Posted July 08, 2023 by Kuminer
After months of trying to figure out the best experience I can create for the Quest 2, I have finally uploaded a new project. It is a singular short story called Friendly Arrangement.
Over the last few months I really focused on upping the graphics on my projects. Unfortunately, I ran into two roadblocks. 1. Getting the models to look really good, while also maintaining a decent framerate is tough. 2. The solution was pre-rendered images and video. While I liked the look of this, you really lose the immersion when it isn't a real-time rendered model.
Ultimately, with the Quest 3 coming out, and with the newest Quest 2 update eventually coming, I decided to drop this project despite only getting about 60 fps. I'm hoping the new update, which promises a 26% improvement in performance, will get Friendly Arrangement up to at least 72 fps.
The time I spent messing around with pre-rendered images did give me a lot of insight. One of the main ones, is blocking out a scene. In the past I was too worried about creating a whole room for the player to play around in. This meant more polygons, which meant lower framerate. It also meant not being able to used directional lighting as much, which made things more difficult. If you notice in this project, there is nothing behind you, or to either side. This is by design, and it has helped the performance of the application.
Over the next few months, I want to figure out the best way to tell short stories, before graduating into a long-form VR Visual Novel.