Games Alfresco

Richmond Hill-based game technology company Sulon Technologies, Inc. (Sulon) announces their revolutionary new product, GVX, a head-mounted gaming console that offers avid gamers the freedom to play anywhere, whether indoors or outdoors. Sulon’s proprietary technology involves applying advanced Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technology to create the most realistic and immersive gaming experience available, enabling players to have a Star Trek ‘holodeck’ experience in their own living space and bringing to life traditional table top games in 3D on any flat surface.

Sulon’s solution to a tired console market is a brand new gaming device that introduces innovative gameplay by combining the benefits of console quality gaming on a mobile platform. Sulon is a team of experienced engineers, product development specialists, researchers and science fiction and gaming enthusiasts who have discovered and proven how to make any physical environment into a “holodeck” zone. “I’ve always been interested in new technologies and how society is quick to absorb them into their everyday lives” said Dhanushan Balachandreswaran, Founder and CEO of Sulon Technologies. “We are excited about creating technology that we originally thought to be fiction and turning it into a reality.”

The GVX system introduces the concept of Xtreme Reality (XR) defined as the one-to-one integration of the real world and the virtual world with the ability to scale the whole spectrum of AR to full VR. XR blurs the lines between the real and virtual worlds to actually place the player into their game by adapting their entire physical environment into the game world. GVX uses complex and adaptive algorithms, high end graphics processing, motion tracking and position tracking to achieve the XR experience. The system has the unique ability to map the actual environment as the physical characteristics and boundaries of the game environment. Unlike any other device available, it applies AR and VR to transform any space (even outdoors!) into a completely new game environment in real-time. It is a “wear and play” experience that expands a player’s gaming space from the area in front of their TVs and PCs to their entire home. GVX runs on the Android Operating System where applications can be developed quickly and games can span the entire spectrum of casual to hard core genres. XR games on GVX are classified as Active or Surface gaming.

Active games are adrenaline inducing and interactive, where the system conducts an accurate and rapid scan of the player’s entire environment to adapt it into the game world using sophisticated SLAM algorithms. GVX is also completely wireless with all devices communicating via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, giving users complete freedom of movement. Players can now live their video game by physically exploring and interacting with the virtual environment. With Active gaming, space limitations are not an issue as the system is able to generate new graphics and scenarios to the same space multiple times during one gaming session, allowing for an endless number of new gaming experiences.

Surface games on the other hand are a creative throwback to traditional gaming where games are augmented in 3D onto any flat surface. Players can watch their cities actively grow, wage virtual wars against other players around the world or enjoy a tabletop game with friends and family. Surface gaming provides a new reach for social gameplay and a new avenue and meaning for social interaction. Family game nights can be made possible even when family members are not physically present.“GVX really gives game developers creative freedom to take advantage of all the functions and capabilities of the system when designing games.” said Dhanushan Balachandreswaran.

What also makes GVX a game-changer is that Active and Surface gaming is not mutually exclusive and can be combined to create innovative gaming experiences. Jumanji is a great example of how surface and active gaming can be combined. The game board is augmented in 3D on a flat surface (surface gaming aspect) and game events that occur would require players to interact with the virtual environment (active gaming aspect). In addition to the XR experience of Active and Surface gaming, GVX is also highly flexible and capable of playing existing games such as PC games, games specialized for stereo VR or mobile games like Angry Birds.

“The concept of mixed reality has been around for years but nobody has succeeded in making it real” said Jackie Zhang, Vice President of Research and Development at Sulon Technologies. “With the latest technologies and innovation, we have made this concept possible. It’s a disruptive product whose limitation is the bounds of your imagination.”

GVX also features a removable component (the GVX Player) that offers players a variety of gaming options. The GVX player can be used on its own to play existing mobile games from the Google Play store as well as connect to a HDTV and a Bluetooth controller for those who enjoy traditional gaming on their television. These gaming options on the GVX Player can be combined with the XR experience on GVX (i.e. Active and Surface gaming) to create a multitude of unique one-of-a-kind gaming experiences. A game could feature as many or as little of these gaming combinations. For example, a game could begin as a simple mobile game, but an in-game event may prompt the player to switch to Active gaming in order to fully experience the event. These flexible gaming options allow players to easily pick and choose their preferred gaming experiences.

GVX is also a consumer-friendly gaming device that eliminates many of the problems associated with adopting AR and VR technology. Surface games (AR application) on GVX are hassle-free and do not require physical markers. VR gaming on GVX is safe and does not induce motion sickness. GVX features an option where players can adjust the level of graphics opacity. Lowering the graphics opacity allows more of the player’s physical surroundings to appear in the game environment, ensuring safe gameplay and providing players who are not ready for a full virtual environment an alternative. The opacity option, as well as the wand controller’s one-to-one true motion tracking prevents motion sickness because the player’s movement in the physical world matches their movement in the game world.

“GVX is truly a game-changer in the gaming and mobile space. Never before has a gaming platform been able to successfully bring to life that Star Trek “holodeck” experience in a simple and straight-forward product, while freeing the user from the constraints of a wired environment,” comments Ken Wawrew, the Chief Operating Officer at Sulon Technologies.

GVX developer kits are available for pre-order on the Sulon Technologies website.

For more information, visit www.sulontechnologies.com