How cool is this!

ARQuake is an Augmented Reality (AR) version of the popular Quake game. Augmented Reality is the overlaying of computer generated information onto the real world. Unlike a Virtual Reality (VR) world, where the viewer sees a completely synthetic (virtual) environment, users immersed in an AR environment can still see the real world… We also required the player of the game to move around the real world and have all the monsters appear as though they were standing next to and behind real buildings.

To make the quake world know where the user is is much more complex. We are using combinations of digital compasses, inclinometers, GPS (satellite) tracking and pattern recognition technologies just to work out exactly where we are in the real world, then tell quake about it.Of course there are many problems to solve before this works perfectly. There are issues with the alignment of the two worlds, accurate tracking in the outside world and lighting problems to solve. Even though this is just a game, there are many uses for this type of technology.