Case Studies

VX Carnival

Case Studies

Introduction

The goal of this project is to showcase the capabilities of virtual reality (VR) by creating an engaging, interactive carnival experience. The virtual environment features four distinct game booths —Darts, Tin Can Ball Toss, Flip the Bottle and Shoot the Balloons—that encourage users to explore VR’s immersive potential. Through this project, we aim to demonstrate VR’s strengths in creating a sense of presence, enabling natural object interaction, and simulating realistic physics in a playful setting.

VX Environment Overview

The virtual carnival transports users to a lively, vibrant space filled with sounds, colors, and decorations typical of a real-world carnival. The environment layout is intuitive, with booths arranged around an open area that invites exploration. Users can walk around to explore, hear ambient sounds like cheerful music and environmental melodies and interact with objects in each booth. Each booth offers a different gameplay experience:

  • Darts: A booth where users can throw darts at a traditional dartboard.
  • Tin Can Ball Toss: A classic carnival game where users aim to knock over a pyramid of tin cans.
  • Flip the Bottle: Traditional bottle flip setup where users flip a bottle, showcasing realistic gravity and object interaction.
  • Shoot the Balloons:   Another classic carnival game where users use a gun to shoot and pop the balloons.

Technical Stack and Development

This project utilizes a stack of cutting-edge VR tools and technologies:

Unity:

The main development platform, chosen for its robust physics engine, VR compatibility, and flexibility for creating interactive environments.

Meta XR All-in-One SDK:

This SDK provides compatibility with Meta Quest 3, allowing for optimal performance and access to device-specific features.

Unity XR and XR Interaction Toolkit:

These tools enable VR interactions such as grabbing, holding, and throwing objects, adding realism to the carnival games.

Hardware Platform:

The environment is optimized for Meta Quest 3, which offers a high-resolution display, comfortable headset design, and a standalone experience, making it accessible and user-friendly.

Throughout the development, we faced several technical challenges. For example, fine-tuning the physics of each game required precise calibration to ensure realistic movement, and optimizing the environment for Meta Quest 3’s hardware constraints involved balancing performance with visual fidelity.

Gameplay Mechanics

Each game booth is designed to showcase different aspects of VR interaction and physics:

Darts:

A booth where users can throw darts at a traditional dartboard.

Tin Can Ball Toss:

A classic carnival game where users aim to knock over a pyramid of tin cans.

Flip the Bottle:

Traditional bottle flip setup where users flip a bottle, showcasing realistic gravity and object interaction.

Shoot the Balloons:

Another classic carnival game where users use a gun to shoot and pop the balloons.

Across all games, the XR Interaction Toolkit enables natural, intuitive interactions, and Unity’s physics engine ensures that objects behave realistically, enhancing the immersive experience.

Exploring VR Capabilities

  • Immersive Environment: The carnival setting fully engages the user’s senses. Detailed visuals and ambient sounds make players feel like they are truly at a carnival, showcasing VR’s ability to transport users to other places.
  • Object Manipulation and Physics: Each game emphasizes realistic physics. Whether it’s the darts sticking to the board, cans tumbling over, or the bottle flipping, these mechanics underscore VR’s capacity for accurate, real-time simulation.
  • User Feedback: Immediate feedback is essential for immersion. In this environment, visual cues (such as the cans flying when hit), auditory cues (like cheers or the sound of a successful flip), and haptic feedback from the controllers (in applications supporting it) combine to enhance the realism of the VR experience.

Testing and Deployment

  • Testing on Meta Quest 3: The environment was tested extensively on Meta Quest 3, chosen for its portability, high-quality display, and compatibility with the Meta XR SDK. Performance was a key consideration, and optimizations were made to ensure smooth, uninterrupted gameplay.
  • User Feedback and Iterations: User testing helped refine the experience, revealing insights into the physics interactions and highlighting areas for improvement. For instance, adjustments were made to the bottle’s flipping mechanics to achieve a more intuitive and responsive feel.
  • Optimization for VR: To maintain a balance between performance and visual quality, we optimized lighting, textures, and object models. Techniques such as occlusion culling and level-of-detail (LOD) adjustments, using low-poly objects and texture baking helped ensure the environment remained responsive on the Meta Quest 3 without sacrificing visual fidelity.

Conclusion and Future Directions

This project demonstrates VX’s ability to create immersive, interactive experiences within a carnival setting, showcasing spatial immersion, object interaction, and physics simulation. Future improvements could include adding more games, multiplayer options, advanced haptics, and hand tracking. The project highlights VX’s potential for emotionally engaging experiences, making it a valuable case study for VR applications in education, training, and entertainment.

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