Crowd-funding can be a useful avenue for start-up businesses to take when they need to raise capital for a product. Oculus Rift ran a Kickstarter campaign back in 2012, and countless videogame developers have used this method, some more successful than others. Currently seeking $75,000 USD on IndieGoGo is VicoVR, which is building a full body-tracking system for virtual reality (VR).
Premium head-mounted displays (HMDs) like Oculus Rift or HTC Vive use cameras or sensors to detect where a user is – and in the case of the Vive – comes with positional-tracked controllers for further immersive interaction. But mobile HMDs like Samsung Gear VR or Google Cardboard don’t have this ability to engage the user further, with controls restricted to head movements or Bluetooth gamepads.
Which is where VicoVR comes in. Similar in principle to Microsoft’s Kinect, the VicoVR is a sensor bar that can detect full body movement, making you the controller. Able to detect up to 19 body points, VicoVR connects wirelessly to any Android or iOS device being used with a HMD. All the processing involved in controlling the videogame is then handled by the sensor bar.
Alongside being able to play titles from Gear VR or Google Cardboard libraries, 3DiVi, the creator of VicoVR has also built a selection of videogames to showcase the controller. These include Archery Range 3D, Voice of Steel VR, Moon Bird VR, Ping Pong VR and Zombies Hunt VR.
Currently the IndieGoGo campaign has raised $32,887 , with a month left to go. Reward tiers start at $30 which includes a VicoVR branded headset, but not the sensor bar. To get the sensor bar you’ll need to head to the $174 tier and above.
At CES 2016 in Las Vegas during January, VRFocus got some hands-on time with the VicoVR kit which showed a lot of promise. As the funding campaign continues VRFocus will bring you the latest.
