2.1 - Audio and Haptics

2.2 - Activation Events

2.3 - Direct and Ray Interactors

2.4 - User Interface

Challenge 2 - 3D Painting

The XR hardware landscape

Lab 2 - Personal Project Events & Interactions

Submission 2 - Share your Work

Mission 2 Quiz - VR Events & Interactions

Learn how to implement more complex interactions in VR to make the experience more immersive, such as audio, haptics, and user interfaces.

In this mission, you will implement more complex interactions in VR to make the experience more immersive.

In these tutorials, you will do the following:

Apply new functionality to specific objects

Allow the user to toggle between multiple types of interactors

In the Challenge for this mission, you will apply your skills in a 3D painting prototype. Then, in the Lab, you'll implement the core functionality of your personal project. Finally, in the Quiz, you will test your new knowledge.

Events and Interactions

Unity VR Development

Dive into the world of virtual reality with Unity's VR Development Pathway. Learn to design immersive experiences, build VR games, and master Unity's VR tools. Start creating in VR today!

VR Development Pathway - Learn Unity VR Game Development | Unity Learn

 or have the equivalent experience, before starting Unity VR Development.

In addition, basic coding experience is recommended before starting the Custom VR Development mission, which can be obtained via the 

Ready to develop for VR? This guided learning Pathway will prepare you for a job in the VR industry!

Welcome to VR Development! This learning pathway is designed for anyone interested in learning to create experiences for VR. This pathway assumes a basic knowledge of Unity and basic knowledge of programming.

VR Development

Welcome to the VR Pathway

VR Software Setup

1.1 - VR Project Setup

1.2 - VR Locomotion

1.3 - Grabbable Objects

1.4 - Sockets

Challenge 1 - Architecture Review

The VR software landscape

Lab 1 - VR Personal Project Basics

Submission 1 - Share your Work

Mission 1 Quiz - VR Basics 

VR Software Setup 

Mission 1 Quiz 1 - VR Basics

Learn the basics of setting up a VR project and implementing simple interactivity like locomotion and grabbing objects.

In this mission, you will learn the basics of setting up a VR project and implementing simple interactivity.

Set up a VR-ready project with the room of your choice

Implement locomotion so that users can move around the scene

Add grabbable objects users can pick up and throw around

Set up sockets that objects can snap into

In the Challenge for this mission, you will apply your skills in an architectural review prototype. Then, in the Lab, you'll fill out a design document to lay out a concept for your own project, and then begin working on it. Finally, in the Quiz, you will test your new knowledge.

VR Basics

3.1 - Comfort and Accessibility

3.2 - Optimization

3.3 - Lighting

3.4 - Building and Sharing

Challenge 3 - Training Simulation

Keeping up with XR technology

Lab 3 - Personal Project Ergonomics & Optimization

Submission 3 - Share your Work

Mission 3 Quiz - VR Ergonomics & Optimization

Explore ergonomics and optimization for VR for making apps as accessible and comfortable as possible.

In this mission, you will focus on ergonomics and optimization for VR in order to make your app as accessible and comfortable as possible.In these tutorials, you will do the following:

In the Challenge for this mission, you will apply your skills in an industrial training simulation prototype. Then, in the Lab, you'll implement the core functionality of your personal project. Finally, in the Quiz, you will test your new knowledge.

Ergonomics and Optimization

What is in this mission?

Explore the sample scene

Set up the scanner

Code the scanning functionality

Balloon Inflator

Escape Room project overview

Number pad

Keycard reader

Sliding Door

Mission 4 Quiz - Custom VR Development

Clone with a twist!

Submit your final project

Learn to write scripts for advanced interactions in VR applications, and create your own unique VR project.

In the previous missions, you used pre-made interaction scripts provided to you as part of the Create with VR project. This mission will teach you to write scripts specifically for VR applications. You’ll write these scripts from scratch in the context of three separate projects.

In project 1, the XRI example scene created by the XR Interaction Toolkit team, you'll reference existing code and documentation to program some more advanced, customized interactables.

In project 2, you’ll follow guidelines from a project brief to create part of a VR escape room. Rather than following step-by-step instructions here, you’ll only receive hints.

In project 3, which you’ll submit to receive your pathway badge, you’ll create your own unique VR project. The challenge here is to create a clone with a twist: a version of an established VR experience, but with a unique alteration.

, you should already have a good foundational knowledge of scripting in the Unity engine to make the most out of this learning content.

If you don’t already have a foundational understanding of scripting, now is an excellent time to learn. We recommend you complete the 

If you feel almost ready but want to brush up on a few skills without doing the entire Junior Programmer pathway, why not check out the 

Custom VR Development

324bdc1b-2575-4d00-a265-c55643b3aae9:479562b3d250

Add haptic feedback on hover and select enter

Add audio feedback on either hover or select enter

Add 3D audio from the fireplace

Add a Reverb Zone

Experiment with spatializer plugins [optional]

Recap

Extension Activities

Comp-L2-Prog.VRp: Beginner VR Development

Beginner VR Development

aaron.sharp@unity3d.com bCXcG*RnEp9O!6@q

2.1.ext - Speaker (1).mp4

2.1.ext - Bouncing ball sounds.mp4

2_1_1_v2.mp4

2_1_recap_v1.mp4

2_1_2_v2.mp4

2_1_3_v2.mp4

2_1_4_v2.mp4

2_1_5_v2_edited.mp4

In this lesson, you will learn how to increase the immersion of your project through touch and audio stimuli. By the end of this lesson, the user will receive haptic and auditory feedback when they hover over or grab an object. There will also be 3D spatial ambient sound in the scene.

This lesson is part of the Create with VR course. 

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Implement haptic vibrations or sound effects on controller-based events in order to provide tactile or auditory feedback to the user in certain situations (e.g. when the user hovers over or selects something).

Understand the difference between 3d and 2d audio (diegetic vs non-diegetic) in Unity in order to distinguish scenarios where each might be appropriate.

Modify the spatial blend of an audio source in order to change it from 2D to 3D sound.

Modify the roll-off of an audio source in order to specify how it should change in volume as distance from the source increases. 

Implement reverb zones in a specific area of a scene in order to better simulate the quality of sound in different environments (e.g. a cave vs a living room)

Understand the purpose of audio spatializer plugins in order to appreciate the importance of realistic audio in VR.

VR Developer Pathway Facilitator Kit.zip

VR Developer Pathway Facilitator Kit (Google Drive)

Unity Educator Hub

The VR Developer Pathway Facilitator Kit includes everything you need to successfully bring this Pathway into your learning context including a syllabus, complete lesson plans, standards alignment, teacher preparation guide, and more.  

Games

Film

Automotive

Skill-L2-Prog.VRp-2: Develop a VR app that demonstrates common interactions using Unity's XR interaction toolkit.

o-L2-Prog.VRp-2.1: Implement locomotion in VR.

o-L2-Prog.VRp-2.2: Implement grabbable objects and sockets in VR.

o-L2-Prog.VRp-2.3: Implement a worldspace UI in VR.

o-L2-Prog.VRp-2.4: Implement controller- and object-based interaction events in VR.

o-L2-Prog.VRp-2.5: Implement spatial audio in VR.

Develop a VR app that demonstrates common interactions using Unity's XR interaction toolkit.

2 - VR Events and Interactions

VR Events & Interactions

Unit 3: VR Events and Interactions

You can add haptic on hover enter and select enter to provide physical feedback to the player’s hands.

Note: If you are using the OpenXR plug-in for development on devices like the HTC Vive or Valve index, this feature may not work. 

1.  Edit both controller objects at the same time:

In the Hierarchy, expand XR Rig > Camera Offset.

Ctrl/Cmd+select both the RightHand Controller and LeftHand Controller so they are both selected.

At the bottom of the Controller objects’ XR Ray Interactor components, expand the Haptic Events fold-out.


3.  Create subtle haptic feedback when the user hovers over an object:

Click the On Hover Entered check box to enable it.

Set the Intensity to a low value (e.g. 0.1-0.5). 

Set the Duration to a very low value (e.g. 0.1 seconds).


4.  Create more noticeable feedback when the user grabs an object:

Set the Intensity and Duration values to slightly higher values (e.g. 0.25 seconds).

The controller should now vibrate subtly when you hover over an object and slightly more so when you select an object.

Note: In the updated version of the component there are additional options under the Haptic Events. The events mentioned in the video are all still available. 

Beneath the Haptic Events fold-out, the OnSelectEntered property is enabled with Haptic Intensity set to 0.5 and Duration set to 0.25. The On Hover Entered property is also enabled with Haptic Intensity set to 0.1 and Duration set to 0.1.

Now that you have haptic feedback, you can enhance the User Experience (UX) with audio feedback.

From the Course Library > Audio > FX, determine which subtle UI sound effect you want for the hover or select event.

To preview the sound, you may need to drag up the Preview panel from the bottom of the Inspector window.


2.  Apply this sound effect to both controllers:

From the Hierarchy, select both the RightHand Controller and LeftHand Controller objects. 

In the XR Ray Interactor component, expand the Audio Events fold-out.

Click to enable either the On Select Entered or the On Hover Entered setting.

and then assign your chosen sound effect.

You should now hear a sound effect either when you hover over an object, or when you select an object. 

Audio Events fold-out expanded with On Select Entered enabled and the AudioClip to Play property set to SFX_UI_Click_3.

In addition to audio feedback on events, you can add 3D spatial audio into the scene emanating from the fireplace to increase immersion.

Add an Audio Source component to the particle object.

For the AudioClip property, assign the SFX_Loop_Fire sound effect from the Course Library > Audio > FX folder.  


2.  Make the sound play automatically and loop:

In the Audio Source component, make sure both the Play on Awake and Loop settings are enabled.


3.  Configure this component as a 3D sound: 

Adjust the Spatial Blend property by dragging the slider all the way to the right 3D setting (or by setting the slider to 1).


4.  Edit the overall volume and volume roll-off of the fireplace:

Expand the 3D Sound Settings fold-out, then adjust the Min Distance and Max Distance values.

The fireplace should now make a crackling sound, which should change in volume and left/right balance depending on where you are located and oriented in the scene.

Audio Source component with the AudioClip property set to SFX_Loop_Fire, the Play on Awake and Loop properties enabled, the Volume set to 0.5, and the Spatial Blend property set to 1 (3D).

To maintain a sense of presence in VR, it’s especially important to make sure audio behaves the way it would in the real world. This includes considering how sounds might reverberate around different kinds of rooms.

1.  Add a new Audio Reverb Zone as a child of the Room object: 

In the Hierarchy, right-click the Room_[style] object.


2.  Make sure the reverb zone encompasses your whole room:

In the Audio Reverb Zone component, make sure the Min Distance property is set to at least the width of your room (10). 

Note: To visualize the zone, you may need to turn on gizmos and zoom out. 
In Unity 2021 LTS, the Gizmos button is represented by a sphere icon with dots on its vertices:


3.  Make your reverb zone match your room: 

Use the Reverb Presets drop-down to experiment with different styles of reverb.

Select a setting that matches your room (Room or Living Room).

You should now have a reverb zone set up in your room to make the 3D sound even more realistic.

Note: In the video we mention you should select the word Gizmo to open the Gizmo settings. In Unity 2022.3, the Gizmos are represented by an icon instead of a word. 

Audio Reverb Zone component with MinDistance set to 5, MaxDistance set to 15 and the ReverbPreset property set to LivingRoom.

In addition to Unity’s built-in 3D sound, which changes the volume in the left and right ears depending on player distance and orientation, there are additional spatializer plugins that you can install to make the sound even more realistic. 

From the links below, download the relevant spatializer plugin for your platform.

Select the Audio section from the left panel.

Use the drop-down next to Spatializer Plugin to select your plugin. 


3.  Implement the plug-in on your fire particle:

Follow the instructions relevant to your device to implement spatialized audio.

You should now have even more realistic sounding audio in your scene, taking into account the user’s Head Related Transfer Function (HRTF).

Microsoft HRTF Spatializer Download 
(supports UWP and PC running Windows 10)

Audio Project Settings window open with the Spatializer Plugin property highlighted.

Importance of haptics and audio for immersion

Spatialized audio with head-related transfer function (HRTF)


If you want to further develop your skills, explore new concepts, and improve your project, check out some of the optional extension activities below. 

Each one is tagged as [Easy], [Medium], [Difficult], or [Expert] and will also include a [Requires Programming] tag if some coding is required. 

Add a speaker to the room that plays music - or even a record player that actually rotates: 

Find a speaker from the Course Library > Prefabs > Objects > Speakers folder.

Find music options from the Course Library > Audio > Music folder.

Bonus - If you use the Record Player, you’ll need a simple script to rotate the platter the record spins on.

2.  Add realistic bouncing sounds [Medium] [Requires programming]

Add a bouncing sound for your ball so that you hear it bounce every time it hits the floor:

You may want to download and import a new sound effect 

Add a 3d audio source to your ball just like you did for your fireplace. 

To make it play a sound when it hits the ground, you will probably want to use the OnCollisionEnter function and PlayOneShot method. 

Bonus - if you want to make the volume change based on the speed the ball is moving, try using rigidbody.velocity.magnitude. 

2.1 - Audio and Haptics

Overview Video

1. Add haptic feedback on hover and select enter

2. Add audio feedback on either hover or select enter

3. Add 3D audio from the fireplace

4. Add a Reverb Zone

5. Experiment with spatializer plugins [optional]

6. Recap

7. Extension Activities

Complete this tutorial