Absolutely!... but when I began this project I had no idea how much I didn't know. I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about 3D modeling and rendering so I assumed it would be a small jump to creating VR scenes. My 3D knowledge did save me time for sure when it came to modeling and texture mapping models so that part was easiest. However, there were a ton of little details once I was over in Unreal Engine that caused me to continually return to Rhino to revise my source geometry. That process was something I couldn't have really understood in any other way. I honestly enjoy learning iteratively like that, have a problem, find a solution, move on to the next... but it takes time. So in retrospect, I could have spent a year sabbatical on this easily but over a single semester I'm happy with how far I got.
I won't lie, I can't wear the headset that long and this is coming from someone who can 3D model in front of a screen for hours on end. I know that's not great for you either but hey at least I use a standing desk. VR on the other hand hits me kind of hard after longer than 15 minutes. I've read that this "VR sickness" is different for everyone and refresh rates on the device are one factor. I'll need to try some other headsets with the same apps or scenes at some point for comparison. I hadn't used VR at all before this project and I chose the Oculus Quest as it was untethered from a computer which aligned with one of my initial goals.
I like art, there I said it. In browsing the Oculus store upon getting into this project, I wished there was more for us art lovers. If you like to shoot zombies you're all set but if you want to stroll around Michelangelo's David in your living room you're out of luck. I knew about 3D scan libraries of famous sculptures, which I'd 3D print, but viewing them was always limited by the size I could print. I began thinking about how VR could change the viewing experience of these works of art and the concept for this project emerged out of that. I'd consider this type of VR experience to be of entertainment, cultural and of course educational value.
The commercial value of VR is also very real and it's why I wanted to learn how to create a truly mobile experience. I can envision architectural and site design reviews preloaded on a headset for a client meeting for instance. Or imagine walking around a vehicle or furniture design before ordering it online. Designers can use these tools now and as the tech evolves becoming less expensive and higher resolution, the opportunities will surely expand.
You know how you get wild ideas while working on a project but you don't go down those roads because you have a deadline? Yeah, that kept happening to me with this project too. I have several ideas for exploration and puzzle solving VR experiences that I'd like to try and produce for public distribution. There's a lot more to learn to pull that off but it's exciting to think about.
I've started to get into LiDAR scanning which although not the resolution needed for small objects is suited for capturing large spaces as point clouds or meshing those on the fly. I'd like to bring these scans into VR experiences in part or as a whole. It'll be a balancing act knowing now about polygon limits for these scenes but with optimization techniques and material textures I think it could be quite interesting.
I want to see what my students can do with VR. Right now, the workflow of getting a 3D scene together and on a VR headset is pretty complicated. What Epic is doing with UE is really great though and it's certainly democratizing this space. I hope to educate and inspire students to take the leap into designing for VR.