What do you think about AoE IV as a VR-oriented title?

Make VR an option but allow it to be disabled for those of us who don’t have it.

Instead of mousing everywhere, you could just “look” at the spot you want to place a building or send a unit to

Hmm, this is no bad idea, but I think it’s an inappropriate time to do an VR Aoe4.
Relic should focus on making a good game for PC because making a VR Game carries many risks.
In worst case they could neglect the PC players and furthermore there weren’t so many good Vr games in the past.

Relic Entertainment hasn’t much experiences in making VR Games, so I think the developer should focus on making Aoe for PC and then they can implement a VR function.

Uhmm no, just no, lol.

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I’m not sure what the point would be for the kind of game it is. I mean, I could imagine something like Black & White going in VR, but the way AOE handles (and more importantly the way people -want- it to handle), it would at best end up as a gimmicky. At worst, it would result in control compromises that take away from the game on non-VR platforms, while adding nothing of any real worth.

Also, the idea of “look place” sounds more cumbersome than using a mouse. Then again, I found the entire touch screen interface (in games and non-games) to be several steps back from the keyboard/ mouse setup, so make of that what you will.

No

Two of our most recent executive producers of the franchise left AoE to work on MS’s VR platform, so there’s always a chance they try to bring us with them some day.

i don’t see how aoe could fit into the vr spectrum really.

@Eininfar said:
I’m not sure what the point would be for the kind of game it is. I mean, I could imagine something like Black & White going in VR, but the way AOE handles (and more importantly the way people -want- it to handle), it would at best end up as a gimmicky. At worst, it would result in control compromises that take away from the game on non-VR platforms, while adding nothing of any real worth.

Also, the idea of “look place” sounds more cumbersome than using a mouse. Then again, I found the entire touch screen interface (in games and non-games) to be several steps back from the keyboard/ mouse setup, so make of that what you will.

Technically the game currently only uses a two-button interface with hotkeys. In theory the mouse + keyboard could still be utilized, and the VR headset is there for the “looking” and immersion. It might help if there was an added “crosshair” so the player could see where he/she is looking

Trying to use the VR controllers would definitely be cumbersome

MS is heavily focussing on AR (augmented reality) with their HoloLens (720p per eye). Problem with 4K per eye VR (or AR) in general is that you need very expensive graphics cards and you need a wide view angle to overcome the narrow feeling, this is only found in very expensive professional VR sets.

I agree it will be difficult to integrate this with VR controllers regarding all the keyboard controls. Maybe it is possible use a transparant on-screen virtual keyboard?

They are moving forward though with RTS on AR/VR:

Absolutely not. VR is a clumsy, expensive, uncomfortable to use technology in its babyshoes, and has no place yet in a strategy game that is supposed to feel responsive.

When we get to controls that resemble what the movie Ender’s Game shows, then we can maybe think about stuff like that.

Instead of relying on specific VR controllers they could use gestures to select (draw box or circle with thumb and forefinger), move around (swiping the map) and zoom the map (again using thumb and forefinger), double tap unit to select all of them in current view etcetera. By turning your head you will turn your current view. It’s not too difficult to think of some new ways doing all that stuff you do in AOE but then virtually. Stay close to the way people are used to do these kind of things with tablets already.

@Nakamura_RTS I’m always thinking ahead 5 years with things like these, so should Relic while not losing focus on the daily basic stuff. They could add things like VR spectating. Actually it would not be a difficult option at all if VR is integrated into the OS, which MS is working heavily on. Regarding playing the AOE IV in AR/VR I agree with you it would be too big step ahead and much too wild experiment. I’m sure MS will call the next version AOE V though. :wink:

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That’s just it though. As @Nakamura_RTS said, the tech is simply not smooth enough to be integrated into something like AOE without heavily compromising the end product. That demo of Armor Clash sort of drives the point home, with its chippy FPS and generally less than stellar visual. (Mind, I think that demo looks amazing none the less, but my point is that we’re coming from AOE 3, AOE Online and AOE De… ).

I don’t mind the notion of thinking five years ahead, but not the expense of everything else in the mean time.

I am -extremely- excited at the promise that hololense brings, especially for gaming, but before I see something as intricate as AOE thrown onto it, I’d like to see the tech gain some traction.

I don’t think rts games would work or create a magic with a VR.

@PCS70 Whoa, just imagine building your town on your kitchen table! Maybe AR would be better for RTS…

To work best in vr requires a very different control scheme. Check out Brass Tactics by the Hidden Path folks which is probably the best control scheme for an rts in vr so far. I think their scheme could be extended to use with something more in depth like AoE, by extending the palette interface to have something like the palette in Google’s Tilt Brush. It would also need extending to allow the selection of subsets of units, and the addition of a new way to do upgrades instead of the way it is handled in Brass Tactics.

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Nooo

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Actually would be none sense to make a VR-playable mod. AoE is mainly about apm. Too many functions and things to do. Besides you keep moving the camera through the map and back. In VR it would make us sick, and lost !
And all this work for just a couple of players having a VR device :confused:

However if the game is build with a full 3D universe, then it becomes quiet easy i guess to implant a spectator mode. I have tried it a few times, watching dota’ games. It add a cinematic dimension to spectate and could really benefit to the competition dynamic in the next few years.
Watching an epic battle of a tournment final match ? I’m in :slight_smile:

I feel it is too soon for VR, in AoE5 or 6, why not!

i dont think that would be easy to do, what could be great regarding VR option is to switch to first person on any unit with regular skills and vr that portion,