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Geek Culture / Omni: Move Naturally in Your Favorite Game

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Nickydude
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Posted: 7th Jun 2013 02:44
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Quote: "The Omni takes virtual reality to the next level— allowing anyone to stand up and traverse virtual worlds with the natural use of their own feet. The Omni is the first virtual reality interface for moving freely and naturally in your favorite game. Moving naturally in virtual reality creates an unprecedented sense of immersion that cannot be experienced sitting down."


http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1944625487/omni-move-naturally-in-your-favorite-game

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Insert Name Here
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Posted: 7th Jun 2013 04:22
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That guy running on the spot with the dramatic music behind is the most unintentionally hilarious thing I have ever seen.

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 7th Jun 2013 15:39
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My money just bounced off my monitor! The guy running on the spot reminded me of this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpeF067Hx2Y

You could actually be The Flash using that system.

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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 7th Jun 2013 22:33
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I think this is a cool idea if affordable. This would encourage me less to sit on my butt. It looks damn silly, but I'm not bothered by that.

However, the only drawback I see is that given my fitness level I'd be walking everywhere.

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Libervurto
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 01:39
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I don't like the idea of playing existing games with this, they were not designed for it. Imagine playing devil may cry, you'd either fail at everything or have so little control of the character it totally destroys the immersion. This needs its own specially designed games to function properly. I imagine an MMORPG would be amazing with this setup. I don't get why they market this type of thing as the "next level in gaming" (and always use "next level" as if they were the first person to ever make a pun), it wont change the way we play games, it would not even slightly improve most games, but what it does do is provide a new way to experience games and new possibilities for new genres. Sadly, unless this is under $300 I can't see how this could ever take off. It needs its own games and how is anyone going to make money selling software for something so expensive (you'll need an occulus rift too), I just don't believe the demand will be high enough to produce the kind of games that would realise the potential of the technology. Hopefully it will knock around and gradually become more popular and we will eventually get there.

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Quik
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 02:07
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Obese: why on earth would you play a 3rd person airfighting game - on a thing that allows you to walk... that would make no sense no - but for FPS games? or skyrim etc?
hell yes.



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Libervurto
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 02:17 Edited at: 8th Jun 2013 02:23
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@Quik - That's my point, this only enhances a very limited number of existing games, and even then I don't think you could get an authentic VR experience playing Skyrim without some heavy modding to incorporate things like head tracking and the slippery-plate-walking-sensor-a-majig. It needs special games, and I can't see any large studio risking it.

I mean, how much does this sort of thing effect the game being played? What if you play Skyrim and you're a fast runner, are you going to be able to run faster in the game than everyone else? How is that going to affect the AI? Will it have to scale the speed of enemies to match your speed? Are you actually going to have to physically train to become a decent fighter in Chivalry? Can the animation systems of current games handle the type of precise movements that you'd be able produce on this?

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 02:36
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It could easily sell as an exercise machine, and it improves on the Wii controller to add even more immersion. For those people with those conveyor running machines it is a good replacement. Run around Boston.. get blown up...

... bad joke.

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Quik
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 02:46
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Quote: "Are you actually going to have to physically train to become a decent fighter in Chivalry? Can the animation systems of current games handle the type of precise movements that you'd be able produce on this?
"


First point here - it would actually be reallly cool if that were a thing - on the second one though i can see that being a problem, provided that this is how it works - aka - the faster you run irl the faster u run in game


I do however, find that this will highend my FPS experience by a tenfold, i would love to play a sim or just a arcady shooter - with this, it wouild be crazy fun.



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thenerd
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 03:11
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Quote: "@Quik - That's my point, this only enhances a very limited number of existing games, and even then I don't think you could get an authentic VR experience playing Skyrim without some heavy modding to incorporate things like head tracking and the slippery-plate-walking-sensor-a-majig. It needs special games, and I can't see any large studio risking it.
"


I got the impression that this was exactly the crowd this system was catering towards. Obviously it'll never take off with the masses, it's just too complicated... it requires setup, special shoes, a lot of room, a learning curve. I think it will be very successful within the Pc gaming / modding community, that's where it will see the most use anyway.

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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 09:25 Edited at: 8th Jun 2013 09:26
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Obese I think there are existing games that would benefit from this, however, I agree, stuff like Devil May Cry would be pointless. I'm sure there will be games designed specifically for this. Given the set up it would seem the games would need to be first person.

I was actually thinking how useful this might be on a MMO, I'm sure some folks will think it's sad, you know, enabling voice chat and walking and talking to people in a virtual world, but I think it'd add that extra detail of immersion...and finally MMO users can lose the reputation of being fat nerds! Instead just have a reputation of being nerds.

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CoffeeGrunt
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 13:34
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Prepare to die a lot on CoD with this setup. You simply won't have the finesse that a simple flick of a thumb can have. Your legs move in much broader strokes...
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Dark Java Dude 64
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 13:55
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Perhaps a software feature that allows you to get more responsiveness out of lesser movements on the device would be neat. The thing has some little potential quirks but I think it's pretty sweet. Now, Minecraft would be interesting with this thing...
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Quik
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 13:56
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indeed - obviously, faster paced games will not be optimal for this - but imagine simulators? or any kind of slower paced FPS games.



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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 14:57 Edited at: 8th Jun 2013 14:57
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It's good that it will work for any game, because that means that it will work with DB Pro, or AGK.

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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 16:07
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Quote: "It's good that it will work for any game, because that means that it will work with DB Pro, or AGK."


This is most true. Also means just about anybody can develop games/tools for it.

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fallen one
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 16:30
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He didnt walk/run backwards, nor straff, so I presume you cannot do those, otherwise they would brag about it, so the thing is OK if you want to run forward all the time. Also you will need to be supported to avoid falling over, so chaffing might be an issue as well, also sound comes to mind, it uses friction, so it might be noisy, also as the shoe is part of it, you will have to keep buying new VR shoes from the company.


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Quik
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 16:34
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Quote: "This is most true. Also means just about anybody can develop games/tools for it."



Indeed! That is great news indeed!

@Fallen one: If you cannot move backwards.. more importantly strafe - then that might, imho - be a problem

but considering how the thing works, it would be odd not to be able to move atleast backwards



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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 17:12
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It's briefly mentioned, but there is strafing in there, but I saw no mention of walking backwards.

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 18:03
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I saw him strafe in the video.

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Dark Java Dude 64
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 22:27
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I don't see why you couldn't walk backwards? The grooves probably support the shoe sliding in either direction so the user can turn and still walk forwards, equivalent to walking backwards.
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fallen one
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Posted: 8th Jun 2013 23:41 Edited at: 8th Jun 2013 23:42
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If you walk uphill you can tilt forward to balance, to walk backward you have to lean into the gradient, ie bend over backwards, and thats the problem.
And I didnt 'see' no walking sideways.


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Libervurto
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Posted: 9th Jun 2013 00:54
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I don't see any issue with walking backwards on this, unless you do some weird shuffling action instead of raising your heel like a normal person.
The strafing was just swiping one foot to the side, not exactly a natural movement but I don't think it would take too long to get used to that.

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Phaelax
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 21:30
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What about laying down? As in the prone position for COD. The gun is gonna need several buttons on it to select my airstrike, switch weapons, plant clays, etc...

Also, I don't like the idea of needing special shoes. Why can't they make something that straps around existing shoes?

Also, there's a lot of people that aren't going to fit inside that existing model. Maybe they should make an extra large version.

I think it would still be fun to try it out, but I'd say they're a long way off from "natural" movement still. When I see the holodeck on kickstarter, then I'll pledge money.

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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 22:00
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People who don't fit are probably aren't fit enough. I'm small enough, yet wouldn't last 5 minutes.

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RedneckRambo
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 22:59
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Quote: "@Quik - That's my point, this only enhances a very limited number of existing games"

This seriously made me laugh lol. Yes a very "limited number of existing games" good one lol. There are literally thousands and thousands of games that would work perfectly fine with this. Sure there are certain genres of gaming that don't work for it, such as the game you already pointed out DMC, also games like Street Fighter. But just about any and every single RPG, FPS would work amazing with this. And those two genres alone aren't a "limited number of games." That's a huge number of games by itself and those aren't the only two that work with this.

I love this idea but I can't imagine it ever taking off. Not matter what they try and do, it will never be cost effective. It's an amazing idea and I would love it more than own face, which I love a lot... But I just don't see it taking off. If it does however, than that's awesome and I want it.

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Quik
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 23:05
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I'd love to play Stalker or metro 2033/last light with this :3



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TheComet
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 23:08
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Imagine playing Amnesia on that. I'd probably manage to tip that thing over and fall flat on my face, inadvertently lodging the Oculus rift down my throat and suffocating myself in the process.

How do you duck when using that thing?

Also, my legs are LONG. Can you step too far so you slip off the surface?

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mr Handy
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 23:11
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Xbox? Ps4? Who needs this garbage when we have this!!! Hey, where I can buy money reciver for my PC case?

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RedneckRambo
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 23:13
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Quote: "Imagine playing Amnesia on that"

This is EXACTLY what I was thinking. Dear God I think I'd piss myself! lol. Horror Survival games on this would be the scariest thing I could imagine. Games are already so immersive so horror games are 10000x scarier than movies for me, now imagining myself literally IN the game... OH man that'd be amazing.

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The Zoq2
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Posted: 10th Jun 2013 23:59
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I saw a thread about this on reddit today, the title was "dayz players will be the most fit gamers in the world".
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Quik
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 00:11
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HAHA considering how much you move in DayZ yes xD But - it might however make me actually want to play DayZ, as it might be fun with this.



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The Zoq2
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 00:24
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By the time you actually face some action, you would be to tired to walk propperly and die

But seriously, this is a great concept, and if I had some money to spare and the shipping to scandinavia didn't cost 200$ I would realy consider getting one of these. Im a bit sceptical to how you would walk diffirent directions than forward though.

Also, how do you turn
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Quik
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 00:26
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Quote: "and if I had some money to spare and the shipping to scandinavia didn't cost 200$"


OUCH



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Libervurto
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 00:56
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Quote: "But just about any and every single RPG, FPS would work amazing with this. And those two genres alone aren't a "limited number of games." That's a huge number of games by itself and those aren't the only two that work with this."

No they wouldn't, there are multiple reasons that have already been pointed out in this thread as to why most games, even FPS, would not function properly with this set up. The success of this system relies on games made specifically for it.

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Quik
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 01:08
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Aaaand nobody agrees with you Obese87, for reasons already pointed out in this thread



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Indicium
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 01:22
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For the record, I agree with you OBese.


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Quik
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 01:24
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Alright, ALMOST nobody



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Mobiius
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 02:21
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I don't agree with obese. All FPS games will work fine with it, and kinect support will allow for crouching.

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Phaelax
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 03:08
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Quote: "All FPS games will work fine with it, and kinect support will allow for crouching."

Ah yes. Combine it with kinect to pick up all the other movements then it'd be a decent system.

Actually, I'd like to play Thief with this. It's already such an atmospheric game, I think I'd terrify myself!

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Libervurto
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 05:34
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Quote: "Aaaand nobody agrees with you Obese87, for reasons already pointed out in this thread"

You really think it's as simple as plugging one of these into your controller port?
It's a completely different control method, it changes the game entirely. It would be like plugging in a mouse to play Super Mario.

How would you make a mouse compatible with Super Mario? You could make mouse movement correspond to directional movement, but then the player would have to keep moving off to one side, which is no good. So maybe you determine direction by mouse offset from the centre, which works fine but doesn't utilise 99% of the functionality of the mouse.

It's the same story here, games will need to be designed especially for this system for it to be an immersive experience and not just a big foot-operated control pad.

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Benjamin
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 06:33 Edited at: 11th Jun 2013 06:34
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I'm going to have to agree with the fat man; a game would have to be tailored to this kind of system otherwise you'd just be blindly translating complex input to up/down/x/b, which would be as unwieldy as a banana sword.

Quote: "It's a completely different control method, it changes the game entirely. It would be like plugging in a mouse to play Super Mario."


+1

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 15:01 Edited at: 11th Jun 2013 15:05
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Quote: "kinect support will allow for crouching."


Currently the Omni holds you upright so that you don't slip on the floor. You can't use Kinect with it. You would have to build a rotating platform for crouching, and that is unlikely to happen.

You would have to counterbalance a weight at your feet, and tip forward with the weight just right to lift you back up again.

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TheComet
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 16:02
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What if you step too far?


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Mobiius
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 17:48 Edited at: 11th Jun 2013 17:49
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Quote: "Our software translates your movements into key strokes that drive your avatar in the game. The Omni software is compatible with the Microsoft Kinect, and will support upcoming accelerometer / magnetometer solutions. The Omni software with Kinect for Windows today recognizes walking, running, jumping, crouching, strafing and multiple arm gestures."


I guess I'm the only person who actually read the kickstarter article...

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 18:55 Edited at: 11th Jun 2013 19:03
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It says crouching, but the guy was in a ring, so maybe they are exaggerating. I mean if you nod your head that could be translated into a crouch. Then they can say "We support crouching." But actually they support nodding.

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Blobby 101
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Posted: 11th Jun 2013 21:48
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No, the ring just stops you moving, it doesn't actually hold you at all, you're free to jump or crouch inside it. It even shows him jumping in it at one point.

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