Why Early Access?

“RealityBlender is trying to push the boundaries of what is possible with current hardware and software in VR. It is only natural that in building something new in an emergent area such as VR that new and improved techniques and technology will emerge, however as it is already possible to offer a form of real time mixed reality it is time to release what we have as a foundation to improve upon in the future.”

Approximately how long will this software be in Early Access?

“As this product is closely tied to future VR developments it is impossible to estimate the Early Access phase. As a first take for testing currently available headsets, games, and camera combinations and building support for them it will be roughly 12 months.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“The full version will support more camera models and offer more adjustments for the input image and effects. It will also feature more optimizations for reducing image effect latency and quality improvements. Alternate methods of displaying the video feed will be investigated and included if successfully developed.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The current version of RealityBlender is using OpenVR to render a video feed to a 2D VR overlay with optional real time Chroma key effect applied. Most latency is a result of USB webcam hardware combined with the in room lighting. Camera hardware support is currently reliant on Unity.”

Will this software be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“The current price is based off the small target audience and the need to generate funds to purchase further software and hardware for compatibility improvements. After Early Access the price will depend on the market size and feature set.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“There are a large number of VR Headsets, cameras and VR apps/games available in the market and as a one man dev team it would be impossible in terms of time and financial cost for me to test all available combinations so therefore the feedback from the community on how various hardware and software is working in conjunction with RealityBlender will be invaluable to improving compatibility.
The community will be engaged via the Steam discussion forums and Guides will be created explaining setup steps for getting specific games working well with RealityBlender.”