Sierra Nevada OriginS: Virtual Reality tour
Here's a step-by-step look at how we created the VR tour.
1. The Big Picture
The Sierra Nevada Origins virtual reality project allows users to experience Sierra Nevada's first brew day and the birth of the craft beer revolution. After all, Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale is the beer that helped launch this revolution.
2. Completing the Puzzle
The Chico State METX VR team was tasked with creating a VR tour of Sierra Nevada's first brewery as it existed on Gilman Way in Chico in 1980.
The VR team, which consists of seven Computer Animation & Game Development students, conducted extensive research in order to accurately recreate the brewery.
They achieved this by obtaining the blueprints of the brewery from the city and matching those with historical photos provided by the client. In addition to this, the team met with the client and made adjustments to their model based on their feedback.
3. Adding the Storytelling Element
Once the simulation was completed the VR team added facts about the brewery into the tour. Each fact was hand picked and written by the Journalism & PR team based on Ken Grossman's book, Beyond the Pale.
4. Setting Goals, Meeting Demands
Early on in the development, the team designed the VR tour with the assumption that not all users would be using high-quality computers to run the simulation. The team wanted to be as inclusive as possible while delivering high-quality work.
A challenge the team faced was keeping 3D models simple while also adding enough detail to make the environment look realistic. Adding too much detail can make the application take longer to render, ultimately slowing the VR experience and disturbing the immersion of the user.
Keeping all of this in mind, the team eliminated any barriers while creating an immersive experience. The talented team found the sweet spot between density and detail. Making the tour as realistic as possible without any delays.
The VR tour can be enjoyed by anyone in the world, regardless of the computer that is used to run the simulation.
5. Applications Used
6. The VR Experience
This video shows what the VR scenes look like when you're inside the VR experience.