Building virtual reality with Unity
Virtual reality and Unity are perfect partners in the fantastic relationship that is the early days of mainstream VR potential. Unity is one of the platforms most common for VR developers to approach and experiment with first, so if you’re looking to get experimenting fast and build something you can turn into a fully featured app – Unity is a great option. Here are links to key resources that can help you develop for VR via Unity.
Note: It is getting harder and harder to develop for VR using Mac OSX — for Oculus especially, you’ll want to have a Windows PC to develop for the latest SDKs.
Getting Started
- Learn Unity [official] – The official tutorials to learn Unity — these are super useful!
- Unity VR Manual [official] – Covers using Unity from v5.1 to enable VR without plugins.
- Getting Started with Virtual Reality: An Introduction to Unity [Make] – A super simple introduction to Unity for Makers who are considering getting into VR development.
- Learning Virtual Reality [O’Reilly] – Contains some Unity, some WebVR and an overview of VR concepts. Still in Early Release at the time of posting this guide!
Unity and Google Cardboard
- Cardboard SDK for Unity [Google]
- The Google VR SDK Download Link [Google] – Struggling to find it? This is what you need to download.
Unity 5.5 and below (official releases)
- Building a Google Cardboard VR App in Unity [SitePoint] – My overview of the whole process from start to finish, from installing the Android SDK, to building it in Unity and then getting it onto your device. My to-go guide for anyone looking for help. Note: this is slightly out of date after the latest Google VR version, use this if you are using a Unity version before 5.6 BETA. Some assets will be in the “Legacy” folder.
- What in the world is a reticle? Exploring the Cardboard Unity SDK [SitePoint] – A follow-up to the above article, covering the new CardboardReticle concept. Important reading if you’re confused about getting your crosshair to work! (This is one of the most common issues beginners working with the SDK come to me asking about!)
- Getting Started with Virtual Reality: Building for Google Cardboard [Make] – The second in my series at Make, covering the basics of bringing in the Google Cardboard SDK to Unity.
- Getting Started with Virtual Reality: Adding Interactivity with Google Cardboard [Make] – The final piece in my series at Make, this one looks at adding the interactivity components of the Google Cardboard SDK.
- Create a Virtual Reality Game For Google Cardboard [Daniel Borowski]
- Google Cardboard Hello World in Unity 5 [Tales from The Rift]
Unity 5.6 BETA (with Daydream support)
More resources on this coming soon!
- Get Started with Google VR for Unity [Google] – Google’s quick step by step guide for Unity 5.6 BETA.
Unity and HTC Vive/Steam VR
More links to come soon!
- VRTK [thestonefox] – This toolkit is essential for making life easier for HTC Vive development!
Unity and Oculus Rift/Gear VR
- Unity Integration for Oculus [Oculus] – Wanting to download all the Oculus stuff? This is where to go!
- VRTK [thestonefox] – This toolkit was initially focused on Steam VR, but it can make your life easier for VR development on Oculus too.
- Getting the new Oculus 1.3 runtime to work with a DK2 and Unity [Dev Diner] – An important series of steps for anyone with a DK2 now that the latest Rift headset and runtime have been released!
- Utilities for Unity 5.x Developer Guide [Oculus]
- Using the Gear VR touchpad in your Unity apps [Tales from The Rift]
- Debugging Gear VR logs over Wi-Fi [Tales from The Rift]
- Testing Gear VR apps in the Unity editor [Tales from The Rift]
Exploring Further
- Making a Unity VR splash screen [Tales from The Rift] – A nice way of improving the initial loading of your VR app.
- Creating Gaze Fuze Buttons in Unity [Tales from The Rift] – A guide to creating neat gaze input areas in Unity to trigger actions in VR.
- Creating VR keyboard input [Tales from The Rift] – Want to add a virtual keyboard to your VR app? Here’s how.
- dearVR – 3D audio reality engine [Unity Store] – This plugin helps you put 3D audio into your VR applications!
Google Cardboard and Windows Phone
- How Do I Build for Virtual Reality on Windows Phone? [Dev Diner]
- VR gyroscope tracking for Windows Phone [Pete D]
- Barrel distortion [Pete D]
Courses
- VR Dev School – Has a range of courses being developed for various VR platforms, currently appears to have a Unity focus.
Videos
- VR Game Design Advice and Optimisation Best Practices [Unity]
- How To Make A Live Action Virtual Reality Film [Unity]
- Using Stereo Video For VR in Unity [Unity]
- Future Proven VR Games: How To Start Now and Benefit Tomorrow with OSVR [Unity]
- Creating a playable VR environment with Unity and Samsung Gear VR [Samsung]
- Creating a Gear VR app in Unity Free [eVRydayVR]
Sample Projects
- Unity Virtual Reality Projects [O’Reilly] – A book of Unity VR projects to try.
- VR Avatars [Tales from The Rift] – How to represent your VR users with real time avatars
Assorted Tips
- Disabling the Health & Safety Warning in Oculus 0.8 Runtime [Tales from The Rift]
- Adding a VR FPS counter [Tales from The Rift]
Community
- Official Unity Forums [official]
- Unity Answers [Unity]
- Oculus Forums for Unity Integration [Oculus]
- Virtual Reality Developer Talk Forum [VRTalk]