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February 21, 2016 at 11:02 am #17923
It sort of like “welcome to the Matrix” right? 🙂
I’m envisioning a larger more in-depth course on how to create immersive virtual reality experiences. But to start with, this course, will provide a solid intro and also act as a potential hub for future courses.
The ABSOLUTE BEGINNER’S GUIDE to Gear VR Development with Unity (working title)
I. Course Description
– This course is a QUICKSTART GUIDE to creating Gear VR experiences in Unity. Some experience in Unity is useful but not necessary. No programming experience is required.
– The course consists of a Virtual Reality medieval castle project with multiple environments. Each part of this medieval realm showcases a key element for creating an immersive VR experience. When you are done the course, not only will you have learned how to create an interactive VR experience, you will have a finished project your friends can try for themselves!II. What will I learn?
– You will learn the step-by-step process for creating a VR experience in Unity and deploying it to the Gear VR
– You will learn the fundamentals of creating an immersive VR experience
– You will explore different types of interactivity in VR
– You will learn how to create a positive, comfortable VR experience for your users
– You will learn how to avoid the pitfalls of poor performance
– You will learn how to publish your VR experiences online for others to try or purchaseIII. Why learn this now?
– We are on the cusp of a Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality revolution! VR is about to explode into every aspect of our lives including games, film, social interaction, education, medicine, and more.
– This course gives you a head start on VR development that puts you ahead of the coming wave whether you want to be employed in the VR industry, or you want to create your own apps.III. Who are you to teach us?
– Jeff has over 20 years experience working for world class game developers like Electronic Arts. He has shipped dozens of AAA titles for both console and mobile. Jeff brings his extensive game development knowledge to VR creation for the Gear VR. He will not only teach you the basics of VR development, but gives you valuable approaches used in today’s game industry.
IV. What will I get from this course?
– Over 20 lectures and 1.5 hours of personal instruction
– An overview of the current and soon-to-be released VR hardware
– An overview of the coming opportunities in Virtual Reality
– An understanding of core VR concepts
– The ability to create a Gear VR experience from scratch
– How to avoid pitfalls in VR development
– How to put your VR experience online for others to try or purchase
– Your own Virtual Reality game that you can show off to your friends
– A Virtual Reality game that can be used as a hub for further VR experiencesIV. Who is the target audience?
– Anyone who is enthusiastic and eager to learn about Virtual Reality development
– Aspiring or professional game developers
– Those with some or no experience in Unity
– Those with little or no programming experienceAny feedback is welcome very much appreciated!
February 21, 2016 at 8:40 pm #17974You sound so clear! I love how you said, “you will have a finished project your friends can try for themselves. ” That sounded so fun and inviting.
Looks awesome!
February 21, 2016 at 11:35 pm #18002This sounds really exciting and fun. Sounds like you really know what you are doing and have the experience to back it up.
You have a lot to offer and people will learn a lot from your course. You have your content and target market pinned down pretty precisely. Excited to see how this turns out.February 22, 2016 at 1:30 am #18016Thanks for your feedback. I really want to offer something that sounds exciting and fun, but also really practical. The outline came from looking at comparable courses on Udemy. The questions seem to be their standard template for course offerings. Next I’ll work on the curriculum outline.
February 22, 2016 at 4:33 pm #18127This is looking soooo good @jeff_kuipers. really clear and it sounds so exciting!!
My initial thoughts and questions (take them or don’t) 🙂
1) the title needs some reworking:
The ABSOLUTE BEGINNER’S GUIDE to Gear VR Development with Unity
a) What is “Gear VR Development?”
b) What is “Unity?”
are they software or VR terms?I think you really need to grab people with a short title 1-3 words max and then real them in with a tight tagline that fills them in on the transformation they’re going to go through by signing up for your course. (my opinion)
Everything else is super dialled in my friend. I”m sure the higher you climb through this Checkpoint, the more clarity that will come through.
So stoked to see what you’ve got so far.
February 23, 2016 at 2:09 am #18205I agree with you that it’s very wordy. I think the words BEGINNER and GEAR VR are crucial to stand apart from competitors. Mentioning Unity is less important. For anyone seriously considering learning how to develop for VR they will already know about Gear VR (Samsung VR headset that is used with a Samsung phone) and Unity (free game engine).
I looked at comparable courses on Udemy and a few things jumped out at me:
– No one has a course pecifically for the Gear VR (the cheapest and most accessible hardware after Google Cardboard).
– Only one other course promises a complete experience when you’re done, but it’s VERY technical, and the project itself is not very interesting.
– Most of the courses are not geared to absolute beginners and assume a level of programming or technical background.How about, “The ABSOLUTE BEGINNER’S GUIDE to creating a Gear VR game”. If I saw this in the crowd of VR tutorials, it’s the first one I’d go to.
February 23, 2016 at 2:44 am #18207Course Revision – Medieval Realm to Mystic Ruins.
I have been thinking how to both simplify my course but also make it a complete experience. A castle environment seems a bit too limiting and complex. Instead I’m going to do a “Mystic Ruins” experience that takes you from a simple cave, through a forest, to mystic ruins. If multiple environments turns out to be too complex, I can always simplify it further to just the mystic ruins in a forest (and skip the navigation). “Land’s End” is currently a top-selling game for the Gear VR.
Does the course description below sound exciting?
I. Course Description
This is a QUICKSTART GUIDE to creating a Gear VR game in Unity. Some experience in Unity is useful but not necessary. No programming experience is required.
The course takes you step-by-step through the creation of a simple “Land’s End” style of game for the Gear VR. You will create a “Mystic Ruins” game that takes you from a cave, through a forest, to mystic ruins. There you will solve a simple puzzle to summon ancient guardians and activate a magical portal. When you are done the course, not only will you have learned how to create an interactive VR experience, you will have a finished project you can show to your friends!
February 23, 2016 at 1:38 pm #18252This looks brilliant, clear and exactly like what someone wanting to get into VR game development would want. I think the mystical component will make it interesting and fun for someone to want to explore.
I know I can’t wait to see it!!
@andyfreist, thoughts?
February 24, 2016 at 6:10 am #18304Here’s my Chapter Overview. I’m trying to convey something that feels comprehensive but not too overwhelming for a beginner. (Am I succeeding?) Up to Lesson 4 could be a good “taster” for the full course.
1. Introduction
– Lesson 1 – Course Overview
– Lesson 2 – VR State of the Art
– Lesson 3 – Getting Set Up for VR Development2. Building your Scenes
– Lesson 4 – Cave Scene
– Lesson 5 – Mystic Forest Scene
– Lesson 6 – Mystic Ruins Scene
– Lesson 7 – Master Scene4. Creating Immersion
– Lesson 8 – Ambient Effects & Lighting
– Lesson 9 – Ambient Sound
– Extra Credit – Build scene from Asset Store5. Optimization & Performance
– Lesson 10 – Profiling Performance
– Lesson 11 – How to Optimize6. Interaction & Navigation
– Lesson 12 – Interactive Triggers
– Lesson 13 – Navigating Your VR World7. Putting it All Together
– Lesson 14 – Intro Title
– Lesson 15 – Menu Screen8. Publishing
– Lesson 16 – Publishing Your ExperienceFebruary 24, 2016 at 5:17 pm #18357Ghat DAMN this is good.. We will be purchasing your course and using it to prep for The Great eCourse Adventure 2.0!!! heheheh
I think that’s a great lesson breakdown.. Simple yet complete.
Excited to see your theme come to life 🙂
February 25, 2016 at 8:25 am #18406Awesome, thanks Andy!
I may alter the sequence after asking myself what the “Acheivement” of each section is. While this structure is really sensible / left-brain organized, I’m not sure it’s as FUN as it could be.
My first description had this key piece, ‘Each part of this medieval realm showcases a key element for creating an immersive VR experience.” That’s basically the ‘gamification’ aspect which I think is the key to getting someone to be enthusiastic about the next lesson, and follow through to the end. That strategy definitely works for me with this course!
My goal is for making a VR game to be nearly as fun as playing a game.
February 25, 2016 at 7:52 pm #18495Wow! I know nothing about this stuff but now I want to – my mind is spinning with possibilities. This is super clean and clear and well laid out, but I agree that the titles are a wee bit left-brained. If you want to attract more creative people who are a bit scared of the techie side of things, you could expand the titles a bit more.
Off the top of my head, instead of ‘ambient effects’ you could try something like ‘Light your world with sun and shadow’ then explain it’s about ambient lighting. Or ‘Bring your world alive’ instead of ‘Creating Immersion’, and rather than ‘cave scene’ or ‘mystic forest scene’, ‘the cave in the mountain’s heart’ and ‘the wild and tangled wood’.
I don’t literally mean those, just giving an idea on making it a bit more enticing. Google some Amazon blurbs for fantasy novels and there will be plenty of ideas!
And yes, the course description is great.
February 26, 2016 at 6:10 am #18519@pennyclaringbull Thanks for the feedback Amy, that’s very helpful!
February 26, 2016 at 3:45 pm #18527So good Alchemy Jeff and worry not, the creativity and fun will come as you dive in deeper and start having even more fun building it. Step 1 is flush out the content. Step 2, infuse with creativity and personality. Great eCourse Adventure 2.0 here we come!
February 26, 2016 at 6:16 pm #18557Hey @jeff_kuipers
Awesome job so far. When I read your original name “ABSOLUTE BEGINNER’S GUIDE to Gear VR Development with Unity” I didn’t have a clue what your course was about. I was still a little confused after your basic description but when I read your “chapter overviews” it all came together and had the “a ha, I get it” moment. I was inspired enough to search unity on youtube and watch some video’s on what it was all about. So here are a couple thoughts:
1) Depending on your market the name may be great or not. as someone who does not know a lot about technology but is eager to learn, the name did not mean anything to me. using very simple terminology like “learning to program virtual Reality Experiences for beginners” is what would have made sense to me. But I also recognize your target market maybe be people with more background and experience then myself thus they would have know what you were talking about.
2) All though I found the description and name a little confusing your chapter overview was great. It was clear, to the point and I considered it fun even though it was so direct. it was what inspired me to learn more and watch some youtube videos.
3) As someone looking to get into designing and programming e-courses, I’m super curious as to how this technology could be integrated into an e-course experience. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this?? Do you have any work you’ve produced I can view online?
4) I am definitely considering taking this course when it comes out and would be happy to be a beta tester if you are looking for someones opinion on how user friendly it is that is a COMPLETE beginner.
Hope that was helpful!
Cheers,
Chris Gilmour
Changing World Project -
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