TheVirtualRealityUlmExperience:HiddenFacts&UnexpectedInsights

We were the first agency to develop a 3D world for the Birdly flight simulator. Through Virtual Reality, users can explore the historic city of Ulm in the year 1890. At the center of our experience is the world's tallest church tower - the Ulm Minster, a 500-year-old cathedral. This VR experience was awarded the FWA OF THE DAY on August 14, 2017. Subsequently, FWA asked us to share some insights about the project. Enjoy!

WHAT DID YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE WITH THE PROJECT?

Our goal was to create a unique Virtual Reality experience for users of all ages and digital expertise, allowing visitors and residents to experience the ancient city of Ulm from a bird's-eye view. We were very interested in being the first digital agency to explore and create content for such an exciting new device as the Birdly - with this, we aimed to create the most realistic flight experience possible. Additionally, the city of Ulm was heavily destroyed during World War II. Therefore, we placed great emphasis on research to bring the historic city back to life.

What technical challenges did you encounter and how were they solved?

To make the flight simulation feel as authentic and powerful as possible, our focus was on excellent performance as well as a realistic and diverse representation of the 3D world. Finding the right balance between the detailed redesign of the Gothic architecture and the performance level required for a smooth VR experience was always at the center of our attention. The main task in optimization was therefore the reduction of areas that the user does not visually perceive.

The lighting of the scene was also quite challenging. To depict the historic city of Ulm as realistically and effectively as possible, we developed custom shaders and produced externally created lightmaps based on our own concept and artistic direction.

What does winning an FWA Award mean to you?

We were truly thrilled to win another FWA OF THE DAY with this project. Especially because it is so exploratory. It is a great honor that our work is presented alongside other major agencies, studios, and brands. It helps us and our work gain a lot of attention and visibility, particularly in the international context.

Tools we used:

We primarily used Blender to create models and also to develop our lightmaps. Photoshop was our main tool for texturing, complemented by ZBrush and 3D Coat. The experience was developed and integrated into the Unity game engine.

We continued to draw on our team's experience in game design and started with a visual prototype. In this approach, we focused on a small part of the city and populated it with several buildings and props that were brought to completion. This way, we were able to gain early insight into the interplay of the visual details to be achieved and the performance.

Three hot facts:

• The user moves at a speed of up to 65 km/h. Pretty cool!
• In our old Ulm, ten animal species live, including three different birds.
• The most lovingly crafted object in the scene is also one of the smallest - a copper sparrow sculpture on the roof of the Minster.