The XR Week Peek (2024.11.12): Smartglasses are on the rise, Meta cuts funding to games, and more!
The Chinese singles’ day is just over (happy holiday if you are Chinese and single!) and here the weather is starting to get colder. So while I’m drinking some hot beverage, let me write for you what have been the most interesting pieces of XR news of the week!
Top news of the week
The hype for smartglasses continues
After the success of Ray-Ban Meta, it seems all companies are investigating smart glasses now.
A new report by Mark Gurman confirms that Apple is working internally on its own smartglasses built to compete with Ray-Ban Meta, hoping to ship a product in 2027. Details are scarce, but Gurman stated that they should have the ability to understand the environment around the user (which basically means they will be AI-powered). I think that Apple entering the smartglasses market would be very interesting, because with Luxottica, Meta has secured a fashion brand to be on its glasses, but Apple is a cool brand on its own and I’m sure many people would love to put it on their faces.
We saw a few weeks ago that Samsung and Google are working on smartglasses, too. Baidu, the Chinese Google, is rumored to launch its own smartglasses at its annual Baidu World event in Shanghai this week. The gadget will have built-in cameras to capture photos and video and will support voice interactions built atop Baidu’s Ernie foundation model.
Meta itself is working to expand even more the Ray-Ban Meta ecosystem. It has just opened a pop-up store only dedicated to Ray-Ban Meta smartglasses in Los Angeles and will run it until the end of this year. In January, a new pop-up store should be opened in Phoenix, Arizona. Meta’s goal is to make the Ray-Ban Meta appear even more fashionable with these shops that offer “experiential retail”. In fact, apart from being stores, the shops will also host some activities, like a stand-up comedy with Desi Banks, a live podcast with Madeline Argy, a ‘paint and sip’ night with Tinashe, a Ray-Ban Meta-focused workshop with Director Drex Lee, and a cooking class with Cassie Yeung.
It seems to be the golden age of smart glasses. Will this be just another passing hype or smartglasses are already here to stay? Time will tell…
More info (Apple exploring smartglasses)
More info (Baidu close to launch its smartglasses)
More info (Meta opening Ray-Ban Meta popup stores)
Other relevant news
Meta is allegedly cutting funding for gaming content
According to a report from The Information, Meta is changing its strategy of funding XR content, shifting it in favor of non-gaming lifestyle content. For this reason, Meta has cut the funding to some of its partners that were working on gaming content. The result is that the studios that were relying on that funding are now laying off their employees: both Netherlands-based studio Monks and France-based studio Altas V had to reportedly half their teams.
The layoffs are very sad news: I imagine the entrepreneurs behind those studios who were sure they could count on certain funding and then the situation suddenly changed and they had to lay off their employees. It’s a very bad situation, and I wonder if Meta could have managed this differently.
On the other side, I think that moving away from pure gaming is the right approach for Meta because if it wants to dominate the next technological platform, it must do it with utilities that people want to use every day. Meta does not want to own the next-gen console, but the next-gen smartphone, so gaming-only is not an approach that can work anymore.
News worth a mention
Someone built cheap AR glasses by himself
Miroslav Kotalík has designed and built a pair of AR glasses (lenses included) all by himself. He called the prototype Zero and it is powered by a Raspberry Pi Zero computational unit. Currently, it can play videos, display images, play music via Bluetooth headphones, and show text. For the v2, he is moving to the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4, which would allow the glasses to also load up YouTube, Spotify, or Twitter. He posts updates on his X account, so be sure to follow him if you are interested in this little crazy project.
More info (Self-built AR glasses — Reddit)
More info (Self-built AR glasses — Tom’s Hardware)
More info (Short video that shows the glasses)
More info (Miroslav Kotalik’s X account)
Apple releases the Panoramic Display Feature on Vision Pro
In VisionOS 2.2 beta release, it is finally possible to use your Mac from your Vision Pro using a virtual screen that is UltraWide. Apple said during the feature’s unveiling in June the update would bring an “ultra-wide display that wraps around you,” allowing for resolutions “equivalent to two 4K monitors, side by side”. This means that according to Apple you don’t need to buy two big monitors or a single ultrawide monitor for your Mac anymore, but you can have a single very wide virtual display spanning the size of two monitors. This is a great use case for the Vision Pro, considering the high price of ultra-wide monitors, which are very popular across designers. The first hands-ons with this new technology are enthusiastic and say that this is a very needed update to use the Vision Pro for productivity. The only problem, highlighted by Road To VR, is that the Mac has not a windows manager that supports ultrawide monitors, so you need to rely on 3rd party solutions for that.
More info (Panoramic Display on Vision Pro — Road To VR)
More info (Panoramic Display on Vision Pro — Upload VR)
More info (Hands-on Panoramic Display on Vision Pro — Road To VR)
LIV releases Creator Kit for Quest
LIV now has a Unity SDK that, if implemented by developers in their applications, lets players and creators capture third-person footage of VR standalone on Quest. The players will be able to spawn a little tablet through which record themselves in first or third person in virtual reality, without the need of any external PC. This is a fantastic addition for applications that want to offer their users the ability to create videos that can become viral on social media, like Gorilla Tag (which has just announced its integration).
Having worked on a similar tool before, I can tell you that LIV is sparing developers various weeks of work.
EgoTouch lets you use your palm as a touchscreen
A very well-known strategy to give a haptic sensation when you press a virtual button is to put the button on some part of your body (e.g. the back of your hand) and make you press it with the finger of the other hand. This way, when you press the virtual button, you feel the haptic sensation of touching the other hand, for added realism. The project EgoTouch works exactly in this sense but goes beyond the usual features: it does not only detect when you are touching the other hand, but can also differentiate between touching and pressuring. This allows you to have a reliable interface on your arm, where the system detects a click only when you are actually meaning it.
(Thanks Ivan Aguilar for the tip)
Osmo claims to have performed “scent teleportation”
Osmo is a company working on the digitalization of smell that has just claimed to have managed to perform “scent teleportation”. They took an element having some scent (e.g. a slice of coconut) and put it into a machine, that sensed the smell and digitalized its fingerprint. These data have been transmitted to another place, where there was another machine that using the information sent via the network, mixed some ingredients to create a liquid with a smell resembling the initial one, ready to be diffused in the air. It is a “teleportation” because the scent of the element can so be felt in the second place, which is probably very distant from the first one.
Remember that scents do not have primary smells like colors have RGB, so it is a remarkable result that they have been able to obtain something like that. The method is currently slow, partially manual, expensive, and can not replicate all the odors, but it is already pretty cool. I can’t wait to see what could be the future applications of this for virtual reality.
(Thanks Gianni Rosa Gallina for the tip)
Enjoy the sale of content on the PlayStation Store
There is a big sale running on the PlayStation Store and many PSVR 2 games are part of it, with some discounts even beyond 40%. If you have a PSVR 2 headset, this is a good time to buy some new games for your library!
Metro Awakening is the game of the moment
After the big splash made by Batman: Arkham Shadow, this week has been the time for Metro Awakening to create hype in the community. The game has been very well received, with many reviews praising its environments and the sensations that they make you feel. The game does not come without issues, though, like the fact that the system to get the items from your chest does not always work or that it can become a bit monotonous in the second half. In any case, it is a great game and many people have been talking about it on Reddit in the past few days. And I want to do a big shoutout to the dev for having released an update in which the game removes the spiders for the people affected by arachnophobia. This is a great decision on the accessibility side.
More info (Metro Awakening review — Road To VR)
More info (Metro Awakening review — Upload VR)
More info (Metro Awakening — Arachnophobia mode)
More info (Interview with the developers)
Djay brings spatial DJing to Meta Quest
Algoriddim has just ported the popular djay app (which is famous on mobile phones and got showcased on the Vision Pro) to the Meta Quest. The experience lets you feel like a true DJ, remixing tracks, scratching, and combining songs together. The coolest part of it is that you can connect existing DJ gear to your Quest via the USB-C port and scratch in mixed reality on your real console. Djay is not new to the market, so it already has 5000 free tracks and support for many of the major music streaming platforms: this means you can already perform using many songs for your remixes. This is pretty cool stuff.
[Disclaimer: I know the guys at Algoriddim and have collaborated with them on a thing once]
Some news about content
- Alien: Rogue Incursion for Quest 3/3S has been delayed to next year. The PCVR and PSVR versions are still slated for December, 19, though
- Human Within is a sci-fi interactive VR film coming to Quest in January that explores how AI affects humanity. Your choices during the movie will affect the ending, so the movie has also some replayability. It is set to arrive on Quest on January 9th, and “soon” on SteamVR headsets
- Heroes Battle: Darksword is a new free-to-play 1v1 VR tabletop strategy game, and it’s out now in early access for free on Quest
- Nevrosa Rescape is a surprise remake of a 2017 PC VR horror puzzle game, and it’s out next year on Quest. It blends escape room mechanics, action gameplay, and horror that doesn’t rely on jump scares
- Vivarium, an experience that lets you raise plants and pets in your living room, has been launched on the PICO Store
- Wall Town Wonders, the mixed reality town builder that turns your physical rooms into miniature towns, confirmed a release date as the Quest 3 exclusive launches on November 21
- Zombie Army VR has been delayed until next year on all the platforms
- Squingle, the psychedelic mixed reality puzzle game, will receive a brand new edition on November, 21st. The original game will still be available as Squingle — Legacy
- CROWBAR CLIMBER is a new game published by MyDearest that lets you climb a wall using only crowbars. From the video, it seems silly and fun. It is available on the Horizon Store and Steam for €6
- You can get Strike Rush with a 90% discount! Players must enter the code SR-233289 on the Meta Quest Store when purchasing the game to get it for a ridiculously low price
- Upload VR has published its usual post with a summary of some minor XR news of the week. But it has a new name: before it was called ICYMI, while now it is “XR News Bytes”. Same same but different, but still the same…
More info (Alien: Rogue Incursion)
More info (Human Within)
More info (Heroes Battle: Darksword)
More info (Nevrosa Rescape)
More info (Vivarium)
More info (Wall Town Wonders)
More info (Zombie Army VR)
More info (Squingle)
More info (CROWBAR CLIMBER)
More info (Strike Rush)
More info (XR News Bytes)
Some reviews about content
- Human Fall Flat VR successfully harnesses the wacky physics platforming essence of the original game, amplifying its chaotic drama with an immersive but approachable control scheme that feels natural to engage with in VR. It is especially very fun to play with friends
- Dumb Ways: Free for All is a compelling arcade simulator that draws you in with its bouncy soundtrack and endearing silliness. Its strongest point is its comedy and the laughs it can give you. Its weakest point is that its minigames in the long run are not very entertaining
- Living Room gives you the opportunity to spawn very cute animals in your room in mixed reality. It is an uplifting experience, but it lacks a bit of things to do, it should be more varied
- Underworld Overseer is a solid and highly polished game that somewhat brings the Dungeon Keeper series into virtual reality, making you feel like an evil lord who defends his dungeon base from humans. It would be perfect if it had a better story and more variation, though
More info (Human Fall Flat)
More info (Dumb Ways Free For All)
More info (Living Room)
More info (Underworld Overseer)
Other news
Photon released a new free sample about multiplayer collaboration in mixed reality
There is a petition to open source WMR, but it has just a bit more than 3300 people signing for it
Julie Smithson is the new CEO of METAVRSE
News from partners (and friends)
Come to MatchXR!
On November, 19th in Helsinki there will be again MatchXR, the annual event about the Nordic XR ecosystem that happens in the Slush week. I will be there: if you can take a trip to Helsinki and attend this event too (it is free), we can meet there!
Attend the VR Jam at DeoVR!
On November, 13th in Ljubljana, Slovenia, there will be a VR Jan hosted by DeoVR, Here’s what to expect from the event according to the website:
- Explore cutting-edge VR devices, including the revolutionary 🥽 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐨 and Meta Quest 3S
- Discover the features of 𝐃𝐞𝐨𝐕𝐑 like 6DoF, passthrough, and immersive VR photography
- Join an inspiring discussion with Ivan Varko, 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐣𝐢, and learn from his journey as a VR pioneer
- Join our DeoVR team coming from across the world
- Enjoy 🕹𝐕𝐑 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 and test out the latest in immersive gaming
It seems a fun event, so if you are not distant from Slovenia, it could be worth hopping there!
[Disclaimer: DeoVR is a Patron of this blog]
Sponsored Area
No sponsoring today, just chilling. Enjoy life!
Some XR fun
ChatGPT can make you spare development time. Maybe…
Funny link
VR as a way to comb your hair
Funny link
The stereotypes about the different types of VR gamers are real
Funny link
The killer use of VR and AR
Funny link
Donate for good
Like last week, also this week in this final paragraph I won’t ask you to donate to my blog, but to the poor people who are facing the consequences of the war. Please donate to the Red Cross to handle the current humanitarian situation in Ukraine. I will leave you the link to do that below.
Let me take a moment before to thank anyway all my Patreon donors for the support they give to me:
- Alex Gonzalez VR
- DeoVR
- GenVR
- Eduardo Siman
- Jonn Fredericks
- Jean-Marc Duyckaerts
- Reynaldo T Zabala
- Richard Penny
- Terry xR. Schussler
- Ilias Kapouranis
- Paolo Leoncini
- Immersive.international
- Nikk Mitchell and the great FXG team
- Jake Rubin
- Alexis Huille
- Raghu Bathina
- Chris Koomen
- Cognitive3D
- Wisear (Yacine Achiakh)
- Masterpiece X
- Dimo Pepelyashev
- Jennifer Granger
- Jason Moore
- Steve Biggs
- Julio Cesar Bolivar
- Jan Schroeder
- Kai Curtis
- Francesco Strada
- Sikaar Keita
- Ramin Assadollahi
- Juan Sotelo
- Andrew Sheldon
- Chris Madsen
- Horacio Torrendell
- Andrew Deutsch
- Fabien Benetou
- Tatiana Kartashova
- Marco “BeyondTheCastle” Arena
- Eloi Gerard
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- Jeremy Dalton
- Joel Ward
- Alex P
- Lynn Eades
- Donald P
- Casie Lane
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- Qcreator
- Ristband (Anne McKinnon & Roman Rappak)
- Stephen Robnett
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- Sb
- Pieter Siekerman
- Enrico Poli
- Vooiage Technologies
- Caroline
- Liam James O’Malley
- Hillary Charnas
- Wil Stevens
- Francesco Salizzoni
- Alan Smithson
- Steve R
- Brentwahn
- Matt Cool
- Simplex
- Gregory F Gorsuch
- Paul Shay
- Matias Nassi
And now here you are the link to donate:
Support The Red Cross in Ukraine
(Header image by Miroslav Kotalík)
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