“From Video Game to Digital Playground” - Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality

Summary: BANDAI NAMCO Studios Inc. is one of the leading game development studios in Japan creating digital contents ranging from arcade, console, and mobile from the 1980s to today. We thrive to develop cutting-edge entertainment content applying the most advanced technology of the modern age. This course will cover a broad range of topics such as the merging of the real and the digital world, the design process of XR game through the eyes of the designer and engineer, user feedback acquired through large-scale operation, “Coordinate Engineer” and the future vision of the playful world. The main topic of the course will be divided into five chapters. Attendees may not be familiar with video game development, so we will start off with a quick rundown of game development to XR entertainment, addressing changes made in user interface, UX, and game design context. The first chapter will reflect back to the history of video games and VR between the digital and the real world through the user interface and the world outside of the TV monitor. Chapter 2 will cover topics digital playground regarding projection-based AR and the mixture of playground equipment and digital technology. Chapter 3 will cover social communicator and the fusion of the real and the digital world. Chapter 4 will cover technical details from an engineering perspective stressing an important role which I refer to as the “Coordinate Engineer,” who plays a vital role in the precise placement of digital object in the real world. The final chapter will conclude the course by sharing our views on the future of XR entertainment and our visions of the “Playful World.” My hope for this course is to provide inspiration for attendees of the session and to contribute to pushing the world towards a positive direction in many ways.

Author(s)/Speaker(s):
Moderator: Hirofumi Motoyama, Bandai Namco Studios Inc., Japan
Lecturer(s): Hirofumi Motoyama, Bandai Namco Studios Inc., Japan
Eiji Iwata, Bandai Namco Studios Inc., Japan

Author(s)/Speaker(s) Bio:
Creative Director, Game Designer at BANDAI NAMCO Studios Inc. 20yrs+ experience as a game designer in the video game/entertainment industry. Previously worked for NAMCO, Ubisoft, and SEGA.

Creative Director, Game Designer at BANDAI NAMCO Studios Inc. 20yrs+ experience as a game designer in the video game/entertainment industry. Previously worked for NAMCO, Ubisoft, and SEGA.

2011: Joined Bandai Namco Games. 2013: Started development of AR/MR games on AR smart eyeglass Moverio. CEDEC 2014: Session lecturer ”Unearthing New Entertainment with Binocular AR Glass.“ 2015: Participated in tech demo for “Summer Lesson.” PlayStation VR Current: Developing MR games on HoloLens