Virtual reality brings sunken civilisations to life
"Thanks to this system, divers can know their position underwater, which normally isn’t possible as GPS signals don’t work under the surface," says Associate Professor of virtual prototyping at the University of Calabria, Fabio Bruno.
The tablet, safely carried in a waterproof case, picks up acoustic signals from underwater beacons. This helps a special app to precisely position itself on a map, guiding the diver to the most interesting underwater sites — like a floor mosaic from a submerged Roman villa that would otherwise be hidden from view by sand...unless you know where to look.
"Many people can’t dive, can’t see these underwater relics, and can’t visit this site, so what we’re trying to do is using many different virtual reality tools to bring this information closer to the general public," says Assistant Professor in photogrammetry, Cyprus University of Technology, and iMARECULTUREproject coordinator Dimitrios Skarlatos.
See the full story here: https://www.euronews.com/2018/09/17/virtual-reality-brings-sunken-civilisations-to-life
LBE company list – The Free Roam VR Cage Fight
LBE expert and VR specialist Kevin Williams and I huddled up one night at the hotel bar while at the Future Port Prague Conference last week. ... There are 42 free roam VR companies.
Twenty of these companies operate one or more retail entertainment venue, and the other 22 are right behind them. And I’m sure this list is incomplete.
Free Roam LBVR Leaders (more than 5 locations)
VR Studios (65)
Zero Latency (19)
The VOID (9)
TrueVRSystems (6) (Swiss & German)
SandboxVR (6)
Less than 5
Eclipse (3)
Tick Tock Unlock (UK)
Pilots, Pop-Ups, Single location
Dreamscape Immersive (original IP Alien Zoo)
SPACES (Terminator)
Alien Descent (Fox Next)
MassVR (Chicago)
Battleverse AR (Toronto)
Golem VR (DiVR)
ModalVR (Nolan Bushnell backed)
Holodeck VR (Europa-Park project)
Beyond The Gate (Milan)
Smaller Footprint Free Roam VR, Optimized for FEC locations
Hologate (faux free roam)
WePlayVR (AiSolve)
YDreams Arkave (Latin America, expanding north)
Atom (VRStudios)
VR Nerds (with Sega and Zero Latency)
Asia
Bandai-Namco (Ghost in the Shell, Dragonquest VR)
Globalcore
SLQ VR Park
InOwize (Japan)
Tyffonium (Japan)
GLO Station (China)
SoReal
SKonec Entertainment
NINED
LEKE VR
Wild Cards & Unknowns (to us)
ABAL - game called 'Dinosaur', using GearVR and trackers JP
Skonec Entertainment - Mortal Blitz, working with SEGA and other venues
Dark Realities - funding raising UK project
EXA VERXUS - in dev with DJM and Capcom JP
VoodooVR - in joint development with Springboard VR
PolygonVR - part of VRTech who have Russian licenses
Venturion - developed by Tapps VR
ARenaSpace - Russian developer free-roaming
CinemaVR - Russian developer free-roaming
Hypercell
We haven't even talked about the expanded tracking abilities and wireless capabilities of the new Vive Pro, which has the potential to transform the humble, low-cost VRcade into a free roam platform as well. That would turn our forty-two into five thousand!
On the surface, free roam VR appears to be booming, but underneath there is turbulence. Mundane retail operations, marketing, and group sales are relentlessly difficult.
There need to be standards for free roam and, like movies, and there need to be hundreds of retailers using that standard operating system.
Who's making it work? Dave and Buster's, Rec Room, and perhaps the new Two Bit Circus. This way you're not going to The VOID, or Sandbox, you're going to an experiential entertainment destination that might include a movie theater or two, a multi-title free roam area, an Arcade and/or VRcade, redemption games, food and beverage, and even a big footprint simulator like Jurassic World. And/or bowling and ping-pong.
See the full story here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/charliefink/2018/09/18/the-free-roam-vr-cage-fight/#59ec6b306aab
Dave & Buster’s Future: Virtual Reality and Faster Food
After getting stuck in a slump for the better part of a year, shares of Dave & Buster's Entertainment (NASDAQ:PLAY) have been showing signs of life once again. A slide in foot traffic persists but is slowing down, and new locations are performing well.
Operating costs remain elevated as D&B opens more stores, particularly in new markets. For example, Dave & Buster's debuted its first location in Utah last quarter. A total of 14 to 15 new stores will have opened by year's end, representing 13% to 14% unit growth. Eleven of these openings will still utilize D&B's large-square-footage format rather than the newer small-format footprint. Management said that its batch of new locations from 2017 -- which are not included in the comparable-store figures yet -- are performing well.
VR and better food is the way of the future
Operating expenses are also rising due to new developments in gaming and food. The company's first foray into the world of virtual reality (VR) occurred in the second quarter with the release of Jurassic World VR Expedition. Jenkins said the game is a big hit and helped with the sequential improvement in traffic and comp sales relative to the first quarter. D&B's second VR title will be released later this year. The goal is to build an extensive VR portfolio in the coming years, with a focus on proprietary content.
The next VR title and two other non-VR marquee games are in the works, but management isn't ready to release any names. The initial success with Jurassic World was enough to go ahead with a pipeline of development to keep D&B's arcades cutting edge. At about $5 per play on Jurassic World, the new game is crowding out spending on some older arcade titles, but it's still driving a net gain in revenue.
For example, the company will use a room in a D&B store in Dallas to test a new food truck-style experience called TNT Tacos. Since many guests are all about gaming and don't want the casual dining experience, the hope is that gaming outings will be paired with a quick bite to eat, helping to offset the slide in foot traffic.
See the full story here: https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/09/17/dave-busters-future-virtual-reality-faster-food.aspx
CEO Brian Jenkins, who recently assumed his post from longtime leader Steve King, called the midquarter addition of “Jurassic World VR Expedition” “the biggest game launch in our history.”
And another story here: https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/virtual-reality-no-escape-dave-busters
Virtual Reality Is the New Reality (Industry Week)
Shrinking the Skills Gap
Attracting Talent with Next-gen Technology
Traditionally, educators and hiring teams could not assess the skills and tendencies needed to excel as a forklift operator—skills such as hand-eye coordination. Through advanced technology, hiring managers can more easily determine whether forklift operation is the best position for a job candidate.
Practicing for Real-life Scenarios
Using Virtual Reality in the Real World
After hearing from employers which skills were in demand and working with local residents in search of employment, Workforce New York partnered with The State University of New York (SUNY) Broome Community College and Broome-Tioga Board of Cooperative Education Services (BOCES), to create an educational program to teach participants the necessary professional and warehouse skills to produce employable candidates to fill these crucial manufacturing positions.
Throughout this venture, Workforce New York received a grant for 12 participants to engage in a weeklong forklift operator education course—including in-classroom and e-learning, and coaching modules with a virtual reality simulator. If participants completed the whole program, they were guaranteed a job.
Investing in Advanced Education to Propel Our Future
According to the study by the Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte, 67% of U.S. manufacturers are facing a moderate to severe shortage of qualified workers, and as many as 600,000 jobs remain vacant due to the shortage. To continue producing and selling quality products, we need to take critical steps to address this issue.
See the full story here: https://www.industryweek.com/emerging-technologies/virtual-reality-new-reality
A table at Disneyland’s 21 Royal commands an elite $15,000 price tag for what’s billed as the ultimate in Disney wizardry
See the full story here: https://www.eater.com/2018/9/17/17846692/disneyland-resort-21-royal-cost-exclusive-dining-experience
Periscape – New York’s JFK Airport unveils virtual reality suite
See the full story here: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/news/2018/09/16/jfk-aiport-periscape-vr-suite/
The Void is adding new VR experiences based on Disney and Marvel properties
Virtual reality arcade The Void is partnering with Lucasfilm and Industrial Light and Magic’s immersive entertainment wing ILMxLAB to develop a new slate of experiences based on Disney and Marvel Studios properties, with the first, Ralph Breaks VR, debuting this fall.
See the full story here: https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/16/17867110/the-void-wreck-it-ralph-breaks-vr-marvel-studios-disney-lucasfilm-ilm-virtual-reality-immersion
I Expect You To Die Clears $3 Million Revenue Milestone
The spy-themed escape room VR game released in late 2016 and since shipped on every hand-controlled consumer VR platform alongside major updates that kept the game fresh over the last two years. It is available now on Steam, Oculus, the PlayStation Store and Windows Store.
A little more than a year ago Schell announced the game had surpassed just $1 million in gross revenue, so it actually saw $2 million in revenue generated in just the last year.