The Immersive Wire - 17 October 2021 (Sunday edition)

By Tom FfiskeCurated VR/AR analysis every Wednesday and Sunday

// 17 October 2021

The Song of Achilles was so good, I am now reading Circe. Definitely binging on Greek mythology at the moment.

Out now on the Oculus Quest and Quest 2.

MAIN STORYI had a go at the VIVE Flow, and I was impressed

A lot of people will be confused by how to categorise it, but it’s important to say that comparing it to Facebook’s headset would lead to more confusion than factual transparency. If anything, it sits within its own world where it offers a range of comfortable experiences, with slightly less power and designed for comfort. It is not a gaming rig, or one which can run sophisticated experiences. It’s a wellness device, first and foremost.That may disappoint some people, who may have wanted HTC to run back into the consumer arena with a standalone VR contender. But the direction is a little different, and perhaps tactical. Instead of facing Facebook head-on, the company is instead stepping into the wellness space where it fits into a peaceful lifestyle. If so, its success would be dependent on not just its specs, but also the developer ecosystem which will pick it up come its November launch.The most impressive hardware feature is its weight. At 189g, it weighs more like a chunky chocolate bar than a tech device sitting comfortably on the head. The lightweight element is important for extended sessions, and the glasses fit well. The lenses had dials that can configure their focus, which is a seamless way to make the vision clearer. The ability to pop on a pair of glasses and see 6DoF VR experiences instantly is significant for ease of entry; no guardian system to set up, or complicated menus to navigate.It is also dependent on how tolerant people will be of the price; at £499 / $499, it is a more expensive headset with fewer capabilities compared to the Oculus Quest. While it is meant to be defined separately, it’s still an unfavourable comparison.If you want a more wide-ranging device that can run many more experiences, with more sophisticated controls and at a cheaper price, the Oculus Quest 2 is a sound decision. But for the smaller group that wants a truly lightweight and meditative device to relax with, and does not intend to dip into more complex experiences, the VIVE Flow’s ergonomics are fit for purpose.Check out the fill piece on the Immersive Wire website.

The hit PC VR and LBE Party Game is free (of tethers)!Featuring competitive multiplayer and single-player challenges to hone your silliest skills, Loco Dojo Unleashed will have you whacking bats, stacking moles, flinging cats and punching cactuses, all under the watchful eye of the Grand Sensei. Have you got what it takes to take home the gold?

Available NOW for Oculus Quest & Quest 2!

Guido Helmerhorst, Co-Founder & CGO of Warp VR

What is your background? 10 years at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, where I held several managerial and innovation positions. It was also the context where I saw the challenge of situational/on-the-job training for large groups of people in an operational environment. Turns out virtually every company in every industry has this challenge: training their employees anytime, anywhere, and in any situation. This insight combined with early experimentation with VR (360video) and gamification led to the founding of Warp VR.What are you working on, and what’s a key learning that you’ve had from it?Democratizing the VR and training domain: we have developed a SaaS platform called Warp Studio where we enable organizations big and small to easily create, share and analyze immersive scenario-based VR training experiences themselves or with experts’ help. One of the key learnings is that organisations need a path to ease into the adoption of VR as a training method. It takes time, the willingness to experiment, and support to get VR to a “business as usual” state. This means for example that it is not as much about VR, but much more about immersive learning which also translates into the power of stories and flexibility of devices one can use (mobile phones, tablets, and VR headsets). People need stepping stones.If you had to give one piece of advice, what would you give?Aim big, start small, and have the guts to experiment. Don’t wait, it is an experience product, most people have very limited imagination. Show and tell; prototype, create, do, test and repeat.

If you would like to learn more about the company, check them out here.

Jobs boardINTERNSHIP, US. The intern will be primarily focused on developing proficiency in the use and application of tools designed for experiences in VR/AR headsets. GRIP-IE interns will assist the Get Real management team and clients in the design, development, and implementation of features within both internal and partner platforms. Interns will follow industry best practices including continuous improvement through code reviews of existing and new code. GRIP-IE interns will also be responsible for managing communication with software vendors on a variety of topics including bug identification, feature requests, troubleshooting, and documentation materials. Click here for more. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, UK. Here at CIRCUS (an award-winning creative agency, specialists of Virtual Brand Experiences) we're on the lookout for an enthusiastic B2B Business Development Manager on a part-time, remote basis. If this sounds of interest and you love all things virtual, we'd love to tell you more. Click here for more. SENIOR WEBXR ENGINEER, US. Build a human-centric metaverse with a stellar team at www.urnowhere.com. Full-Time Position, Fully Remote Team, Core hours (10AM-5PM EST). NOWHERE aims to revolutionize gathering with patent-pending video presence technology that allows serendipitous social mingling between conversations with friends or colleagues at conferences, meetings, or parties all within dynamic web environments. Nowhere combines expertise from veteran founders, experience experts, engineers, game designers, theatre-makers, VFX artists from Windmill Factory to build a healthier digital future. Please share with anyone you think might be interested. JOIN NOWHERE.VR SOFTWARE DEVELOPER (Unity3D, C#), London. Valkyrie Industries, an early stage haptics start-up, is looking for a talented and experienced Unity3D developer with a passion for VR to join the R&D team. You'll be involved throughout the development cycle and must be able to evaluate new technologies, develop new experiences from scratch and optimise existing projects. Click here for more. FULL STACK DEVELOPER, remote position. Looking for a competent Software Engineer with 4+ years of industry experience to join our dedicated Web development team. This talented individual must have a vision and drive and must not be afraid to back big ideas. Click here for more. SENIOR SOFTWARE ENGINEER (Node.js), remote position. Looking for a competent Senior Software Engineer with 5+ years of industry experience to join our dedicated Web development team. This talented individual must have a vision and drive and must not be afraid to back big ideas. Click here for more. SENIOR DEVELOPER (VUE.JS), remote Position. Looking for an experienced JavaScript developer who is highly skilled with Vue.js. You will be joining our Web development team to develop and enhance customer facing Web Applications, where you will be responsible for following best practices to produce modular and maintainable code. Click here for more. QA LEAD, remote positions available. Looking for a competent QA Lead with 2+ years of industry experience to join our dedicated QA Team in Waterford. This talented individual must have a vision and drive and must not be afraid to back big ideas. Click here for more. SENIOR UNITY GAME DEVELOPER, remote position. Looking for a competent Senior Unity Developer to join our team with 5+ years industry experience. The talented individual must have vision and drive and must not be afraid to back big ideas. Click here for more.  SENIOR PRODUCT OWNER, remote position. Looking for a competent Product Owner. This talented individual must have a vision and drive and must not be afraid to back big ideas. Click here for more. UI DESIGNER, remote position. Looking for a competent UI Designer. This talented individual must have a vision and drive and must not be afraid to back big ideas. Click here for more. UX DESIGNER, remote position. Are you looking for a unique challenge working in virtual & augmented reality with a bleeding-edge technology company? Then read on. Click here for more.ASSISTANT PROFESSOR IN DIGITAL MEDIA, UK. We are looking to appoint a dynamic and adaptable course director for our BA (Hons) in Digital Media to lead and deliver teaching, learning and assessment on the BA Digital Media and steer its next phase of growth. As well as a track record of academic leadership you will have extensive practical experience in digital media such as immersive storytelling (AR/VR/XR), modelling and animation, creative media design / production, or web / mobile app design and development. Click here for more.SENIOR IMMERSIVE LEARNING DESIGNER, UK. Make Real is looking to expand our digital learning team with a Senior Immersive Learning Designer. Your role will be to consult with clients in order to create exciting and imaginative design solutions. Your designs will affect behaviour change in order to deliver on specific learning outcomes, while being achievable within a set budget and timeline. Click here for more. SENIOR UNITY DEVELOPER, UK. As a growing and exciting business, we are looking for full-time talented multi-disciplinary Unity developers to join our expert team in central Brighton. Our ideal candidates will have a broad range of technical experience with a proven track record of delivering interactive Virtual & Augmented Reality projects across a range of HMD & mobile hardware. Working as part of our existing team of designers and artists, the roles will primarily involve the delivery of VR/AR projects for our global clients. Click here for more. Display your vacancy in front of thousands of talented VR/AR professionals in just a few clicks. Click here for more info.

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That's all for this week! Want to have a chat, let me know about a news story, or talk business? Either reply to this email, or contact tom (at) immersivewire (dot) com. Have an excellent day!