Developer makes desktop VR application for PS Eye

by Andrew Yoon { Feb 1st 2008 at 8:00AM }

Wasn't PS3 supposed to take us to the fourth dimension? Wasn't it supposed to be like entering the Matrix? Right, Crazy Ken?

Well, it appears a lone PS3 developer wants that to happen. By utilizing a Eye camera and some homemade glasses, he's created a VR program that tracks your head and gives the illusion of three dimensionality from your television. (Similar to this famous Wii hack.) It's pretty cool -- and even cooler is that he intends on making this code publically available to all PS3 developers. Hopefully, we'll see a unique PSN title take advantage of something similar.

Tags: eye, vr

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

halebound00 @ Feb 1st 2008 8:21AM

Alirght, did everyone catch the 3D Kratos at the end....effin sweet. These guys should get on this right away, even for just simlple PSN games. Imagine how sweet SSHD, Everyday Shooter, or even SPF2HDR (that's one hell of an acronym)would be using something like this.

Lars @ Feb 1st 2008 12:47PM

Thanks for telling me, that was cool!

Re the article: This seems almost exactly like what the makers of the eye-toy games demoed years ago. They never made anything of it, but I was excited by the promise of that tech demo back then. This I guess 1-ups it by making the code available to the public.

CJ @ Feb 1st 2008 2:07PM

Wow! that's cool. I wonder how you'd use it in a game though?

Andir3.0 @ Feb 1st 2008 6:06PM

Think about being able to look around corners or into a well simply by moving your head. You could also use it as a control method. Look to the right = turn right. It could also just add that touch of realism by allowing the developer to link the camera in game to the motion of the headpiece. Allowing the game to react to head movements. Another way I just thought of would to do the same thing with the PS3 remote. Put a pair of LEDs on one side and a single one on the other and you have the WiiMote type control using the PS Eye and this "enhanced" controller, but you could track 3D movement of the controller by having two LEDs on one side.

P @ Feb 1st 2008 7:36PM

"You could also use it as a control method. Look to the right = turn right. "
but once you've turned right, and your looking down a new corridor say, as soon as you turn you head back to look straight at the TV surely that makes you turn left, facing straight ahead as you were moments ago. So im not sure character movement would be possible, if you needed to go back the way you'd just been you'd be unable to see the TV ;)

The problem with this technology is that most people dont wander round the room when playing games, sure many people may start doing that to utilise this, but im not so sure how practical it is for most people and their gaming surroundings. Im certainly not knocking the concept, but i think while it looks very impressive having that immersive & interactive feel to what your looking at, im not sure its something that can work for everyone.

As its been said, with a Guncon type controller it would be awesome, and maybe the eyetoy couldnt capture varous LED colours for additional motion capturing accessories, but i think in most cases these things would be implemented as gimmics rather than this unlocking the relms of VR gaming for future titles. If you could hold L1/R1 to enable a look mode via the left stick or VR Eyetoy device if enabled, that'd be nice, but constantly controlling what your looking at and trying to aim at it using a standard controller, thats going to be a real PITA.

IMO, on its own its probably no more than a nice gimmic, but in combination with other tools it could be quite special and open up new approaches for developers to freshen up many tired genres... but i'd bet the diehard fans would prefer things as they currently are, but the casual gamer, look what its done for the Wii, thats about the only thing its got going for it, the interactivity gimmic.

Chris Rah Osiris @ Feb 1st 2008 8:23AM

This tech could be used to make some really interesting games. I'm sure that some of the more innovative developers will put this to use, ASAP. Can't wait to see it

Steve Childs @ Feb 1st 2008 8:48AM

Is it just me or did there seem to be a slight lag to it, which wasn't there on the wii version? Probably just to do with the fact its using the PS eye rather than a direct controller.

Still impressive though!

And nice one dude for sharing the code.

Noshino @ Feb 1st 2008 9:05AM

its because the one by Lee is running on his laptop, this one is running on the PS3...so its quite impressive to see such application running on the PS3, and it will take some tweaking, but still, teh future is rbight for this...!

gooftroop @ Feb 1st 2008 9:21AM

Just you...

Faar @ Feb 1st 2008 10:29AM

There's certainly more lag in the wiimote than there is in the PS Eye. Just use the wiimote calibration tool and compare vs. pretty much any of the PS Eye toy games and you see Sony's cam is snappier.

Virtually all webcams have a slight laggyness to them which is inherent to the tech used it seems. Just reading the image sensor takes a short period of time and video data is almost always motion JPEG-compressed or similar. PS Eye however supports uncompressed video and updates at 60 or 120 frames per second however which cuts down on the delay while Wiimote and the xbox 360 camera is a more sedate 30. Also, wiimote uses wireless tech which also adds a hint of lag since data has to be buffered and packetized before transmission.

I didn't notice any laggyness myself in this demonstration, it was extremely impressive IMO. Who does this guy work for?

The Kratos bit at the end was just LOL!

JAH75157 @ Feb 1st 2008 8:37AM

hmmm this would work well in fps games like cod4 i was just talking to my brother the other day how it would be nice if you could track your head movement so that you could peek around corners.

zyxwiley @ Feb 1st 2008 8:41AM

if it was done with the time crisis-esque gun, then hell yeah. but with a typical controller, the head movement would probably interfere with the aiming, imho.

zyxwiley @ Feb 1st 2008 8:38AM

damn, i have a lot of respect for this guy. not only did he develop this breathtaking tech, he released the code for it to other devs. i'm highly impressed.

Jason Rhyne @ Feb 1st 2008 8:55AM

All hail Thomas Miller (runner up in white Jesus look-a-like contest) and future guy to be stalked by nerd herds. Thanks for giving me another reason to ignore my girlfriend.

DOCTOR DEEP N U @ Feb 1st 2008 9:12AM

this would be impressive if it wasn't stolen from this guy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd3-eiid-Uw

gooftroop @ Feb 1st 2008 9:21AM

Did you even pay attention to the credits?

Carlton @ Feb 1st 2008 9:38AM

Stolen? You think Johnny Lee invented infra-red head tracking? Don't get me wrong, I think it's all good, but these guys aren't pioneering technology, just showing how it can be applied to widely used consumer devices.

When I first saw the Wii head tracking I said that this would be easy to achieve on PS3 and I was mercilessly flamed by Nintendo fanboys. It didn't bother me, because I knew with 100% certainty that I was right, but it never hurts to have conclusive proof.

Now I'm just waiting for someone to do it with the Guncon 3, as it can obviously be done with that too.

elephant_stone @ Feb 1st 2008 9:42AM

This is truely the best thing I have seen all month for the PS3! I want a dev kit!

Bobby Boobs @ Feb 1st 2008 10:06AM

Oh god !!! I can't wait to use this on a FPS !!!

Iain @ Feb 1st 2008 10:14AM

Gun con and head piece to play cod!

This ir vr is the next step in fps.

Hopefully he makes a game for psn.

How many ir beams could you track? The ps3 can't differentiate between differ ir could it?

Seems like an ir gun could work with the PSeye. You would you have to calibrate it each time otherwise it would be like the wii and you would have to point at the camera.

SO many possibilities!

Zta @ Feb 1st 2008 10:22AM

It could be used for simple things as well, like for instance the cockpit view of GT5. Not that you're supposed to move your head around allot, but still it would add a tiny bit extra sense of reality.

Iain @ Feb 1st 2008 11:03AM

That would be great. Awesome idea.

JT @ Feb 1st 2008 11:10AM

That would make it well worth buying the PS eye...

Daniel @ Feb 2nd 2008 6:46AM

Am i the only one who see that and adapter to the ps3 remote, or even a special infared remote would make our PS3's just like a wii, but with a lot more computing and graphical power!

Cornerman8 @ Feb 7th 2008 10:44AM

All they need to make is the peripheral. Package it with the EyeToy and a demo disk. This could have tons of implementations; big and small. Explosions where debris heads toward the screen (or blood, limbs, characters, car parts, etc), FPS (of course), beefed up cutscenes, psn games, boxing games, racing games, stealth games,

Immutablyme @ Feb 1st 2008 1:43PM

Something kept nagging at me to pay attention to the office space that he was in. It seemed familiar somehow. Then I saw the Kratos statuette on the desk and at the end of the credits and then it clicked.

http://tmiv.net/

naxe @ Feb 1st 2008 1:14PM

This is very cool. I know he did not invent the technology but he is showing that it is possible. If a (regualr) ps3 fan can make his own program and make his own peripherals then sony can take his (idea) and run with it. Make it possible to have a lush 3D environment at home. This is the furture; User created technologies and programs. playstation has really given us the tools to be creative, psp where the sky is the limit with emulators and hacks. and now the ps3 where ANYTHING is possible. besides pay my bills and clean my room :/ hope someone is working on that.

The Playstation 3 has been hands down the best investment i have ever made. cant wait for the future!!

Fraser JK @ Feb 1st 2008 7:43PM

GIVE THESE PEOPLE JOBS MAN! You can't have such amazingly talented people out there not working for you... Sony give these people jobs!

Lone Starr @ Feb 2nd 2008 1:00AM

I hope he gets offered a cool job for this.

cbleslie @ Feb 2nd 2008 8:56PM

Congratulations. You made a Wii.

Fail.

setarcosp @ Feb 2nd 2008 10:00AM

hmm although as a controller it would have problems, surely 3rd person games could use it for some aditional camera movement (although pan and tilt control would still need to be based off the right stick.) uncharted in psudo 3d how cool would that be