The VR content creation software is the most advanced 3D animation creation tool that gives you a perfect avenue to create high quality VR content for virtual reality.
What is Virtual Reality (VR) Software?
VR is a completely 3D environment created from a combination of software and compatible hardware. This completely immerses the user into the 3D environment, giving them the ability to interact with the virtual world in a seemingly real way.
A few different steps are required to create an ideal VR user experience. The virtual world is created by software developers and then rendered in a way that users can interact with the objects created by developers. Headsets help provide users the illusion of being completely immersed in the 3D environment. These 3D objects tend to respond to changes in the user’s movement, and the interactions mimic those in the real world. Certain additional hardware components, such as gloves or other accessories around the room, can also simulate additional senses, such as touch.
Why Use Virtual Reality (VR) Software?
As VR has become more mainstream, businesses are realizing its value in the workplace. This technology can provide varying benefits to users in myriad fields.
Virtually test out a product — For businesses that sell a product, VR has the potential to be revolutionary, as this technology allows users to visualize what owning a product would be like. Consumers can take a product for a “virtual test drive” before they commit to a purchase.
Expand education — VR can take hands-on learning to the next level. Instead of observing a teacher perform a task, a student or trainee can visualize themselves performing it.
Go one step past 3D modeling — Some VR tools allow users to develop, sculpt, model, paint, and create tangible objects in a VR environment. Users can interact with 3D models from any angle with tools like these.
Who Uses Virtual Reality (VR) Software?
Virtual reality is increasingly proving its value in a number of different fields. The following are just a few examples.
Game developers — VR is becoming a massively popular medium within game development. Developers can use VR tools to create a completely immersive user experience for gamers. Those playing the game can fully interact with the created characters as if they are part of the universe. Users can typically access these games through headsets or mobile devices.
Architects and engineers — 3D design is becoming more common within architecture and engineering, as this type of design enables users to manipulate the objects they are designing from every angle. By designing in VR, users can be completely immersed in the environment as they create. These tools have expanded on the 3D capabilities offered by CAD software, allowing users to design, manipulate, and collaborate on projects in a virtual environment.
Kinds of Virtual Reality (VR) Software
Virtual reality is still a young technology, so the different subcategories of the technology are still emerging. The following are some subcategories that are prominent in the space.
VR visualization — This type of software allows users to experience aggregated data in a virtual environment. These tools enable users to see analytics in a way for them to fully understand what the data are communicating.
VR content management systems — Businesses can use these tools to collect, store, and analyze all VR content in a centralized location.
VR SDK — Virtual reality software development kits (SDK) provide the necessary base to design, build, and test VR experiences. VR SDKs act as the building blocks to create basically any VR experience.
VR game engine — This software provides developers with the essential for creating a VR video game experience.
VR social platforms — Users can collaborate in VR from remote locations using these tools.
VR training simulator — These tools can be used in almost any industry to train employees in a completely immersive environment.
Virtual Reality (VR) Software Features
VR software comes equipped with myriad features so users may create a fully fledged VR experience. The following features are commonly found in these types of solutions, but are not always guaranteed to be included.
Content management — Many tools allow users to upload either raw 3D content, which will later be edited into a VR experience, or existing VR content directly onto the platform. Users can manage and store content on these platforms and sometimes publish right from them.
Editing content — The vast majority of VR solutions have editing capabilities. Users can edit raw 3D content or existing VR experiences. Some editing features have drag-and-drop capabilities, which means that users can edit their VR content with little to no coding experience.
Hardware integration — Any VR solution must integrate with a piece of hardware that supports VR experiences. These devices are typically headsets, but can also include mobile phones.
Collaboration — VR tools allow multiple users to access the solution remotely at once so they can collaborate in real time. While collaborating, users should be able to interact on the same things simultaneously, along with watching games or events together.
Analytics — Some VR solutions will provide users with analytics capabilities. It will allow businesses to better understand the behavior of audiences accessing the VR content.
Trends Related to Virtual Reality (VR) Software
360-degree video — These are videos where a certain view is shown from every perspective, which deliver a completely immersive VR experience. Studies have shown that user engagement with 360-degree videos is quickly growing, proving that there will be an increased adoption of 360-degree videos on a larger scale.
Increased availability — Large names in VR, such as Oculus and HTC, have been publicly working to decrease the price of their headsets. As prices are made more affordable, we will likely see a larger mass adoption of VR tools.
More jobs in the VR field — VR is still growing as a technology, and the technology needs skilled developers to help bring VR to its full potential. As the software and integrating hardware becomes more in demand by the general public, there will be a greater need for more VR developers. Expect to see more posting in the VR space on job boards in the next few years.
Potential Issues with Virtual Reality (VR) Software
While we can expect VR software and headsets to become more affordable in the near future, pricing is currently this technology’s biggest hurdle. With VR software and devices still costing a great deal of money, consumers have had very limited interactions with VR. Because of that, they are unable to see use cases applicable to their careers and daily lives.
Software and Services Related to Virtual Reality (VR) Software
VR often goes hand in hand with augmented reality (AR). AR software takes a 3D-generated object and seamlessly stitches it into the real world. VR and AR have begun to converge in another type of technology referred to as mixed reality (MR), which lets users see virtual objects in real-world environments, while anchoring the objects to a point in real space.Popular Virtual Reality Software CategoriesVirtual Reality (VR) Collaboration PlatformsPopular VR Collaboration products used by Virtual Reality professionalsThe Wild(44)4.7 out of 5 starsFacebook Horizon(30)4.2 out of 5 starsYulio(15)4.8 out of 5 starshubs(11)4.4 out of 5 starsBreakroom(10)4.5 out of 5 starsCluster(6)4.6 out of 5 starsVR Content Management SystemsPopular VR Content Management Systems products used by Virtual Reality professionalsContentful(187)4.3 out of 5 starsKontent by Kentico(131)4.2 out of 5 starsContentstack(61)4.8 out of 5 starsFirefox Reality(7)3.6 out of 5 starsVirtours(3)4.3 out of 5 starsIdeaSpaceVR(2)4.5 out of 5 starsVirtual Reality (VR) Development SoftwarePopular VR Development products used by Virtual Reality professionalsVirtual Reality on Steam(45)4.3 out of 5 starsGoogle Scale(23)4.1 out of 5 starsCardboard(13)4.1 out of 5 starsForge(8)4.6 out of 5 stars360° media(6)3.6 out of 5 starsLeap Motion(3)3.5 out of 5 starsVirtual Reality (VR) Game EnginesPopular VR Game Engine products used by Virtual Reality professionalsUnity(265)4.5 out of 5 stars3ds Max Design(255)4.2 out of 5 starsMaya(160)4.3 out of 5 starsUnreal Engine(105)4.5 out of 5 starsNuke(34)4.5 out of 5 starsAutodesk Architecture, Engineering & Construction Collection(24)4.5 out of 5 stars
Top 6 VR Content Creation Tools for Education
One of the things we are passionate about at Lumination is supporting students to move away from being passive consumers of technology and instead becoming skilful creators and critical thinkers. With more and more VR apps and tools available every day, it can be overwhelming trying to find the perfect fit for your class or project. To help you out, let us introduce you to some of our favourite easy-to-use creation tools!
Our Recommendations
Vortals
Pricing: Paid, with free demo available on request.
Why we love it: Another great piece of software that can be installed to your computer and used offline for creating and viewing VR and AR environments and tours. Vortals offers loads of fantastic features for easily adding interactivity, videos, images and 3D models to your scenes, plus it includes a node-based system for creating and easily keeping track of the possible navigation paths through your creation.
What you need to know: There’s a bit of a learning curve, but it’s easy to pick up and run with and there is a detailed user manual available to help you out.
CoSpaces
Pricing: Free basic accounts, with the option to upgrade to paid Pro accounts.
Why we love it: Easy to get started, and so much cross-platform support and educational scaffolding! Create and play using a computer, tablet or mobile device. View it on a standard screen, or jump into augmented or virtual reality with our VR/AR Education Kits! Students can build virtual worlds without touching code, or they can use CoBlocks or Typescript to add interactivity and develop their skills. Looking for ways to use it across the curriculum? Visit the gallery for inspiration.
What you need to know: Basic accounts have some strict limitations, including a reduced set of blocks available for coding, fewer library models, and a limit of two individual CoSpaces and one assignment per account at a time.
Situ360
Pricing: Paid (education licences available), with free trial available.
Why we love it: Create professional quality immersive tours quickly and easily. Have students capture their own 360° photos and videos with our Creation Accessories Bundle, then use them to create immersive experiences! Add overlay videos, images, text and sound, and even embed quizzes to enhance the scene, create waypoints that lead viewers to the next scene in an exploratory way rather than being in a fixed sequence, and so much more!
What you need to know: There are no class management tools specifically, but students can invite you to view their projects privately or they can share their work with a publicly accessible link.
Pano2VR
Pricing: Paid (education licences available on request), with free trial available.
Why we love it: If you’re looking for an immersive VR tour creation option that can be installed on your computer and used offline, here it is! With loads of tools for adding points of interest, overlay images and videos, text and sound, you and your students will be able to create immersive experiences easily.
What you need to know: Initially Pano2VR can look a little complex, but there are great tutorials available and with a bit of guidance your students will quickly become experts.
Metaverse
Pricing: Free, with the option to purchase additional class management features.
Why we love it: Interactive, multi-stage AR/VR experiences are constructed by adding and connecting nodes, which is intuitive and allows students to quickly create interesting projects. If you want your students to flex their coding muscles, they can create their own Javascript based additions. Metaverse is geared more towards AR experiences, but it supports VR too.
What you need to know: Creation takes place in your computer’s browser, but a mobile device with the Metaverse app is needed for testing and viewing. Also, teachers should be aware that students need to sign up for their own accounts and there are limited class management features. The ‘Collections’ add on can be purchased to assist with this.
Unity
Pricing: Free for individual students, with the option to apply for a free education license.
Why we love it: A powerful, industry-standard tool that gives students the opportunity to express their creativity and build transferable skills. Unity projects can be deployed to multiple platforms, including web-based options, iOS and Android mobile devices, desktop computers and dedicated VR headsets. Not limited to VR applications, Unity can be used to create apps and games for many different purposes.
What you need to know: The learning curve can be significant, so best suited to more experienced students and those with an interest in delving into the nitty-gritty of VR and game development.
BONUS! 3D Modelling Tools
Help your students create truly custom VR experiences by introducing them to 3D modelling with some easy to use, entry level apps. Students can use their own models in the VR environments they create with CoSpaces and Metaverse, and could even 3D print them.
Tinkercad
Pricing: Free
Why we love it: Easy to access and intuitive to use, with minimal learning curve for new creators. Students can export their work in STL, OBJ, GLB (3D) and SVG (2D) formats making it suitable for many applications. Tinkercad is developed by Autodesk, who are well known for their array of powerful industry standard modelling, design and engineering tools including Autocad, Inventor, Maya, and 3DS Max.
What you need to know: Tinkercad can create precise models by using alignment tools and entering specific values for dimensions, but it does not offer the ability to add constraints like you would with more powerful CAD modelling software.
SketchUp for Web
Pricing: Free for G Suite and Microsoft Education users
Why we love it: Easy to access and use, SketchUp’s tools are similar to many industry standard CAD drawing packages, supporting students to develop skills that will transfer over to more sophisticated design tools and projects easily.
What you need to know: The free version only allows you to export in PNG (2D) or STL (3D) formats, and STL does not retain the materials and colours your students may have used in their design. Upgrades are available for other export formats.
Time to Start Your VR Creation Journey!
To get the most out of these apps, you’re going to need an easy way for your students to create their own 360° media and test out their VR creations. If you haven’t already, head over and check out our VR/AR Education Kits and Creation Accessories Bundle or get in touch with us for more information. We can’t wait to see what you and your students create together!
Conclusion
The best virtual reality content creation software is no longer the domain of wealthy enterprises and exclusive art museums. Thanks to companies like Realiteer, Google, HTC, Samsung and LG we now have affordable VR content creation software available to everyone.