VR FOREST: AN EPIC QUEST!

Magura National Park is located in the southeast of Poland: between the Eastern and Western Carpathians. The majority of the Park is a forest. Its authorities wanted our VR/AR studio to develop a VR Forest experience, which let its visitors experience nature’s beauty at night.

Client

Magura National Park

Sector

National Parks

Services

VR Forest visualization

Technology

Unreal Engine 4

Google Daydream

Visual results video

Business value

Have fun exploring nature and the great outdoors with a VR headset

This is an experience for those who love adventure without risks and curious people who want to explore another side of reality. Discover the lives and habits of common animals species from the Magura National Park.

Going on a nature walk at night means you’ll see (and hear) lots of things that you wouldn’t normally notice in the daylight. Such experience is extremely important for people living in urban areas (like big cities). Being close to nature reduces anger, fear, and stress and increases pleasant feelings. Calming, night scenery accelerates the positive effects.

No more packing. No more sleepless nights. No more cold, soaked wet feet. Enter the wild just by putting a VR headset on. Here and now.
Thanks to VR forest it is possible to spot and observe many wild animals in their natural habitat. You can also hear them or (with some luck) interact with them
VR forest teach everyone how to behave in the real one. You have to stay calm and do not make noise – just like in real life!
Our client is learning it’s visitors – especially the little ones – in an unforgettable way, spreading a passion to nature.

Challenge

Man falls asleep, VR forest awakes

Watching wildlife at night opens up a whole new perspective on the subject and provides an introduction to new ways of experiencing habitats and the creatures that live in them. The sun goes down and VR forest awakes, making brave night owls discover unsuspected perspectives. The night is a perfect moment to approach the nearby nature through our less-used senses – by replacing sight with hearing and smell.

But such adventure can be quite challenging. What are some of the obstacles?

Packing yourself up costs a lot of time (and often money). Especially if you want to show a beautiful night scenery to group of kids or live far from the forest.
Most of the wild animals will usually run away from you as soon as they detect your presence.
Being active at night exposures people to physical tiredness, causing sleep problems or other unpleasing effects.

Process and project scope

Scope

You are up in the woods. Stand still and admire the calming, relaxing scenery. Now look around: there are a few nocturnal animals around you. Its’ a truly immersive experience with every model you see was verified substantively by specialists, the application also recreates authentic sounds recorded in the national park. You will be surprised at how many scary night noises have been made by not-so-scary animals like deer, hedgehog or a badger.

Process

The aim of the VR Forest app was to create a place for visitors to experience the scenery of a summer night in Magura National Park. Their task was to simply spot several animals. The app uses eye-tracking so no controllers are needed.

The user is guided by night sounds and noises, pre-recorded by the Park’s workers. After spotting an animal, they can experience an animation of its natural behavior – including i.e. an owl flying just at their fingertips.

Collaboration

The VR Forest app was created in close cooperation with our client. Every detail was discussed during our face-to-face meeting before starting the project. After that, we exchanged emails on a regular basis, receiving feedback two times a month. We also presented our progress on presentations at our office – hospitality is our key competency!

Technology stack

To create the presented application we used Unreal Engine, which best reflected the realism of the surroundings.

Unity - the main tool used by 4Experience