Non-coders guide to making a VR game with Normcore, VRIF and Unity Part -1

So first off, if you are an amateur game designer you probably have no business trying to use normcore to make your game. However, if you are a glutton for punishment and you want the coolest possible tool for creating a game in unity with networking and multiplayer features it does some things VERY well.

The catch is it's designed as a coding framework for programmers to use so it's not SUPER easy to figure out if you don't have much programming knowledge. BUT noob game designers never let a stupid thing like coding stop them from trying to make games anyway so let's get started.

Things you will need

In order to actually make progress with little to no coding you are going to need to get a couple tools. They aren't too expensive particularly if you manage to grab them on a frequent sale. They are often half price.

UPDATE THESE ARE HALF OFF THIS WEEK FOR BLACK FRIDAY!

1. PlayerMaker ($60 for $30!)

2. VRIF (VR Interaction Framework) ($60 for $30!)

3. Normcore (free for development)

Getting started

Installing the items is pretty straight forward, it is WAY simpler than it was to set up VR related things in unity even a year ago.

Please comment if you are interested in this subject!

Part 2 we will discuss how to set up the XR Rig character from VRIF with normcore!

Changing Direction of Mayazest Blog

Hey everyone who might find yourself in this neck of the woods. This post is to just mention a bit of a change in direction for this blog. We will still be posting Maya tips most likely but  because the times they be a changing, there are going to start being a lot more Unity and even Blender info on this blog as well. I know BLENDER? Over the last 3 years blender has become ALOT more like Maya, so this isn't as absurd as it used to be.

So before you break out the tar and feathers let's talk for a moment about why! 

So for starters maya costs $200 a month to use now which didn't used to be the case before they switched to a subscription model. So we will also be posting tips about how to use Blender if you are from a maya users standpoint. We are also beginning to slant more into game development instead of Visual effects here at maya zest so that's another reason things will be changing a bit.

Hope you enjoy your day and keep on zesting!

Blender: Parent mesh to bones/armature and weight paint vertex groups

To parent your mesh to bones/armature: in Object Mode, select your Mesh FIRST then shift select the armature/bone you want to connect, right click over the mesh, choose "parent" and either "empty groups" or "auto groups".

After this, to go to weight paint: in Object Mode select armature/bone FIRST then your mesh then go to weight paint mode. Go to the "object data properties" tab (little green triangle) and you will see vertex groups. Select one and paint on it, this is applying weight to that vertex group.

To remove a section from a vertex group: Got to "Edit Mode" select the vertex group you want to remove something from, select the area on the mesh you want to remove from the vertex group by drag selecting. Over in the vertex group green triangle tab, click "remove" button below the vertex group list.

Quicktime playblast option not available in maya

Just install the codec and don't bother with the QT player itself. Then restart maya and it should show up now.

https://support.apple.com/kb/DL837?locale=en_US