VR Omni Directional Movement Gear

Immerse yourself in a real life Attack on Titan Virtual Experience that uses Physics to realistically simulate the ODM Gear in VR!

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Inspiration

Video Games are one of the most immersive forms of art. With Virtual Reality, the escapism gets amplified, so VR is a great tool to deliver a fantasy experience to the player. Thus we decided to simulate the Omni Directional Movement (or ODM) Gear from the immensely popular Japanese Manga and Anime 'Attack on Titan' ('Shingeki no Kyojin').

The ODM Gear has quite exceptional movement mechanism, and it was a challenge implementing the physics behind this technique. We managed to create a demo of the player wearing the shoes of a Scout Regiment cadet whose task is to navigate a breached city using the ODM Gear and defeat the titan by slicing the nape of its neck!

We also added an extra touch to it not just by making the game in VR, but also by adding the Human Touch (quite literally). We used an Arduino Nano-powered glove with which the player can control the movement and fighting. We aimed to deliver the closest experience a player can have becoming a scout and defeating Titans!

What it does

The ODM Gear in Attack on Titan is a specialized device used by soldiers to navigate and fight against giant humanoid creatures called Titans. It consists of gas-powered thrusters and retractable grappling hooks attached to a harness. By firing the thrusters and deploying the hooks, users can swing through the air with incredible speed and precision, allowing them to effectively engage Titans by targeting their weak spots while avoiding the Titans' deadly attacks. There are two thrusters attached to the left and right waist of the player.

The objective of the Game is simple. Navigate the city under siege using the ODM Gear and cross the Walls to defeat the Titan before it completely breaks down the city wall! The user needs to be agile and think fast so that they can navigate with ease and make it to the wall quickly before the Titan destroys it.

How we built it

Our game was made in the Unity game engine. We implemented VR by using the Google Cardboard SDK to create a mobile app that is compatible with the Google Cardboard VR headset. The player controls the VR character through an Arduino controller reading button input and accelerometer values to track the orientation of the Arduino. The Arduino Nano comes with integrated motion sensors and Bluetooth which makes it the perfect device for a VR controller. We have modeled some assets ourselves using Solidworks and Blender but most of them have been found on the internet due to the scale of our project. The main feature of our app is the player's movement which was created with lots of calculations including physics

Challenges we ran into

The most difficult part of the project lay in effectively simulating the Physics of the ODM's grapple and thruster. We had to tweak it a lot to optimize it and implement it. There was also some critical thinking and game design that went into designing the city in a non-linear fashion with its streets and buildings so that the player always feels the need to look around and find the perfect spot to grapple to.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud that we made a scalable game that can be played effectively with just a piece of cardboard and an Arduino chip. We had a lot of fun playing the game after it was made, and it was hard to put down. We are glad we could integrate the hardware with the software aspect of this project.

What we learned

We learned a lot more about VR. For all the team members, it was the first time making a game in VR. This project also made us confident and excited about making more VR Games in the future and engaging with players in new unconventional ways!

What's next for VR Omni Directional Movement Gear

We have planned the following for the project:

  • Combine with VR devices and dual triggers for greater control
  • Integration of Haptics so that people with disabilities can also play and enjoy the game
  • Bigger Levels simulating the best battles from the anime and manga
  • Complex maneuvers to simulate the swordfight
  • Multiplayer component involving PvP as well as PvE modes

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