Just a quick blog post on something I highly recommend if you ever want to convince someone that “budget” VR can be jaw dropping…
I’ve played around with Google Cardboard since the day it was announced, and during the past months various related apps have come and gone from my phone. Some have been nice concepts, others have been truly awful, but there’s one app I return to on a fairly regular basis – Vrse.
The app (available on Android and iOS) is relatively simple in it’s execution – it provides a selection of VR films which you choose from whilst slotting your phone into a suitable Google Cardboard device. But, as with a lot of successful technology, content is king, and this is where I rate Vrse highly.
A number of high quality partners have already deployed content via the Vrse app including The New York Times, and NBC – so make sure you settle down in a darkened room, and work your way through all the videos, but be prepared for a treat when you reach, “Evolution of Verse”. In some ways, I don’t really want to talk too much about the film so as to avoid spoilers, so I’ll just summarise it as a beautiful CGI-rendered, photo quality video with an unexpected ending. I found it to be really enthralling, especially with the volume up, and earphones in.
Evolution of Verse – You’ve got to take a look
Watching it on anything but a Cardboard device doesn’t do it justice, so I’d encourage you to splash out some of your hard-earned pennies on a viewer to understand what I’m going on about! If you really do have to take a look in a non-VR environment, it’s here – note that its still presented in 360 degrees, and so you can still “drag” the scene around with a mouse.
Finally, if you want a quick 5 minute intro of what Vrse is all about, take a look at this YouTube summary:
Enjoy the films and don’t bother with the popcorn – you can’t see your mouth anyway!
