LAS VEGAS, January 10th 2014 – GameFace Labs today unveiled their HMD prototype: the Mark IV, a self-contained virtual reality system for portable, graphically-rich virtual reality gaming on the Android platform.
“The steep rise in mobile processor capabilities has led us to create a dedicated mobile platform for immersive virtual reality gaming”, said CEO and founder Edward Mason. “The Mark IV was inspired by what we believe is going to be the biggest paradigm shift of all time: the introduction of mobile SoCs that can compete with consoles using a fraction of the power. We built the Mark IV to show people what’s already possible with mobile VR; we’re fast approaching a time where wearable technology will be capable of providing console-like experiences without the need for a tethered connection.”
With the introduction of 64-bit processors into mobile devices, SoC manufacturers are now able to address the burgeoning consumer demand for mobile devices that perform complicated computational tasks – previously the reserve of traditional, more powerful desktop computers – including sophisticated apps and graphically-rich, detailed 3D games. In fact, this is one-way technology has improved the casino industry, business industry, and a multitude of other sectors.
This huge leap will mean that consumers will no longer need to rely on powerful PCs to power their VR experiences. Android, an open platform and vaunter of the largest install base of any OS on the planet is likely to act as the platform of choice for developers big and small to take advantage of the newly available processing power for the next generation of mobile games.
Vinny Rawlley, GFL co-founder, commented, “With Android developers now able to take advantage of tools such as the DX11 feature set, along with the world’s most advanced games engine: Unreal Engine 4, they are going to be able to take advantage of tools previously assigned to AAA developers on PC and console. The line between PC and mobile – as Epic founder Tim Sweeney recently put it – is about to seriously blur.”
The Mark IV houses a supercharged quad core processor, along with a 5.2 inch IPS LCD flat panel display which delivers immersive gameplay at 1920x1280i and provides a diagonal FOV of 100 degrees. The Mark IV’s 6DOF SOB (sensor-on-board) allows users to freely move within virtual environments, and paired with a bluetooth controller, allows users to enjoy low-latency, untethered VR. It should be stressed that the Mark IV is a proof of concept, and all specs are subject to change. GameFace Labs is currently working on nVidia’s Tegra K1 development board with a view to incorporating it into the next prototype.
As well as the Mark IV, GameFace Labs is also developing its Unity3D SDK, which will be released to developers in Q2 2014 allowing them to integrate mobile VR support into their past, present and future Unity projects.
About GameFace Labs
GameFace Labs is a privately held company developing a supercharged VR system for Android. Led by a deeply experienced team of mobile hardware and software executives, the GFL platform allows app developers to build graphically-rich and immersive gaming applications for mobile.
For more information, visit GameFaceLabs.com.