Record yourself in the virtual world with Oculus’ official MRC kit.
*UPDATE [6.22.2019] The GIF featured below is an example of LIV MR technology.*
Yesterday, Oculus launched its official set of Mixed Reality Capture Tools for the Oculus Quest, allowing users to record high-quality gameplay footage where real-world objects and people appear in VR.
For developers operating on Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and other PC VR headsets, mixed reality capture has served as an invaluable marketing tool for their projects, allowing them to showcase a clearer interpretation of their in-game experience. With the introduction of mixed reality compatibility on Oculus Quest, developers, as well as content creators, have an awesome new way to share their standalone gameplay with the world; albeit at a price.
Here’s the hardware you’ll need to get up and running:
- Oculus Quest (obviously)
- Compatible USB or HDMI camera
- Performant PC (connected to the same local network as the Quest)
- Dedicated capture card (such as an Elgato HD6OS or HD60Pro)
- Oculus Rift or Rift S (for calibration purposes)
- Green screen
Once you have the necessary equipment, you’ll need to download an app called ADB on your Quest headset, followed by Oculus’ Mixed Reality Capture Toolkit.
Once you have all the required software installed, you can begin your camera calibration, which involves printing out a physical tracker image and running a series of calibration procedures using the tools located in the Mixed Reality Capture Tools package.
From there it’s a matter launching the mixed reality capture app located on the Oculus Quest and compositing the footage in OBS (a free and open-source cross-platform streaming and recording program) using the new Oculus Mixed Reality plugin. Once the system is properly calibrated and the images are composited correctly on OBS, you should be able to step directly into the virtual scene and take the place of your avatar; the virtual renditions of your Touch controllers will layer directly over their real-world counterparts, creating seamless interactions between the user and the virtual environment while on-camera.
For a full breakdown of the semi-complex process, visit the official Oculus Developer page here.
