Exploring the world of Knightmare with Oculus Rift

[HobGoblin]

Wow, these are fantastic! Thanks for posting.

Although this doesn’t necessarily have to ‘lead to’ anything (it’s a joyous piece of fandom in its own right) it does get me very excited about VR and the possible future of Knightmare.

The buzz coming out of E3 seems to say that VR which actually works (as opposed to the awful 90s version) has arrived on the high-street and is going to revolutionise gaming and story-telling. As KM straddles both these strands surely there’s some kind of future application?

As far as gaming is concerned, being able to be a dungeoneer in a fully immersive 3d world would be the ultimate gaming experience for a KM fan? This moves the brand away from TV but I for one would still be very interested in such an idea. The recent announcement that the Crystal Maze is coming back as a live experience suggests that retro shows might have a future that’s more ‘doing’ than ‘viewing’ and a well-written Knightmare VR (!) with great puzzles, stories and characters could be a great success.

That’s not to say consumption of KM has to be so active though. The sort of 360 degree film-making that Google have been exploring – whereby action happens all around and the viewer chooses where/when to look – could also be used by the Watchers as a quest is in progress. No two viewers would have the exact same experience and quests could be viewed repeatedly from different angles (this is far more interesting than the viewer simply following the dungeoneer’s POV exactly as this actually removes the drama of seeing them in relation to hazards – which is what creates tension in the KM viewing experience).

I think that considering this technology as a ‘sight’ potion equivalent misses the point slightly. Aside from the fact this breaks a core gameplay mechanic, this headset isn’t for the dungeoneer – it’s for the player/viewer!

If I had time I’d think about all this in a bit more depth – it’s exciting!

[Fidjit]

Indeed Hobgoblin the way I like to see it is the more inspiration there is the more that something new can be possible. Knightmare was a huge hit back then we all know that, and to see it on an HMV/GAME shelf would be absolutely radical and (IMHO) a killer of a sell.

Yes I know the likelihood is rather slim to none, but it does give me some kind of enlightenment that we can kickstart something special even if it is a one off

[jamesuk]

There's an article over at VRFocus which discusses the theoretical mechanics of a Knightmare VR game as well as a bit of history of Knightmare and briefly touches on the VR element of the Knightmare VR pilot.

http://vrfocus.com/archives/12922/make- ... nightmare/

[Fidjit]

Thankyou my good man I'll have a good look at that during a quiet moment

Oh and Mystara, I took a look at the pilot and that's some pretty cool material you've done there

[Mystara]

Thanks

Though we're now well beyond the pilot. We actually ended up moving to a new engine after the pilot, which is might higher quality. We've got (at last count) about 55 different dungeon rooms/puzzles all designed and modelled. I'm now just scripting them and am coming up to about half way on that.

Then it just needs testing and it's done!

[jamesuk]

Was supposed to have this posted back on the 18th June but my GTX 480 literally died on me just as I was about to upload it to Youtube. Anyone familiar with the winning quest of Series 6 will recognise this








Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C9zo7ICBHM

HD Images
http://i.imgur.com/TVmfIVd.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/47UsgOO.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/D9djlJW.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/dxjTUzf.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/iNlsrBT.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/UGVlsRI.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/S1MFtQC.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/zKFlfwC.jpg

[Fidjit]

That it wicked my good man maybe you should hook up with Mystara and discuss some plans on working with each other I think you'd both be beneficial to each other. Just a thought, heh

[jamesuk]

Been a while since I touched this so I thought I'd cook something up during the Bank Holiday break. The Elements Causeway from Series 5.








More screenshots + fullres versions here:
http://imgur.com/a/mnfs7

Video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_YAJRqmraA

The irregular aspect ratios of the images/video are down to the new implementation that the rift outputs when it's mirrored to the main screen. It looks perfectly fine in the Rift itself.

Unlike the great causeway which was one animation, I split this one into several animations which allowed for easier control of the room. This one will respond appropriately to the player walking on the incorrect hexagons

[jamesuk]

Another thing I've been working on today. A basic recreation of Castle Ghastly from Broadswords Virtually Impossible. Very much WIP right now. Not sure how far it's going to get due to a lack of reference material to work with.





High res images:
http://imgur.com/a/6bcLm

Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Nbs8p3ntE4

[jamesuk]

Now have the Play Your Cards Right puzzle from Series 7-8 in place. I have a basic implementation of the puzzle in place now so you press a button on the control pad to touch the appropriate card to make the next platform come out. I can't implement Leap Motion support into it right now as the particular implementation of the Rift I'm using right now doesn't support Leap Motions "Image Hands" at the moment. Really hoping to actually have reach out and touch the cards in the future.

I can't figure out how to assign multiple animations to script functions right now so touching the wrong card removes the block beneathe you at the moment and I can't get animation of the blocks to move in as you progress through the puzzle. Not following suite will send you tumbling into the darkness below along with a complimentary "oooh nasty".






Full resolution images:
http://imgur.com/a/Xf8GD

Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKoSQGugDP4

[pjmlfc05]

Great stuff once again! The play your cards right room is very daunting from the perspective you get. It looks a long way down!

Loved the bit incorporating Simon's team. When the wrong card was touched, the view from when falling down was immense!

Keep up the great work James.

[Canadanne]

These are all so brilliant!

[jamesuk]

And now we have the coridoors of what I think is Castle Linghorn from Series 8. The sense of scale when you're wearing the rift is amazing:




High resolution images:
http://imgur.com/a/zWqYK

The images/colours are brighter to compensate for the darkness of the screen in the rift. The brightness in the video is closer to how it looks in the rift.

Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4lq2ujuBW8

The lighting could probably do with a bit of fine tuning. Difficult to do with Rift development right now as dark areas are very prone to smearing on the Rift.

[jamesuk]

Just realised that the video I uploaded was an old version where there was a lighting irregularity at the crossroads (The support pillars are overly bright). I'll upload a replacement video tomorrow.

[wombstar]

wow, you're a real wizard with this stuff.