How to get started in VR development: Difference between revisions

<includeonly>=</includeonly>==1. Learn about the hardware==<includeonly>=</includeonly>

Ask yourself: do you want to develop for a computer-driven headset like the Vive, or are you more interested in mobile applications such as GearVR or Google Cardboard? If you don't already own your hardware of choice, do some research and think about what would be best for both your target market and most practical to develop on. If your idea requires motion controls or high-end graphics, stick to computer-driven VR. A list of currently available hardware that is supported by Unity, Unreal, and VR web implementations:

<includeonly>=</includeonly>===PC VR===<includeonly>=</includeonly>

*'''[[Razer Hydra]]''', $599 - general-purpose wired motion tracking controller for PC

* '''[[Gear VR]]''', $99

* '''[[Google Cardboard]]''', available as cheap as free

<includeonly>=</includeonly>===Web VR===<includeonly>=</includeonly>

(can use a smartphone as HMD)

* '''[[Mozilla A-Frame]]''' is a markup language (as are HTML and XML) for making cross-platform VR software. To see it in action, visit their site on your smartphone, turn off orientation lock, and press the VR button that appears.

<includeonly>=</includeonly>==2. Learn about the software==<includeonly>=</includeonly>

Most VR developers opt to use a game engine (unless they're developing for WebVR, discussed below), and should decide which they want to work with early on. Two most popular are [[Unreal Engine 4]] (UE4) and [[Unity]]. Both of these engines are very capable and will become the tool that you rely on most in your development; both have very active communities with vast resources out there to help you. These are freely available software suites capable of managing 3D environments, importing custom assets (such as 3D models, imagery, sounds, video), and programming interactivity or gameplay. Most useful of all, there are an insane number of YouTube tutorials and online guides for both engines, both official and fan-created.

Outside of game engines, you may opt to develop interactive VR webpages using [[Mozilla's A-Frame]] markup language, or by using JavaScript (hack around with [[Three.js]]!), HTML5, and/or WebGL in the vein of web experiments recently put out by [[Chrome]] and [[Mozilla]]. Developing for web has the convenience of using a smartphone as the display, so you won't need an expensive headset starting off. You also won't need to compile or package any code, and can easily share your creations with your friends who also own smartphones. If this sounds like a lot of work, maybe try the easy-as pie VR scene editor [[Vizor]], which allows you to design VR imagery on the computer and then view it from mobile.

<includeonly>=</includeonly>==3. Make or find art assets==<includeonly>=</includeonly>

The other option for 3D models is to learn how to make them yourself. Though this is the more difficult option, it's a good choice for the long term, as the time may come when you're making a more intermediate project and want to make your own assets and visual style. There are a few programs which are very useful for 3D modeling.

* '''3D Modelling and Sculpting:'''

** '''[[Autodesk's Entertainment Creation Suite]]''' of software (including Maya, 3ds Max, Motionbuilder, and Mudbox with native export to Unity and UE4) is available to "students" free for three years -- no verification needed. This includes everything you need to make professional models, textures, animations, etc.

<includeonly>=</includeonly>===Photogrammetry (3D scanning)===<includeonly>=</includeonly>

* '''Photogrammetry and 3D-scanning'''

** '''[[Agisoft Photoscan]]''' (from $179), a 3D scanning suite which uses DSLR photos as its source.

<includeonly>=</includeonly>===Audio & Music===<includeonly>=</includeonly>

* Audio production

** '''[[Audacity]]''', although simple on the surface, is a powerful and reliable audio editor that is entirely free and open source.

<includeonly>=</includeonly>==4. Implement Interactivity==<includeonly>=</includeonly>

'''VR UI/UX Resources'''

* Google's own '''[[Cardboard Design Lab]]''' is perhaps the fastest introduction to this subject.

This requires some kind of scripting language. Unreal Engine 4 has an intuitive, flowchart-like scripting system called '''Blueprint Visual Scripting''', and if you're not yet comfortable programming, this may be useful for you to get started. Check [[here]] for a general introduction to Blueprints. Blueprints are powerful enough to do entire projects without having to write a line of code (though you'll be using many programming concepts). Otherwise, both Unreal and Unity have a native programming language. For Unreal, it's '''C++''', and for Unity, it's '''C#'''. Many people who are aspiring VR devs have little to no programming experience, so this step can be particularly daunting. We want to help you get past this hurdle also, so we'll be updating this wiki with resources that will teach you the fundamental programming concepts needed for VR dev.