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Magic Leap Updates Create App, Reveals Behind the Scenes Development at Magic Leap Studios

Oct 24, 2018 11:23 PM

Oct 25, 2018 01:37 PM

Among all the new Magic Leap app announcements made at the recent L.E.A.P. conference, an update to one of the company's major in-house apps went mostly unnoticed: Create 1.1.

For those unfamiliar with Create, the app isn't a game or a productivity app, but more of an incredibly engaging and surprisingly fun demonstration of the capabilities of the Magic Leap One's WorldMesh mapping and spatial audio, among other things.

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It's the first thing new users should experience to understand what the system is capable of, and it's a great practical use case that can serve to guide developers toward how to begin to think differently about designing immersive apps.

In the latest update, the company added Recorder Cube, which lets you save your creations for use later as well as the ability to import sounds. The Create team also added a new character called Astronaut (which is basically the company's unofficial mascot).

Adario Strange/Next Reality

If you've only briefly tested Create, Astronaut is worth diving back into the app as it shows off more of the virtual physics of the app's characters, in this case, how jetpack using humanoids realistically land on the surfaces of your mapped real-world environments.

From Astronauts' scanning behaviors to its ability to recognize and salute other Astronauts, it's a great example of all the subtle touches Magic Leap included in its immersive app.

Adario Strange/Next Reality

A new behind the scenes video profiling the work of the Create app team at Magic Leap Studios reveals some of how the team undertook that process. In addition to seeing an early prototype of the Magic Leap One, we also get to see very early concept designs of the app, as well as a new peek inside the company's creative space.

"If we were gonna do it right, if we were going to do it the Magic Leap way, it had to be really fun," said Jeremy Vanhoozer, senior creative director at Magic Leap Studios, in the video.

"It had to make people laugh and smile. And I think that is what Create is. It's a combination of introducing people to the concept, but also helping them have a lot of fun while doing it. Feeling comfortable to explore their space."

Also featured in the video are Magic Leap Studios team members Ant Williams (senior vice president Magic Leap Studios), Dave Shumway (audio designer and composer), Joseph Olson (art director), Anastasia Devana (audio director), Cara Khan (senior look development artist), Mouhsine Adnani (3D lead artist), Jonathan Brodsky (software development engineer), and Javier Busto (senior designer).

The app is free but, of course, you first have to pony up the $2,300 for the Magic Leap One to begin experiencing the app. If you need more convincing, check out this Twitter user's reactions to Create — they remind me of the delightfully amazed reactions I've seen from VR first-timers.