Wheelchair Basketball VR

South Texas Regional Adaptive Paralympic Sports (STRAPS) and the IMG Studio present Wheelchair Basketball VR, an accessible and immersive wheelchair basketball game.

Wheelchair Basketball VR Custom Solutions
Accessibility Design

We designed the app centered around creating a virtual reality game that users of varying abilities can use. Even though virtual reality games have a wide variety of uses, what unifies them is the need for optimal usability, accessibility, engagement, and overall user experience.

Asset Creation

Every piece of content – textual, graphical, characters, and the environment, was made exclusively for the app. Additionally, we had to ensure the assets would function with physics as they would in the real world. 

Animation

When animation is used in an app, it shows how an element changes when a user interacts with it. It is best when you want to illustrate how the function of an element changes. Functional animations are often used with toggles, switches, buttons, icons, and other small design elements.

Controller Options

As part of our goal of designing for accessibility, we included multiple controller options to fit the play style of each user. We created options for micro movements (finger gestures) vs macro movements (arm gestures) and even included an option for the Xbox Adaptive Controller.

Our Challenge

Our challenge was making WCBVR feel realistic but still making it accessible to the player. Essentially, making sure our virtual reality experience was as close to wheelchair athletes’ experience as possible. This included making sure the wheelchair itself behaved like it would in real life. We had to study how players turned, their speed (both forward and backward), and the momentum behind shooting in order to transfer it into our virtual world.

Our Process
We developed the game using Unity for Oculus Rift. In order to create a more realistic experience, we partnered with RACTIVE, another local San Antonio company, for motion capture that we later integrated into the game. We play tested the game with both able and non-able bodied individuals to ensure accessibility throughout its development.
Results
  • We created a fully equipped Virtual Reality Wheelchair Basketball game. The game features 2 modes: free play and timed, which features a score multiplier that moves around the court which encourages players to score extra points!
  • You can also personalize your player and modify settings to help craft an ideal playing experience for you.
  • Throughout this project, we designed with accessibility in mind, including adaptive controller support and colorblind options.
  • We were able to share our project with fans at a Spurs game, who were excited and able to catch on quickly to the controls. The director of STRAPS was “so excited that this emerging technology is putting players in the game in a virtual way and increasing awareness of Paralympic sports.”
Get in Touch

    8627 Cinnamon Creek Ste. 602 | San Antonio, TX 78240
    info@theimgstudio.com | (210) 582-5316