisimilitude, interactivity, immersion and imagination of virtual reality technology.

Take online games as an example. The purpose, nature, and technical application of traditional online game technology focus on meeting people's spiritual needs for entertainment, fun, happiness, etc. In the future, online game technology has basically matured, and gamers have been exposed to some online games to some extent. The current way of experiencing online games basically excludes players from the monitor, and the interaction with players is limited to the monitor. The character walks, runs and jumps. We are using an external device to control "another" virtual character.

However, with the development of network technology, simulation experience games account for an increasing proportion. People are more inclined to put themselves into a real environment and experience their favorite games immersively, instead of just typing on the keyboard and clicking the mouse.

In fact, you can change your mind.

From the initial text mud games, to two-dimensional games, three-dimensional games, and then to online three-dimensional games, the real-time and interactive nature of the game are being improved and strengthened step by step. The realistic graphics of the current next-generation games further prove this development direction. We can even understand that computer games have been developing in the direction of virtual reality since their creation.

Virtual reality technology creates a realistic virtual world that includes three-dimensional models, three-dimensional sounds, three-dimensional characters and other resources. Experienced content that cannot be accomplished under realistic and conventional circumstances. Virtual reality technology allows players to become one with the characters in the game, allowing players to truly experience that the character in the game is themselves, and that they are the characters in the game. This sense of immersion is the core of virtual reality games. In the game you still have to play yourself.

certainly. It's still very difficult to make a game like this.

This difficulty is still difficult twenty years later. In this era, it can basically only be thought about.

Otherwise, the best outcome would be for Nintendo to become a canine instead of a tiger.

As we all know, a game hardware can be popular not because of its high technological content. But because, on this platform. There are a large number of excellent games - of course, the two actually complement each other. Only if your console is good enough can you attract game manufacturers to develop more excellent games for you.

However, there is a premise here, that is, game manufacturers can develop the games you want, such as virtual reality. If you develop a virtual reality device, and you want to make this device popular and popular, then the most important thing is , let those manufacturers develop games that are fun enough for your virtual reality device.

Just like the original wii.

The popularity of somatosensory devices is due to players’ interest in the somatosensory devices themselves.

Nintendo's excellent game design capabilities account for at least half of the credit. It is precisely because of Nintendo's excellent somatosensory games that the Wii's sales are the envy of others.

A negative example is Microsoft. The somatosensory device of Xbox is not strong?

Of course not. I don’t know how much better Microsoft’s motion-sensing device is than the previous Wii or Wiiu, but why don’t Microsoft’s game consoles sell well? Of course, as I said before, motion sensing devices are just a novelty to play with. In fact, the more important reason is that Microsoft’s so-called motion sensing games are no better than the motion sensing games developed by Nintendo for Wii a few years ago. To put it bluntly, if.

None of Microsoft's motion-sensing games are qualified to compare with Wii's.

Jester remembers that sometimes, someone asked him what kind of game console he should buy if his wife likes to play somatosensory games at home.

Many people will say that the motion feel must be that of xbo. Compared to xbo’s motion feel, ps4’s motion feel is just scum and rubbish.

This is true. Compared with the motion sense of the xbo, the motion sense of the ps4 is indeed scum and rubbish. However, these people seem to have forgotten that the motion sense game of the xbo is still the motion sense plus garbage compared to the motion sense game of the wii.

Moreover, Wii is a previous generation console and has a completely cracked version.

Buying a second-hand cracked version of Wii with all the games only costs a few hundred yuan. Compared with buying an Xbox where you can only play some dancing and silly sports games, it is much better.

According to Jester's later understanding, anyone who did not listen to his advice and bought an xbo to play with motion sensing was a novelty. It didn't take a week to get tired of this thing. All that was left was to put the machine under the TV and play unlimited games. Some of them were left in ashes, but those who listened to his advice and bought a second-hand cracked Wii had a great time playing it and really realized the joy that the game brought.

At least the enthusiasm can be maintained for a few months.

If you have children in the future.

The appeal of Wii games to children is even more outrageous.

Don't think that games can ruin your child's life. Did you ruin your life by secretly playing Bully every day when you were a child?

Of course, I just want to say this to illustrate that hardware and software complement each other. Only when the two can coexist harmoniously can this system exist for a long time.

While virtual reality hardware devices are difficult to develop, are virtual reality games easy to develop?

Just think about it and you will know that it is of course very difficult to develop an excellent game under new technology conditions, just like the many technical problems that need to be solved when 2D is changing to 3D. In the case of monitors, Thinking about the transformation of virtual reality equipment, there are also a lot of problems that have not been encountered before, and they need to be solved as soon as possible.

Why do you say that?

Because even when Jester was reborn, Sony announced that they would release their VR equipment, and there was still no VR game on the market that could be called complete and mature.

It can set a benchmark for similar games and tell them that this kind of game should be made this way.

Just like when 2D turned to 3D, "Quake", "Resident Evil", "Mario 64" and "Zelda" did.

In fact, the virtual reality technology used during Jester's time travel can perfectly mimic the real scene on the screen, but for the game, the picture alone is not enough, and the sense of operation is also a very important element in the game.

The simulation of movement in virtual reality has always been an annoying problem. The oculus rift device is equipped with inertial sensors such as gyroscopes and accelerometers. These devices will sense the position of the user's head and then allow the user to control the perspective conversion, but that is all. That’s all. If you want to perfectly simulate the movement of characters in the game, the glasses themselves are insufficient. Players ultimately need another external device such as a controller to control the character's walking, which is somewhat incompatible with virtual reality that pursues extreme realism.

Many virtual reality manufacturers are also trying to solve this problem. One way is to use remote somatosensory operation, such as using the kinect somatosensory device on Xbox.

Kinect can be said to be a very mature motion capture device among current gaming peripherals, but when combined with a virtual reality helmet, the effect is still unsatisfactory. Kinect motion capture still has shortcomings such as low accuracy and slow response speed. At present, most of the somatosensory games on the Xbox platform are light and casual games. This is due to the technical limitations of kinect. It is still difficult to perfectly integrate kinect with virtual reality. (To be continued...)