This demo was designed to showcase two main features of Resight Engine: a real-time multiplayer game and persistence AR, which allows the content to remain anchored to the physical environment even when switching between sessions or devices.
Our goal was to create a demo that was suitable for casual gaming and provided a "feel good" experience for the user. We wanted to showcase this demo at the AWE conference in Santa Clara, so I focused on finding a creative way to incorporate Resight Engine.
Inspired by David Lee's elastic man, I wanted to create a similar experience in AR. However, I struggled with how to bring the dynamic nature of the web into AR in a proper way. That's where Resight Engine came in and helped everything fall into place.
In addition to the technical challenges we faced while working on the demo, there were also several UX challenges to consider. These included questions such as:
* How much pressure should be applied when pressing an object?
* How many vertices should be affected when touching an object?
* What happens when two people touch the same vertices at the same time?
* How does the experience change with more than two people sculpting at once?
* How can we incorporate an undo function in a multiplayer environment?
* What is the appropriate height for the objects in the physical environment?
* How can we reset the space and delete virtual objects?
* What types of objects would be the most enjoyable for users to interact with, and how complex can we make them?
* Is it possible to create sculptable objects with reflective materials?
We attempted to address some of these questions in practice and others we addressed theoretically.
The rest of the development process involved iterative testing with specific focus on each 3D model. This included modeling in Blender, importing to Unity, and testing the sculpting in AR before repeating the process as needed. Despite a few sleepless nights, the application finally performed satisfactorily and was a great representation of our team at various conferences and presentations. It was quite an experience!
