"Good day, everyone. I'm Kent Bye, and welcome to the Voices of VR podcast. In today's episode, we'll be exploring the different immersive stories of the Venice 2024 event. We'll be taking a look at a piece called 'Project Lost Worlds,' created by Fins. It's a VR Chat world episode and part of the competition. Last year, I interviewed Fins about his 'Complex 7,' and he is an exceptional world builder, creating stunning environments and beautiful lighting effects. This year's work might be his most ambitious project yet, taking you on a space journey to another world where you'll discover and observe various dinosaurs. The project is still in the early stages, but it gives us a glimpse of Fins' unique blend of interstellar travel, space exploration, and fused inspirations from films like 'Interstellar,' 'Avatar,' and 'Jurassic Park.' That's it for today's episode of Voices of AR. This interview with Fins took place on September 1, 2024. Let's get started."
"Hello, I'm Fins, a world builder and 3D artist on VRChat."
"Okay, please tell us more about your background and how you got started in virtual reality work."
"Yes, I started as a concept artist and 2D illustrator, doing illustration work for about 5 to 6 years. Then I did concept art for about 3 years, and before joining VRChat, I was doing concept art for video games and movies. If they needed a concept art or a storyboard, I would draw it for them, and then they would turn it into a 3D model. But about 5 and a half years ago, almost 6 years, I saw a YouTube video about VR Chat. I got interested, downloaded the app, and about 6 or 7 months later, I made my first world. Since then, six years have passed, and now I work as a 3D artist on VRChat, creating various experiences within the world. That's my journey."
"Okay, so this was around 2018 or 2019, during the time of the Knuckles, or was there another reason you got into VRChat? What did you see on YouTube?"
"It was actually something different, although Knuckles did play a role. It was a series of videos made by Gemski, called 'Ollie and VRChat' or something similar. I saw a clip of it where he was playing in a fantasy world, but as I observed closely, I realized that it was a user-created world and character. This had been a hobby of mine since my younger days. I enjoyed creating custom maps, playing simulation games, cooking games, and even making custom maps for 'StarCraft.' And now you could achieve that in a multiplayer online real-time game. It was mind-blowing for me, so I joined VRChat."
"I know most people, after joining VRChat, would explore other worlds and then gradually start building their own. So, before you started building, what communities or other worlds did you see that made you want to start building your own? Did you start building right away, or can you give a brief description of what it was like when you first joined VRChat?"
"At first, I was very shy and introverted. I would often wander around public worlds, see what others were doing, and just be a background presence, hoping to have a small conversation or two. But the more I saw, the more inspired I became to try it. Especially in the early days of VRChat, there was a place called the 'Scientific Laser World.' They had an activity there called 'Archery,' where there was a small flyer on the ground that said, 'Hi, want to build your own world?' I don't remember the specifics, but it made me think, 'Okay, it's time to actually invest some time and try it.' So, as a concept artist, were your works mainly 2D, or did you involve 3D modeling? Can you talk about your previous media creation and practice and how you gradually started getting into 3D modeling and building? As a concept artist, we are trained to use the best way to achieve the final result. Even if it involves 3D, yes, it involves 3D, but not to the extent of what I do now as a 3D artist. You could combine some cubes in Blender, add rough shapes, and then sketch on it. This way, you could get results faster without having to worry about horizon lines, perspective, and so on. So, 3D was a part of it, but not as prominent as what I do now as a 3D artist."
"So, what was your first creation in terms of a world? What was it called, and how big was it? It was called 'Shark Cafe,' based on my name Fins. I've always been fascinated by everything related to sharks. I saw a post on Reddit asking if there was a rainy scene world where you could sit down and relax while watching the rain. At that time, I realized that such a world didn't exist, so I made the cafe. I found a shader on shadertoy.com that made raindrops fall on the windows and affect the environment around them. This shader was the first time it was used in VRChat. People would come to the cafe and just sit there, watching the rain. It became a cozy place for everyone, and now there are many worlds playing rain sounds and people staying there. So, it became sort of a trope in public worlds."
"As a concept artist, you usually work with clients or other individuals who have very specific ideas. So, when you started building your own world in VRChat, how did you get feedback and let others see your work? And what happened from that point on?"
"For a concept artist, of course, you have to look at source materials or other ideas and translate them into 2D images, hoping to align with the vision. If it doesn't align, then you need to make revisions. But for my own creations, I usually already have a specific idea in mind. For me, I can usually skip the step of having to draw it out because I have the concept already in my head. As a concept artist and studio artist, I’ve developed a sense of direction throughout the development process and can plan ahead for my personal projects without having to do those things from the beginning. I found that many people actually struggle with that. They have a rough idea but don't understand how to visualize or execute it or how things work. Whereas, for me, that's where being a 2D concept artist comes in handy. I can achieve more of what's in my head by utilizing my previous experience as a concept artist."
"Okay, so that means you don't do any sketches when creating, you just jump right into the 3D modeling program and create and put it in VR? Or is there a special process in planning or sketching?"
"Sometimes there are some sketches, but I do have some concept art of my works that I haven't made public yet. I haven't shared them. In cases where I need specific compositions, I have concept art that you could call 'hero art.' Basically, you don't need to complete the whole picture; you just need to have key color palettes, themes, atmospheres, lighting, and so on. I hope that can serve as a reference for future development. But for me, when it comes to conceptualizing, it's usually achieved through the so-called 'white boxing,' where you put together some white boxes and gradually build the environment using real assets. It's similar to early concept art to some extent, just not painting on top of it, but putting 3D models on top of it."
"Did you add any textures to these white boxes, or was it just placing some cubes in space to get a sense of the overall spatial structure?"
"Many times, they do have textures, but it's mostly just colors. I would do lighting for them, and then they would have the feel of real assets."
"Okay, so you work a lot with lighting. I know from our previous conversation about your other works like 'Complex 7,' you used some advanced lighting techniques and tricks to create incredible lighting in virtual worlds. If you look back from 'Complex 7' to your latest work, 'Lost Worlds,' over the past 5 to 6 years, what milestones or turning points would you point out in terms of the development and evolution of your focus or artistic practice?"
"I would say the first turning point was 'Moody'; that's one of the things I'm most proud of in terms of complexity. It was also one of my first flagship projects on VRChat, where you could click a button and switch between different environments, day and night, and different weather effects. Each scene had different customization options, and I'm very proud of that. It was the first time I gained attention on VRChat. Technically, I learned a lot about triggers, how to use the SDK, and more. And then, years later, there was 'Magic Haze'—that was a project that opened the door to those large, complex worlds of the rideable type, more like Disney or Universal Park types. It was a bigger and more complex world."
"Since you made your first world, how many worlds have you made? Between your first world and the one you showcased at Fins immersive 2024 with 'Project Lost Worlds,' how many worlds have you created?"
"About 30 to 40, but privately, I've done more. Currently, there are only around 35 publicly available. Privately, I've done about 70 in total. These works were just for doodling or other client projects. They're either personal testings, lighting testings, or scene testings, even a full world that's usable but doesn't have a specific purpose, so I don't consider them 'fit for public release.' When these works don't meet the standards for public release, no matter how advanced they are, I won't release them."
"So, you've created around 100 worlds in the past 5 to 6 years, averaging about 20 or less per year. That sounds like a bit faster pace than the average of one per month over the past 5 years. So, considering your journey as a world builder over the past 5 to 6 years, are there any milestones or turning points you could point out on your timeline to illustrate the focus or development of your artistic practice?"
"I would say the first turning point was 'Moody.' It's one of the things I'm most proud of in terms of complexity. It was my first major project on VRChat that allowed you to switch environments, day and night, and weather effects using a button. Each scene had different customization options. Technically, I learned a lot about triggers, how to use the SDK, and more. And then, years later, there was 'Magic Haze,' which opened the door to those large, complex worlds of the rideable type, like a theme park adventure game. And just like 'Complex 7 Lite,' there were a lot of things that you could make your own story with, figuring out what happened文章讲述了关于"Project Lost Worlds"的访谈内容。"Project Lost Worlds"是一款VR游戏,作为VRChat的一部分,旨在为用户提供沉浸式的体验和社交互动。游戏的制作者表示,他们通过创造一个真实而令人惊叹的虚拟世界来为用户提供一种新的探索和体验方式。游戏中的场景和角色设计精美逼真,让用户仿佛真的身临其境。他们还计划在未来将更多的互动元素和角色引入游戏中,以丰富用户体验。对于VR技术的未来潜力,制作者表示虚拟现实可以成为一个创造、表达和连接用户的空间,给人们带来更多欢乐和机会。他们还强调了对艺术家的支持和激励,希望能够帮助更多的创作者在虚拟现实领域实现自我经济支持。整体而言,制作者对虚拟现实的发展和社区的积极成长感到乐观。