Keeping up with everything new happening in VR is getting more challenging with each passing week. We track new releases on Oculus, Steam/Viveport, and PlayStation, but there is also a constant flow of new 360-degree video projects as well as live events and short demo experiences being broadcast in VR with increasing frequency, not to mention incredible hand-made worlds being shared more rapidly as well as meetups being planned in social VR experiences.
Take artist Danny Bittman’s Painting Within a Painting as an example of this new medium’s growth beyond the boundaries of existing distribution platforms. Bittman is exploring interesting ways of creating both 2D and 3D art using VR, and he says he spent around 100 hours creating this world by hand in Tilt Brush, letting “you explore an immersive painting of a sci-fi mountain range, and then paint paintings of that painting.” You can check out the creation for yourself in Tilt Brush, as he’s offered up the world for visitors to check out with instructions included for setting it up.
https://vimeo.com/204458477
360-Degree Projects
The Oscars are next weekend so if you haven’t had the chance to see Pearl yet, be sure to give yourself a few minutes to check out the 360-degree version of the Oscar-nominated animated film.
We also found ourselves laughing pretty hard at the idiot gang from It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia performing a “badass” jump in 360 on YouTube. You almost feel like a part of the group until they do something awful to you, which is pretty much exactly what the show is about so it is a fitting extension in VR.
Also check out this clever Internet Surfer video.
NBA All-Star Weekend
NextVR is showing highights from most of the events at the NBA’s All-Star Weekend, including the dunk and three-point contests. When the cameras are placed in the right spots we’ve found NextVR’s VR broadcasts to be among the best, and the various events held during All-Star weekend could let you see the action from some fun vantage points. Check it out on Daydream or Gear VR via the NextVR app.
IMAX VR in Los Angeles
If you happen to be in the Los Angeles area, we’d recommend picking up tickets to check out the IMAX VR center that opened recently — they have a good selection of experiences to try out in the sampler for walk-around VR.
New For Gamers
And speaking of those new releases list, we’d highly recommend checking out DiRT Rally on PlayStation VR, Syren on Rift and Vive and Harbinger Trail on Gear VR. Onward players should check out the field guide and if you’re a long-time fan of video games looking for a stroll through a bit of nostalgia, there’s a virtual world made from a map from The Legend of Zelda you can visit. The Art of the Fight also just exited Early Access as a full release, making it a great option for fans of competitive shooters.
Social VR
AltSpace has its full calendar of events lined up to watch with others inside VR, including a SpaceX Falcon rocket launch party in VR early Saturday morning. The company is adding Daydream support and support for non-VR Android phones as well — so there are more ways than ever to jump in and meet with people.
