ETC Launches First of Two Metaverse Experience Challenges
By Phil Lelyveld
October 11, 2021
University of Southern California students were invited to participate in the first of two scheduled Metaverse Experience Challenges, hosted by ETC@USC. Making use of current and emerging tools, students were tasked with developing original ideas for compelling metaverse experiences. Six teams of randomly-grouped students started work at 1:00 pm on Friday, October 1 and presented their ideas to judges from Epic Games, Universal Pictures and Disney Research at 3:00 pm on Saturday, October 2. Each member of the winning teams — Meetaverse and Virtual Vinyl — received a Nintendo Switch “Fortnite” Edition, courtesy of Epic Games.
The ETC@USC Metaverse Experience Challenge was organized by ETC’s Phil Lelyveld and Danny Bilson, chair of the Interactive Media and Games Division, USC School of Cinematic Arts. The goal was to see what interesting, engaging and repeatable physical and storytelling ideas this next generation of creators could imagine building in the near term using existing and rapidly emerging technologies and techniques.
Students were instructed to think broadly and consider mixed reality, “Fortnite,” NFTs, linear storytelling, game engine capabilities, social media and anything else that came to mind. The instructions stressed that there were no boundaries and that tangential thinking was encouraged.
Teams were given a template to follow. They were told to prepare a deck and a 3-minute presentation that addresses the concept and its key features, why it will engage the user, what differentiates it, what current technology and resources it leverages, and why people will love it.
Judges were looking for ideas or elements that were original, repeatable or repurposable, and would engage today’s users. The judges were Kim Libreri, CTO of Epic Games; Markus Gross, VP research for Disney Research, Zurich; and Greg Reed, VP of technology partnerships at Universal Pictures.
The following are brief summaries of the six ideas:
Health Balance — Mixed reality app that uses in-app incentives, physical activity and nutritional literacy info to aid and enhance your journey to becoming more healthy. It uses computer vision to identify foods and help you make healthy choices, sensors to track your movements and AR/VR for motivational gameplay.
Meetaverse (winner) — Combines real-time biometric sensing with virtual reality to improve the first date and matchmaking experience. Biosensors record the person’s response to words and phrases, and natural language processors record which phrases trigger a positive brain response.
Metaportal — Immersive universal hub to explore user-generated universes within made-for-VR web browsers. The user can work with others to create new user-generated worlds and wander freely, unconstrained by the limits of walled-gardened ecosystems. Three.js is an example of a cross-browser programming interface, resource library and community that could be used to build Metaportal.
Metaversify — Pioneers storyliving in the metaverse. You embody a digital avatar in a physical space. You can customize your avatar, level up, and unlock shareable experiences. Key features are the customized and collectable avatar, a decentralized attraction experience, and a reward system with purchasable physical and digital products and capabilities.
Virtual Vinyl (winner) — Centralized, interactive and immersive music experience, combining the collectibles and the infinite possibilities of mixed reality. Virtual Vinyl leverages 3D scanning, NFTs and other technology to support three pillars: Ultimate Centralization (video, music tracks, lyrics, background stories), Immersive Interaction (watch the band perform from all angles, use an app to adjust the mix), and Unique Collection (QR codes on collectable physical cards, access to unique NFTs issued by the artists).
WorldBreaker — Socially conscious open world VR survival video game where the choices you make can either accelerate or slow down the apocalyptic rate of climate change our planet is experiencing. It uses brain computing interface and VR technology to change the gameplay based on the player’s in-game experiences and emotional responses.
The presentation decks for these projects, along with a highlight reel, will be posted in the near future. And stay tuned for results of the second ETC@USC Metaverse Experience Challenge.
See the full story here: https://www.etcentric.org/etc-launches-first-of-two-metaverse-experience-challenges/
The Army’s futuristic goggles near completion
Imagine getting a 3-D layout of a target building piped into your goggles on a heads-up display before you and your teammates kick the door in and clear the rooms.
That future could become reality with the Army’s Integrated Visual Augmentation System, basically a “do-it-all” goggle for troops.
The IVAS’ early versions were developed using Microsoft’s HoloLens augmented reality headset.
But a newly ruggedized system has been used by soldiers all the way up to company-level live fires as recently as last year.
The IVAS is how the Army will move situational awareness and targeting — like what jet pilots have had for years — into the eyes of dismounted soldiers roaming the battlefield.
Plans call for IVAS to include rapid targeting acquisitions, thermal and night vision capabilities, navigation headings, mapping, markers, data sharing and more.
The current IVAS prototype weighs 2.5 pounds, the same weight as the newly fielded Enhanced Night Vision Goggle-Binocular.
It also has recording capabilities for instant after-action videos and it uses the existing tactical assault kit — a smartphone-based app — as its off-board computer.
See the full story here: https://www.defensenews.com/news/your-army/2021/10/11/the-armys-futuristic-goggles-near-completion/
China Box Office dominated by China Content
See the full story here: https://www.evolutionmediacapital.com/research/chart-week-100621?mkt_tok=ODUwLVRBQS01MTEAAAGADkbxJSSbKzhvhH2WQclLjau7ARzSOBsdmx_VesxtoQjXfOE0_dygn0gcGfApNyft8WPM9ioV7JAjvNYF9TQELAT1uYqOIL5_dzVpjwckPsGO
Nolan Bushnell, the Man Behind Atari and Chuck E. Cheese, Is Releasing an NFT
The Cost
The videos and AR are straightforward, at least from a consumer standpoint. Like many NFT “drops,” the pricing structure is less so— there are multiple versions of these videos and AR renditions that carry different price structures.
Two unique editions of the red Pong tabletop arcade game and yellow Computer Space arcade game videos, which also come with the AR component, will be auctioned to the highest bidder. But these digital one-offs come with IRL components, too. The red Pong NFT comes with a visit with Bushnell to the arcade/carnival Two Bit Circus in Los Angeles, and the yellow Computer Space NFT comes with an unopened, signed Atari 2600 console.
What it’s like to dance at a VR strip club
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"It's basically run almost exactly like a real-life strip club," Lena continued. "You do an audition on stage during normal club hours, and see how people react, and the head dancer was like, 'You got some good reviews!'"
To prepare for a night at TrippyWRLD ENT, Lena puts on her Oculus headset and body tracking kit, which animates her avatar's hands, arms, and torso. Then in VRChat, Lena selects the "world" that hosts the club. Once she's transported to the club's lobby, she and other dancers, club managers, and DJs attend a pre-show "briefing" to discuss music and make note of VIP guests — VRChat admins and the creators of the world occasionally attend shows and tip dancers with gift cards. When the club's doors "open" at 7 p.m., the team members mute themselves in-game and join a private Discord call, where they can make song requests or ask for breaks. ...
See the full story here: https://mashable.com/article/virtual-reality-strip-clubs-vrchat
THE FUTURE OF MOVIE THEATERS IS MORE THAN JUST MOVIES
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The comedian Howie Mandel has joined with MetaMedia, an entertainment company that specializes in streaming to cinemas, and Super 78 Studios, an animation-design studio, to create something called the “Magic Screen.”
The system enables performers like Mr. Mandel to see and interact with fans in theaters throughout the country simultaneously. His live performance is streamed onto magic screens in multiple locations, and from his position in a performance studio, Mr. Mandel can see, and speak with, audience members—and vice versa.
“‘Any theater that is dependent on the studios and does not try to find other sources, or create other products, is not going to be prepared for the future.’”— Alamo Drafthouse CEO Shelli Taylor
The magic screen also has an animation engine that enables an animated character like SpongeBob to appear live and interact with the audience. “It’s like Zoom on steroids,” says Jason Brenek, MetaMedia’s CEO. The product is still in pilot mode, and only a few magic screens have been installed so far, some of them at theaters managed by Cinemark HoldingsInc. ...
See the full story here: https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-future-of-movie-theaters-is-more-than-just-movies-11633708800
Holograms get real: Startup creates objects out of light and thin air
After countless disappointing versions of the technology, a startup called Light Field Lab has started production on a technology it calls SolidLight, which is designed to produce real-life holograms. ...
Essentially, they're causing waves of light to interact at a specific point, and that interaction is visible to your eye. By doing this a lot, they can create the illusion of an entire object "made" of light.
And when I say a lot, I mean a lot. Their 28-inch diagonal panel has 2.5 billionpixels. For comparison, a 4K TV has 8.2 million. They're envisioning holographic video walls made up of these smaller panels, with upward of 245 billion pixels. ...
SolidLight's pixels need to create specific colors in a specific place in front of the display so the image appears to pop out of the screen. ...
Some of you might be familiar with Yamaha's Intellibeam audio technology, which uses an array of tweeters to make it seem like sound is coming from anywhere in the room but the soundbar. This is essentially the same thing, just on a microscopic scale since waves of light are orders of magnitude smaller than the air molecules that make up soundwaves. ...
And because the tech is scalable, you could have a much larger display and much larger holograms. Imagine wall-sized holographic displays and how they could be game-changers for entertainment. ...
See the full story here: https://www.cnet.com/tech/holograms-get-real-startup-creates-objects-out-of-light-and-thin-air/
