Designing a virtual reality flight simulator

Abstract

Virtual Reality has been gaining popularity in recent years and has been applied in various fields. One of its uses is for Virtual Reality games and simulators, which targets a wider range of consumers. Flight simulator is one of the more well-known simulators on the market, which is used by both gamers and aspiring pilots. However, developing a simulator that is realistic enough to provide a life-like experience often requires space, suitable environment, and realistic controllers that are often expensive. Virtual Reality can help reduce the production cost of traditional flight simulator by replacing the function of some hardware in making a realistic simulation. In this paper, we present a VR Flight Simulator that runs on Android mobile devices with an external Bluetooth controller. We studied the degree of realism it provides and its effect on player’s enjoyment. The preliminary results show that the flight simulator provide enough visual realism to make an enjoyable and immersive game experience.