Serious Games Powered By Next Generation Of Wearable Computing

Dekko’s visual layer takes us from Serious Games inside mobile devices to Serious Games running in the real world

Dekko's in-house developed proof-of-concept game

Related post: Google Glass Version Of Serious Games

With the impending release of Google Glass, it looks like we're on the verge of a massive wearable computing wave. What remains to be seen is what kind of OS and game experiences that will usher in.

A start-up has developed the technology to power the next generation of wearable computing: Dekko has been developing a real-world operating system for 2 years that will function as the visual layer for wearable computing devices. The technology uses real-time 3D reconstruction, letting mobile devices interpret physical objects and build digital layers on top of them. This has significant implications for what is possible with mobile gaming.

Dekko is ushering in the next level of tech and they're already speaking with the top 3 T1 hardware manufacturers. They are announcing they have closed a seed funding round of $3.2 million and are launching today.

"Just like iOS heralded in the new age of smartphones from feature phones, Dekko's goal is to be the visual layer that takes us from apps inside smartphones to apps running in the world, as seen through wearable computing devices", said Matt Miesnieks, DEKKO CEO. 

Dekko's real-world OS uses mobile device cameras (currently works with smartphones but will be compatible with any wearable computing device) to reconstruct the environment around them and track content in real-time. This allows mobile devices to visually interpret the real world and unleashes a whole new range of opportunities for mobile developers in gaming, social networking and tourism.

Dekko is providing the visual layer to allow content to be rendered into the 3D world

Video helps explain the OS

Here is the full press release

Dekko Secures $3.2 Million in Funding, Launches Visually Dynamic Real-World Operating System for Wearable Computing Generation

May 09, 2013- SAN FRANCISCO- Today, Dekko is announcing the launch of its real-world operating system that will serve as the visual layer for wearable computing devices. Additionally, Dekko is announcing that it’s closed a $3.2 million funding round to help launch its OS.

Dekko’s real-world OS will give developers a platform to build apps that merge mobile technology with the real world in unprecedented ways. Using mobile device cameras, Dekko builds digital grids over physical objects with 3D mapping. This technology allows mobile devices to interpret the real world and unleashes a whole new set of opportunities for mobile developers.

The OS represents a shift from mobile apps that operate inside the constraints of a mobile device to apps that run outside of the box. With Dekko, apps can reconstruct and track the environments around them in real-time, allowing for entirely new and visually stunning mobile experiences.

““Dekko will help usher in a new generation of apps that work outside the confines of a mobile device, truly merging the experience with the user’s life,” said Matt Miesnieks, CEO of Dekko. “Previous attempts at this kind of tech have only provided the world with gimmicky, transitory experiences with no real value or staying power. We were promised the moon and given cardboard spaceships”

Due to its mapping technology, Dekko’s real-world OS is unbound and independent of a physical printout or anchor to interact with mobile devices in real-time. This opens up the potential scale for the platform. While it can currently reconstruct and track an area the size of a table, eventually it will be able to interpret rooms, streets, and cities using 3D mapping.

The real-world OS has massive potential applications in mobile, from social networking and local search to gaming and tourism. The platform also allows for multiple-participant experiences for multiplayer gaming.

“Much like iOS marked the shift from feature phones to smartphones, Dekko’s goal is to be the OS for the wearable computing generation,” said Miesnieks. “Dekko will usher in the next wave of mobile by providing developers with a stunning 3D visual layer for wearable devices.”

To build a real-world OS, Dekko has assembled leading specialists from the fields of augmented reality, optical tracking, 3D reconstruction and user experience design. The team’s background includes top experts from academic research, Xerox PARC, Twitter, Layar, Electronic Arts, and the New York Museum of Modern Art.

Dekko is currently in talks with the top three tier-one hardware manufacturers.

Those interested in working with or learning more about Dekko should contact partnerships at dekko.co or visit http://www.dekko.co/

About Dekko

Dekko was founded in 2011 on the belief that society is entering a transition in how we experience our technology. Dekko is building a real-world operating system to let us see our content in the world, through a screen, not on a screen.

Serious Games Support Cruise Ship Crews Training

Serious Games preparing crews for worst case scenarios before they happen

Via: Engineering Computer Simulations (ECS)

A new Serious Game from Engineering and Computer Simulations (ECS) in Orlando, developed for a Cruise Line Industry client, aims at helping cruise ship crews train for several different disasters, preparing crews for worst case scenarios before they happen. 

This simulation takes place in a real-time 3D environment where players assume the role of a ship staffer during a ship-wide evacuation caused by a fire. The player is responsible for completing each and all of his or her own tasks from the start of the evacuation until the passengers they are responsible for are safely aboard a lifeboat and out of harm’s way.

Players have to account for each passenger by searching the cabins, directing all passengers to the correct muster station, and ensuring that passengers are kept calm and safe. Each evacuation scenario may be customized according to ship size, standard operating procedures, passenger count, threat classification, and even the amount of obstacles with which a player is met.

A few cruise ship companies are testing this program now, and they shall start using the simulation later this year.

Crisis Response Serious Games For Offshore Safety

Serious Games for role-playing crisis preparedness and response in the Oil & Gas Industry

Related posts:

Video Collection: Serious Games For High-Risk Training In The Oil & Gas Industry

The Case For Serious Games In Heavy Industries

Serious Games To Boost Safety On Oil Rigs - Update

Serious Games Hit Oil & Gas Industry

Via: Engineering Computer Simulations (ECS) - ECS Offers Crisis Response Simulation Training Solutions for Offshore Safety

ECS announced on Monday they are unveiling their Crisis Response Simulation for the first time at the Offshore Technology Conference 2013 running May 6-9 at Reliant Park in Houston, Texas. Over 80,000 attendees and more than 2,500 exhibitors are expected to attend OTC, and ECS shall be the only modeling and simulation company exhibiting on the showroom floor.

According to Waymon Armstrong, President, ECS has the potential to transform crisis response training in the oil and gas industry.

The Crisis Response Simulation, or CRS, is a web-based Serious Game that immerses players in realistic scenarios to cover decisions that impact the preservation of life, the support of affected family members, rig stability, communication and social media, mitigation of legal risks and other obligations that appear in a crisis management situation.

CRS is customizable to a broad set of scenarios that represent the current offshore or onshore upstream, mid-stream, and downstream oil and gas industry. Its capabilities were designed in conjunction with the expectations set forth by the International Association of Drilling Contractors and will adapt in real time based on players performance.

Each role-player from the Rig Operator up through the Crisis Management Team and Senior Leadership can exercise separately or together for a high impact event. According to ECS website, they can remotely conduct team-training exercises with up to 200 participants at a time. CRS exercises can be geographically distributed for any organization at any time and will track and assess the leader’s proficiency in taking steps to preserve life, communication with media and stakeholders, minimizing legal issues, and completion of documentation necessary to excel in times of crisis response recover.

About Engineering & Computer Simulations (ECS)

Engineering & Computer Simulations, Inc.  is a leading provider of Educational Serious Games and simulation, interactive performance assessment tools, mobile learning environments and enterprise-wide information management systems, located in Orlando, Florida.

ECS was incorporated in 1997 to provide advanced learning technologies; multi-disciplinary engineering and IT services; and project management support services for the government and commercial sectors.

ECS is organized into four business units: Defense and Homeland Security, Other Government Agencies and Academia, Commercial and Corporate, and Research and Development.

The company's technology portfolio of crisis response solutions includes: crisis response simulations, safety and competency based technology, immersive virtual worlds, serious gaming, performance assessment, staff training, and mobile innovations. 

Serious Games For Starting Your Own Video Game Dev Company

A business simulation to become the games market leader 

Related post: Serious Games For Learning How To Start a Business

Via: Greenheart Games

Game Dev Tycoon™ is a business simulation game available for Windows, Mac and Linux as well as on the Windows 8 Store. In Game Dev Tycoon you replay the history of the gaming industry by starting your own video game development company in the 80s.

Charting the career of a game studio as it grows from one man in his house to a AAA company, players create best selling games, research new technologies, create their own custom game engine, forge a world-class development team, and launch industry changing products with the goal of becoming the market leader.

Creating a game in real life takes a lot of hard work, money, and dedication. You also need a well balanced team of designers and coders. Creating a game in Game Dev Tycoon offers the same challenges.

Anti-Piracy Measures - How Does Piracy Feel In Your Own Game Dev Company

When the game was released late April, Greenheart Games also released a free, cracked version on certain torrenting sites. The cracked version is nearly identical to the real thing except that for those who downloaded the "free" version of the game would later be impossible to progress because piracy of their own in-game created games would cause their company to go bankrupt. 

“Boss, it seems that while many players play our new game, they steal it by downloading a cracked version rather than buying it legally. If players don't buy the games they like, we will sooner or later go bankrupt.”

Gameplay

You start your adventure in a small garage office in the 80s, developing your first simple games. Gain experience, unlock new options and create your first game engine.

Once you have successfully released a few games you can move into your own office and forge a world-class development team. 

With experience and a good team, you can release larger, more complex games. Larger games bring new challenges and you will have to manage your team well to deliver hit games.

Players can move beyond just releasing games and conduct industry-changing projects by unlocking labs later in the game. There are a number of secret projects that can be completed.

About Greenheart Games Pty. Ltd

Greenheart Games was founded in July 2012 by brothers Patrick and Daniel Klug with a mission to develop games that are fun to play instead of money grabbers. Less social, less ville, more game is their current motto.

Their first game to test the waters is Game Dev Tycoon, a tycoon style game where you can start your own game development company in the 80s. Game Dev Tycoon was inspired by Game Dev Story (by Kairosoft), which was the first ‘tycoon’ game they enjoyed playing on the iPhone; however, from the start, they wished the game would work and look differently. They wanted a game development simulation which would be less random, more about your choices and a little more realistic. They began working on what would become Game Dev Tycoon in 2011 and created the concepts and game mechanics as well as the game itself from scratch.