Sony’s dazzling Project Morpheus demos show that virtual reality’s future

Sony’s dazzling Project Morpheus demos show that virtual reality’s future

March 21st, 2014, 23:20 Posted By: wraggster

A Project Morpheus unit on show at Sony’s GDC stand.

I’m looking nervously around within Sony London’s Project Morpheus demo The Deep, dreading the inevitable shark attack. My heart is pounding and my palms are sweating. It’s genuinely troubling; the glistening, undulating surface above is fading from view as we descend ever deeper, and when I see broken bits of wood and other debris floating gently down from the vessel’s damaged hull, I know the shark has claimed its first victim. I’m next.Before it appears, I’m afforded a little time to take in the view, though my surroundings are slowly turning from a light-dappled azure to a deeper, darker shade of blue-black. Shoals of fish startle when they dart before my eyes as I look around, admiring the undersea flora. When I am asked to look downwards and bend my knees, my in-game avatar obliges too – a trick made possible by Morpheus’ head tracking tech. Without thinking, I move my feet around expecting a similar effect, though of course my virtual body stays still; full-body tracking will surely come as this fledgling medium continues its rapid evolution.Just as the heavy sense of anticipation threatens to overwhelm, the shark appears. It is oddly reassuring to see it glide about the ocean, the cheap shock I’d been fearing swapped for a strange kind of peace as I watch the animal swim about, smaller prey wisely dodging its path.The DualShock 4 in my right hand is replicated in the demo through the tracking of its light bar; looking down at my virtual diver’s arm, I twist and turn the pad and press its R2 trigger to fire out a flare, attracting the attention of the shark. Oops.It attacks the surrounding cage, easily ripping off my only protection to open its jaws and devour me whole; as the demo ends, I hand back the headset and controller shaking a little. It’s a dazzling demonstration of Project Morpheus’ ability to immerse you in a situation, and this is just an early prototype and a tech demo.

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