Week 5/6

All Quiet on the Western Front AR Project - Thoughts

The purpose of this augmented reality project was to imagine a world where ordinary people that own AR glasses could look at a book and instantly have more information about its contents. Could its cover be even more enticing with additional 3D models? Would having access to book reviews help consumers make more informed decisions about their book purchases?

Having this technology must add to the experience of shopping. Therefore, if someone’s interest has been piqued by an interesting book cover, I think it’s even more important for an animated, 3D book cover in AR to be even more enticing. Bian De Villa, Nathan He, and Yushen Li finished their AR project on All Quiet on the Western Front which had one of the best examples of an enticing, eyecatching 3D book cover.

This animated book cover gives the observer a very good preview of what to expect by reading All Quiet on the Western Front, both in theme and in mood. It portrays one man’s experience of war, of how difficult it can be. War is a very impersonal thing for those still at home, but out there on the battlefield is a whole other story. The book doesn’t want to romanticize the heroic, action movie type of ideas about war. It wants to tell you that real people fight these real wars.

While most groups simply ported over 3D models and had them stand on the book cover, this group was unique in providing an entire battlefield that was augmented on top of the cover. The colors used in this scene are dark and gloomy, which is a color palette that perfectly portrays the mood of throughout the entire book. The actual, physical book cover gives you an image which is of hundreds of soldiers. It provides a good idea, but it is static. The 3D scene in augmented reality gives you a moving scene, portraying a real war. For a book about World War I, just a quick glance at this rendered scene immediately gives you information about the nature of this book—that war is difficult and depressing.

Additionally, the 3D models augmented on top of the book are tiny. They give you a bird’s eye view of a battle, with tiny planes going by. It detaches you from the fact that there are real soldiers that fight wars, reminding you that wars are fought not on the individual level, but on a much larger scale. You’re observing the fight as if it were some strategy game. The audio complimenting the battle makes it even more interesting to watch.

What I liked about the back of the book is that the layout is very comfortable. I feel as though I can access all the information I want very easily, both book reviews and video reviews. It feels “widescreen”, but that’s good. The effect is that the information I’m viewing doesn’t feel cramped. Some projects did a poor job of this part of the assignment, where it was very difficult to angle the book such that it was easy to view the information.

If I were to improve on this project, I would absolutely animate the soldier spokesman’s 3D model as well as update the audio that introduces the book such that you can tell what the solider is feeling, just based on the expressions on the solder’s face and the intonation of his voice.

The Hobbit AR Project - Thoughts

The Hobbit is a beloved novel by J. R. R. Tolkien, greatly beloved because of its incredible world building, from language to landmarks to lore. He also did an amazing job with his vivid descriptions of the various monsters and creatures of Middle Earth. The book deals with themes of nature versus industry, and the hobbits represent the common people who peacefully ignorant and are unaffected by the larger conflict until they suddenly find themselves drawn into the middle of it.

The group who created their prototype idea of what it would be like to view a more interesting representation of The Hobbit, Edward Reyes and Jonel Alcasid, did a great job on their project. The original book cover that is used as the image target is interesting, with multiple small images of different events that happen in the book. While it does catch the eye, AR technology has the benefit of augmenting some scene you can look around and almost be a part of.

Once Unity and Vuphoria recognize the image target, you are immediately “wowed” by the scene this group created. This group is unique because they had the largest scale models out of all of the projects I saw, and it really helps sell the book, more so than the physical 2D book cover. With large trees and plants, you feel as though you are there in the forest, inside Tolkien’s book. The group also seems to have added additional light effects, and it gives the scene a very warm glow. The light compliments the colors in the 3D models, and the overall effect is very magical. The Lord of the Rings movies had hours of beautiful New Zealand scenery, and this AR 3D scene does a very good job of bringing in that same serene atmosphere.

The AR button on the front of the book brings up the book’s “spokesperson” and a beloved character. Gandalf tells you the title of the book, and it’s very fitting that his character shows up inside this beautiful forest scene. It doesn’t feel jarring. I found it very amusing and not out of place! If only the real actor introduced the book to you, then it would be perfect!

I thought that the back of the book was also interesting to look at! What really wowed me was that once again, instead of adding a small moountain to the back of the book, they made it enormous. I’m sure that with AR glasses, it’s shocking but also really cool to see this enormous background pop up in front of you, along with a dragon, the ring, and many other things.

This scene isn’t as immersive as the front of the book, but it provides a frame for the book and video reviews, which is also something that not every group did. Most groups only had reviews on the back, but I believe that by making the back cover just as visually interesting with the additional models helps sell the book. I personally don't think it looks overcrowded

If I were to improve anything, it would be to add even more greenery and plants to the front cover. I would love for the front cover to be even more realistic and even more overgrown. Additionally, I would rearrange the back cover such that the information isn't at such a weird angle. The information should've been facing more towards the viewer, but still keep the 3D models of the mountain, the dragon, the ring, and everything else. And make the dragon huge!

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse