In virtual reality, haptic effects are a crucial component because they materialize digital worlds and lend a one-of-a-kind immersive quality to the game that goes beyond the scope of what can be achieved through visual stimulation.
Last week, Meta has announced the introduction of two new software tools that will make it easier for programmers to build, test, and incorporate haptic experiences into their VR apps.
New haptics software for Meta Quest
Meta Haptics Studio is the first piece of software, a desktop application for Windows and Mac that lets users instantly test haptic effects, create, and customize them accordingly.
Either via a Wi-Fi connection or without a VR headset, with a companion VR app, we can sync effects. Developers can significantly reduce iteration times as well as no longer needing to code their own test apps for haptics development.
To reduce the development time significantly, such effects can be exported and saved in a hardware-independent file format (.haptic). Meta said haptic effects could be seen on Meta Quest Pro or future Meta Quest controller, or Meta Quest 2. However, the reports have suggested that haptic effects will be best fit to the capabilities of the hardware.
The Haptics SDK is the second tool for Unity. Developers can modulate them in real-time, program dynamic variables, and better integrate haptic effects into their Unity applications with this new API.
Meta writes on the Quest developer blog, both the Haptics SDK and Haptics Studio have been developed for quick results by Unity without cooperating on the quality. For beginners, Meta is an interactive tutorial as well as provides a library of haptic effects. But for now, both tools are in an experimental phase.
