Udacity Nanodegree Program “VR High Immersion Developer”

Virtual Reality (VR) is a powerful interaction mechanism that make us simulate the real places. This article presents the experiences during the course over three months in Udacity Nanodegree Program “VR High Immersion Developer”. The course focuses on build portfolio of projects which showcase the new VR skills learned. I divide the article into four parts based on the evaluated projects. The course takes through the design fundamentals of VR with a Google Cardboard app in the first project Puzzler. The second project Rube Goldberg Game dives into High Immersion VR development. The third one is Performance Bounceback and finally VR High Immersion Developer Capstone project.

Let’s take an overview of each project!

Puzzler

A simple puzzle game where user click on start button move into the room solves a Simon’s Says type puzzle.

The project applied the design fundamentals techniques such as ergonomics, persona and rapid-prototyping to create a mobile VR application. It provides the main concepts of design to make the design of VR is comfortable for users without making them sick!

Video of Puzzler (briefly result!)

Rube Goldberg Game

The game challenges players to create contraptions that solve physics puzzles.

The project applied a lot of things which have been taken in this course to develop desktop VR headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.

Video of Rube Goldberg Game (four levels with different challenges this is a briefly result!)

Performance Bounceback

Performance skills.

One of the most important skill-sets for a VR developer is performance optimization. Here, we have simulates a real-world scenario where VR game focus on functionality rather than performance. The idea is to optimize the VR apps to ensure they run at top speed to further prevent sim sickness from overcoming of users (apply performance skills). Some of learned keys: Using static and dynamic batching, optimizing physics, caching variables and optimizing code, setting up lighting with MSAA, baking lighting, using light probes and using the profiler for performance optimization.

VR High Immersion Developer Capstone

This last project is about combining all various ideas and skills we’ve been practicing throughout the course. It is under theme “Emotion” which create an experience that makes player feel an emotion, whether that be happy, excited …etc. The theme I have chosen is “nerves/tense” called “Give me Life” which is an interactive simulation of the nurse work. (The project should start with planning all the tasks that I want to complete in a Pre-Production document).
Video of Capstone Project (briefly result!)

Conclusion

The course contains many of ways that could improve your VR development skills. The nicer things, it depends on self-learning and how you can keep learning. The main new concepts that got from the course are:
- VR Design.
- High Immersion VR.
- Performance and Publishing.
Finally, many thanks to Misk Foundation and Udacity for providing this course, wish to continue improvement!