Taiwanese tech giant HTC made a number of new announcements related to its Vive-branded virtual reality (VR) efforts. The company on Monday launched MakeVR, a CAD engine designed for professional 3D object modeling meant for VR content, in addition to announcing a new collaboration with Warner Bros. Pictures that will see HTC produce VR content for Steven Spielberg’s upcoming movie Ready Player One. Additionally, the Taoyuan-based consumer electronics manufacturer announced the expansion of its Vive X accelerator as 30 more startups have now joined the $100 million incubator and will be making VR experiences for both the Vive headset and other related devices.
Regarding MakeVR, the CAD engine is now already available for purchase from HTC’ digital marketplace Viveport, priced at $19.99. The Taiwanese company said that MakeVR is targeting over ten million active creators of VR content that are on the lookout for capable tools that will facilitate their developmental efforts. The aforementioned partnership with Warner Bros. Pictures guarantees HTC exclusive rights to all VR shorts, experiences, and related content that will be developed with the purpose of promoting Steven Spielberg’s upcoming movie adaptation of Earnest Cline’s 2011 science fiction novel. The Ready Player One movie is currently scheduled to debut in theaters in March 2018, but HTC will likely launch a broad range of promotional content in the months prior to the movie’s release.
Finally, HTC also announced the immediate availability of its Vive Trackers that were initially announced at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January. All interested developers can now purchase the Vive Trackers for $99 directly from Vive.com, the company confirmed. HTC also just released an open source solution for full body tracking based on three Vive Trackers, hoping that its move will help speed up development of new room-scale VR experiences. You can get your hands on the Vive Trackers by following the link below and refer to the gallery beneath this writing to see first screenshots of the MakeVR engine in action. HTC’s latest set of announcements marks yet another important step in the company’s efforts to fuel the growth of the VR industry and bring this emerging technology to as many people as possible, all with the goal of reviving its somewhat struggling business.
