BlockFlix

using unity
Source of image
game objects and selves

Inspiration

Just like you, I have spent so many hours just Zombie-Scrolling through Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, or any streaming platform to still end up with nothing to watch. But I also began to miss the days, the excitement of going to the video store, and walking through the busy aisles physically looking through the movies and hearing from strangers, friends, and movie gurus giving me their “two-sense” on why I should watch that specific recommendation. BlockFlix brings the 21st century of virtual reality to the 90s, allowing for the convenience we are all used to in a fun social platform to find that perfect weekend flick.

What it does

BlockFlix allows users to walk around aisles filled with movies in a virtual space, while interacting with the movies as objects in the presence of other friends or strangers in a friendly, safe, and social setting. While perusing, other nearby conversations may be heard, and locals can recommend/advise against certain movies. While the user picks up their movie, information including a trailer is available to be accessed.

How we built it

We used Unity to structure the scene of our project. Using unity, we could make floors, walls, textures, and movie icons. As BlockFlix provides the users an augmented reality experience, we used the oculus app to use it in Oculus VR headset. Other than that, we coded the backend of our project in python. Using an API key, we got the data for each movie and applied it to BlockFlix.

Challenges we ran into

Andy: I ran into the challenge of learning unity completely from scratch. It was an interesting challenge to build a 3d space for the first time. I also ran into the problem of implementing the Oculus because I personally didn’t have one so it was difficult to test. Shawn: Implementing the code into oculus/bypassing the several issues has been challenging/very slow.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We’re proud of how far we have come through learning and applying Unity to create a space with 3d modeling. Also, it was our first time learning about the oculus and being able to implement and play with virtual reality.

What we learned

We all experienced working and coding with Unity for the first time. Other than that, we learned how to collaborate, corporate, and communicate during these troublesome times.

What's next for BlockFlix

BlockFlix can be built upon through designing the interior of the movie hub for the user to explore the different movies. BlockFlix can expand to more levels and shelves for different movie categories items for the user to interact with. We would expand on through incorporating multiplayer so people can discuss and exchange different movie objects in the same area.

We are planning to have an AR version of BlockFlix where people can use their smartphones to interact with the movies powered with echoAR. It is possible to use echoAR to play movies, documentaries, TV series, etc. in different rooms. Something similar to silent discos but instead of headphones you can use your smartphone and interact in different rooms. Also, by using Google Cardboard you can convert your smartphone into a VR headset and still use the AR to move around the rooms and to watch movies.