How to Create VR Apps in Unity

Aleena Amanulla

8 months ago

A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO USE THE CROSS-FUNCTIONAL PLATFORM TO CREATE VIRTUAL REALITY EXPERIENCES

Virtual reality has found a significant rise in its usage in recent times due to its ability to let the end user experience their vision in an alternate reality. Obviously the most major advantage of the same is the control the developer has over the end result and effective utilization of VR is a sure shot way to ensure optimization of the final layout. 

While it’s all good on paper, Virtual reality experiences aren’t the easiest to create in terms of someone who doesn’t do it for a living. This is where Unity 3D ; our beginner friendly game developing app for almost all major platforms including PC, Mac, iOS, Android and more – the best part being that it is user friendly for someone with basic knowledge on C Programming language which lead to it being the backbone for some of the most trending and popular videogame virtual reality experience developer. Now, as we all know applications are softwares built specifically in order to attain defined objectives. Currently, there exists a number of ways in which you could build an app – most of which are tedious, repetitive and boring. 

This IDE and game engine help Unity developers make games that run on Android, iOS, Windows, and consoles. They can also use it to make a lot of different tools, services, and business apps, which makes it one of the most flexible platforms out there. 

When Apple released the ARKit tool in 2017, it was the start of the era of VR-enabled apps. Unity developers could use it to create new AR experiences for iOS devices. The next year, Google's ARCore hit the market. This let all the would-be AR app makers into the Android market.

Unity has a 60% market share of VR and AR content thanks to ARKit and ARCore. A 2018 report by Deloitte found that most businesses with annual sales between $100 million and $1 billion are already researching VR. Statista released a study that says the global VR market was worth $6.2 billion in 2019. That number is expected to rise to $16 billion by 2022 when it comes to growth.

All that being said, there is so much more than meets the eye in the case of Virtual Reality Apps. They come in different variations based on long term needs, but they are also built for entirely different target platforms. This is where Unity comes in – not only do we allow our developer to bring games to a wide range of platforms, we also assist them in building a wide range of tools, utilities and business apps hence making us stand apart and making us one of the most versatile platforms on the market. 

Now, let’s address the elephant in the room. How would you use Unity 3D to it’s maximum potential in order to build VR apps? The first and obvious step would be to We have compiled a step by step procedural list for you to do this with ease. Since Unity is an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), the first and obvious step would be to set up your VR project in the app. Here is an easy unity VR tutorial that you can put into use. 

  • For this, you need to download the Software Development Kit (SDK). Based on your desired final product, this could be either Oculus SDK or Google VR SDK. 

  •  Once that step is done, Click on Create – 3D Object – Choose the Plane and Cube option and you will be directly prompted to create a build. 

  • Once this is done, Click on File – Build Settings – Platform – PC – Switch Platform. 

  • Finish off by clicking on Player Setting – Inspector - Make sure XR support is turned on and add the device you plan to use.

Following these steps in the given order helps you download our Software Kit and check for device compatibility as well. Now let us move on to the actual steps involved in getting the desired end product. The steps are given in sequential order as shown below: 

Step1:  Make a new Scene. 

Step 2: Add an.OBJ or.FBX file to your scene. 

Step 3:  Include Materials

Step 4: Add colliders to the static objects and anything else in the scene that won't be moving or interacting with anything else. This will keep things from getting too crowded and make it easier to find bugs. 

Step 5: Choose Asset – Create Prefab to make a folder for your prefabs. Things from the scene should be dragged and dropped into the empty prefabs folder. 

Step 6 : Add the wall and visual barriers and place the interactive objects. 

Step 7: Add text by clicking Game Object – 3D Object – 3D Text 

Step 8: Create a 360 degree video or background using an inside-out sphere, ensuring it is large enough to mimic the real-world environment and attach the same.  

Step 9: For a more realistic VR experience, add "Audio Listener" to either the Game Object or the Camera. Using "SteamVR Plugin > Camera Rig" is another option. 

Step 10: Run the app on an Android phone as the last step. First, save the scene, go back to File, click Build, and then Run. It doesn't matter what platform you picked. You can also click on "Build only," and Unity will make an APK file that you can share.

And in just those few steps, you obtain your fully customized VR app easily using Unity. One thing to remember is that you might be asked to pick the root Android SDK folder while you're making the app. To do this, all you have to do is download the Android SDK and choose where to put the folder. 

As is apparent from the above mentioned guide for beginners, building a VR app is a fairly easy and straightforward process that involves basic programming skills or just about a few unity developers who can build them for you quite easily setting you apart from competition with your own uniqueness. Since Virtual Reality is a developing technology, it persistantly present brands with countless opportunities in terms of creating very immersive sensory experiences of their apps for clients when it comes to businesses. 

 Hence, if your question is whether it is recommended to use Unity on the go – our answer would be ABSOLUTELY YES. Don’t take our word for it yet because we have multiple compelling advantages why. To name a few:

  • Rapid Development: 

One of the best things about Unity is that it makes it easier and faster to make apps. The IDE lets writers use C#, which is easier to learn than Java or Kotlin, for example. Plus, if you're making an Android app, Unity VR development takes care of the resource folder for you, so you don't have to. The platform hides the app's file structure underneath. 

  • Less Hassle of coding:

Unity not only lets developers make games quickly, but it also has a user interface that is pretty simple to use and lets developers make user interfaces without using XML. It's still pretty easy to try apps, add images to the buttons, change the fonts, and put them into use.

  • Cross-platform Support:

In its most basic state, Unity works on more than one platform. This means that app developers can easily make apps that work on Android, iOS, and Windows with few changes, which makes it easier to reach more people.

  • Powerful Features:

Most of Unity's features are geared towards game creation, but the IDE also has useful graphical features that can help VR apps run faster. Unity is a great choice, for example, if you want to add 3D elements to your VR game. 

With all that said, we wind up by simply stating that using Unity 3D for your immersive Virtual reality experiences – be it games or other software channels comes with a plethora of advantages outnumbering any number of limitations that you could have. It is a platform worth your money, time and effort which makes it efficient to the boot and leaves you with your own personalized gaming experience and plenty of room for upgrades in the future with minimal to no effort. Added to this, is the reliability of using a cross-functional and recognized platform for your business needs which improves your product by a large margin.