Android XR: What VR developers are saying about Google's new XR platform
The success of Android XR will depend on the support of VR and AR developers. Early reactions are positive.
The XR operating system was teased yesterday, along with the first headset based on it: Samsung's Project Moohan.
The first games and apps from third-party developers have already been announced for the device. How easy or difficult it will be to port Quest games to the new system will play an important role. Here's what developers say about Android XR.
Tommy Palm, the CEO of Resolution Games (Demeo, Spatial Ops, Home Sports), writes:
"While we are looking to bring existing games like Demeo to Android XR, the platform also opens us up to develop entirely new ideas. Android XR's open nature, developer friendly approach and unique innovations makes it not only viable, but allows us to consider new and novel ways to use mixed reality for storytelling. For instance, the natural language interface of ChatBots could be a very potent extension for XR and games. And the pairing of support for Unity makes it much simpler for developers like us to bring our experiences to even more headsets and expand the audience for XR."
"The porting effort is limited"
Daniel Pohl, developer of the photo gallery app immerGallery, calls "very good, what Android XR does".
"Many VR apps are created with Unity. Android XR offers a plugin for OpenXR for Unity. However, only from Unity 6 and not with the previous version Unity 2022.3 LTS. For developers, this means that the time has come to switch their project to Unity 6 if they want to support Android XR.
Normally, the effort involved should be limited. [...] For immerGallery, I would assume 1-5 days of work to be able to run with Unity 6, including the necessary tests to ensure that everything still works as usual.
[...]
To the best of my current knowledge, it looks like all previous Android-specific arm64-v8a libraries will continue to run in Android XR. This makes porting from Meta Horizon OS (Android-based) or PICO OS (Android-based) much easier. However, many apps will not run directly without minor adjustments, for example if Meta-specific API calls are used. But this is quite normal and to be expected.
The Android XR OpenXR interaction profiles support hand, eye gaze, controller, and mouse. It is very important that 6-DoF controllers are supported. Android XR refers specifically to the Oculus Touch Controller Profile, which covers the almost standardized sticks and buttons. It is important for developers that the controllers are delivered with the headset right from the start and are not only available as an option so that they can rely on this input option."
"More options for consumers"
Virtual Desktop developer Guy Godin told UploadVR:
"It’s fairly straightforward to bring apps and games to Android XR. It supports a majority of the same OpenXR extensions that Quest/Pico support today. Bringing my native OpenXR app over took only a few hours and the basics just worked out of the box. Personally I think it’s refreshing to work with a platform that wants to collaborate with developers rather than one who tries to block and copy us. Grateful to have more options for consumers in the near future and I’m very excited to bring the best PC streaming solution to Android XR."
"Easier porting thanks to OpenXR standards"
Google-owned Owlchemy Labs, which is contributing three games for Android XR, writes in its blog:
"Developing for Android XR provided us a streamlined approach to creating Immersive experiences, compatible with a wide range of XR devices. The platform's integration with the Unity engine, with a majority of the functionality available directly from Unity APIs, without the need for third-party library integration, simplified the porting process and helped ensure our existing Unity based games could be seamlessly adapted to the XR environment.
By utilizing the latest OpenXR standard, Android XR enables easier porting of features such as Device, Hand, Eye, and Face Tracking, along with AR plane detection and anchors, empowering developers to more easily port their apps while maintaining the same high level of functionality and user experience that their players expect. Through their partnership with Unity to deliver a Unity package, developers are able to port and build new experiences using the standards they are familiar with."
Interested in VR and AR? Then follow us on Facebook or X or share your experience in the comments. For feedback, topic suggestions, or other ideas, please email us at hello@mixed-news.com.
Note: Links to online stores in articles can be so-called affiliate links. If you buy through this link, MIXED receives a commission from the provider. For you the price does not change.
