Research For an Augmented Reality Application – Part 1 of 3

Following on from a blog post on augmented reality (AR) I have been researching a number of topics to provide me with some inspiration for building an AR/Urban API based application. The parameters of the project state that; it must be an extension of 1 example from previous blog posts about Psychogeography and its various sub-categorical avenues. In this particular instance I have based my decision for my project on the following:-

• The use of the environment i.e. the urban landscape
• Relevance it has to Psychogeography i.e. it’s meaning
• To create an original piece of work
• To incorporate some API data
• To include the use of AR

Based on the above information, the topic I have chosen to peruse can be tethered to Psychogeorgaphy. The main component of my application will be the recreational activity of Free Running a.k.a. ‘Parkour’ and representing it in an AR game. By today’s understanding, Parkour is the term that has been coined from the activity of traversing the urban ‘city planned’ environment in a free, untamed, athletic manner. Below is research on the origins of the activity.

It is recorded in history that in the 1900s a French Naval Officer called George Hebert was on an exploration voyage from France to discover new areas of the globe. Along his travels, he visited part of the Caribbean – known as the French Caribbean to-date. Whilst on there he observed behaviors of locals within these Caribbean islands. Such things would be; how they climbed trees to gather fruit, ran over uneven ground to get from point A to point B in a manner that was unique etc. This knowledge was then taken back to France. Since then it is reported to be the basis of training the French military, whereby tough obstacle courses were established to test physical ability and generate a resilient philosophy. Some years thereafter, a Frenchman known as David Belle (trained in martial arts and gymnastics), was raised by a French militant father who instilled the same French militant philosophy he was conditioned with. It is from here that the concept and first known practitioner (David Belle) of the ‘Parkour’ activity originated. Below is video from a Parkour enthusiast to illustrate its ‘meaning’.

The concept of free running has also been implemented within the Digital Creative Industries such as the film and IT software (computer game design) over the past decade. David Belle himself starred in the film – District 13 (2004), playing the character of an underground vigilante free runner which is arguably where the free running activity gathered its momentum to becoming mainstream and adopted by individuals globally. A scene from the film can be viewed below.

In 2008 Electronic Arts published a game called Mirrors Edge, whereby the protagonist is a female courier called Faith that you control around a cityscape environment. The concept/objective of the game is to free run from point A to point B whilst being chased from parties trying to acquire the package for themselves, ultimately, stopping you from achieving your goal of delivering the package to a recipient. The game play is illustrated in the video below.

Another attribution to my research was the finding of an existing app/game called Resurgram, which was based in my local city – Plymouth. The objective is to navigate the city on a quest to find a pearl located in augmented space that is revealed by a specific ‘target image’. Essentially, it is an interactive citywide treasure hunt. The game has a maritime theme and incorporates features that challenge your ability to solve questions whilst completing various tasks, such as getting from point A to point B and meeting the game based criteria. To relate this to the project at hand, it is of benefit to take the concept of achieving certain objectives at specific locations (check points) in order to reach an end goal – whether it is completion of a level or the game.

The final element of research is to decide what type of software/application to use for the creation of my AR prototype. Two of the most widely used examples are that of Unity and Layar – both by enlarge very different. Unity is a single platform engine that combines multiple elements such as tools for 2D and 3D interactive content; collaboration solutions; rapid multi-platform deployment, and retention as well as advertising and analytics services. Layar is a self-service, AR generating platform. It is very streamlined in its functionality and perfect for linking images and objects together. After using both applications it is very apparent that the Unity engine is by far more advanced in terms of functionality, but it is also more complex, by which implementation of a project and installation on a portable device present ‘issues’.