Create AR Games at real locations! (Unity + Lightship VPS Tutorial)

Thanks for watching my journey. I want to build the most exciting AR Experiences including Games, Movies and usefull Apps. My background is mainly in 2D / 3D Animation using Blender and After Effects, but I always loved the idea auf Augmented Reality. Furthemore I liked to code. So in late 2022 I decided to learn Unity and get deeper into AR Software Development. Let's see how far we can come :)
If you like my tutorials and videos on XR, you can support me here:
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Timestamps
0:00 Introduction
1:00 Download the Lightship Wayfarer App
1:38 Sign into Lightship.dev
2:20 3D Scanning
3:30 Explore the VPS Map and add wayspots
05:15 Geospatial Browser
07:10 Download our 3D Scans
07:40 Setup Unity Project with Lightship ARDK
12:00 Setup VPS in editor
15:30 Potential errors and shadow catcher
18:00 Adding AR Occlusion
20:00 Testing VPS in editor with playback
21:30 Plane detection and placement at VPS
33:15 Make placed objects persistent (Save)
55:20 Make placed objects persistent (Load)
01:30:00 Cleaning up moms spaghetti code
01:35:30 Finish the loading logic
01:40:30 Retrieve VPS locations with coverage manager
02:08:00 Localize and navigate retrieved VPS
02:32:00 Final testing and outro
Video Tutorial for installing ARDK3:
• How to make an AR App:...
Templates for playback (In editor testing):
drive.google.com/drive/folder...
My Lightship ARDK 3 Playlist:
• ARDK3 Tutorials
Niantic Wayfarer App:
testflight.apple.com/join/VXu...
play.google.com/store/apps/de...
Code for this tutorial:
github.com/Alive-hub/Lightshi...
More on VPS:
lightship.dev/products/vps
How to install ARDK3 to Unity:
lightship.dev/docs/ardk/setup/
ARDK3 Sample Package:
lightship.dev/docs/ardk/sampl...
Unity assets used in this tutorial:
Dragons:
prf.hn/click/camref:1100lumXw...
House:
prf.hn/click/camref:1100lumXw...
Weapons:
prf.hn/click/camref:1100lumXw...
3D Assets that are great for AR / VR purposes *:
Low Poly, Animated Dinosaurs:
assetstore.unity.com/packages...
Low Poly, Animated Animals:
assetstore.unity.com/packages...
Low Poly Junge:
assetstore.unity.com/packages...
Low Poly Forest:
assetstore.unity.com/packages...
Convert Terrain to Mesh (For Transforming a Terrain to view):
assetstore.unity.com/packages...
Explorer Character Pack:
assetstore.unity.com/packages...
*The given links are part of Unitys affiliate program
Note: Some of the images and graphics used are from FreePik. I own the rights / premium license to use those graphics.

[@AliveStudios_]

Important additional comments: 👉🏽The version of Lightship ARDK we are using in this video is 3.1 👉🏽 The approach shown in this video also works for multiplayer. Instead of saving to a persistent file-path you can save to a cloud server so that placed objects will appear for everyone that owns your app. 👉🏽 You can also add 3d scans to existing waypoints / your created waypoints by simply walking to the location, then you can select it in your wayfarer app and add scan 👉🏽 When using the Substring method at 2:04:30 , you might get a null reference error when locations have less than 10 characters. Therefore you can pre-check if the string count is higher that 10 and only then apply this substring 👉🏽When working with multiple Meshes, downloaded from the Geospatial Browser you can change the AR Location that is supposed to be tracked like this: //You could create an array of ARLocation and store all downloaded AR location manifests here. Then based on a dropdown menu //or button set the current location like this: //SerializeField ARLocationManager _arLocationManager.StopTracking(); ARLocation[] locations = new[] { location }; _arLocationManager.SetARLocations(locations); _arLocationManager.StartTracking();

[@DevDunkStudio]

Really nice in depth video!👌👌

[@AliveStudios_]

Thank you, Dylan :)

[@user-kg3qj4bd3x]

outstanding tutorial!

[@AliveStudios_]

Glad you find it useful!

[@madshesker8113]

Hi, ich finde deine Videos wirklich gut und sie haben mir den Einstieg wirklich erleichtert. Ich kann irgendwie keine Test-Scans erstellen, bzw werden sie mir im Dashboard nie angezeigt. Müssen auch Testscans an bestehende VPS-Locations gekoppelt sein? Und wenn ja, kann ich auch private VPS-Punkte erstellen oder geht das nicht? Danke schonmal :) PS: Und könnte man theoretisch ein ganzes Gebäude von innen damit einscannen?

[@garywillmott80]

Thanks for the incredible video! Really inspired my to get back into making games. 🙏🙏🙏 Q: at 12:53 Where you DL the mesh file into the unity project? Does the Mesh file automatically populate in the Inspector window? Or do you somehow dl a zip from the cloud?

[@AliveStudios_]

Hi mate, thank you for your kind words, I'm glad to hear that :) You download a zip file from the geospatial browser and once you put it into Unity it will unzip automatically and you will get those two files

[@garywillmott80]

@@AliveStudios_ so strange, i've done numerous scans (private) and uploaded them from the Ninantic app, however they don't reflect in the Geospatial Browser. I've looked in Test Scans and Submissions, but nothing there?? Do I have to Assign to waypoint?

[@AliveStudios_]

@@garywillmott80 That's weird! I don't think that you have to assign a wayspot. Did you make sure that you are logged in with the same account on lightship.dev and the niantic wayfarer app and are you sure your uploads always were successful? I sometimes encountered the issue that my scans were to long. Maybe you can try do a 15 second simple scan or so to make sure it's not an upload issue.

[@tanx-pe5im]

Your content has been incredibly insightful and helpful. I have a question regarding the placement of objects in different locations. I understand that we can build a private scan for a specific location, and objects can be saved within that private scan. However, for other locations that are tracked, even if they are public, am I correct in assuming that we can't save objects within those locations? In other words, unless these specific locations are built into the scene, the objects placed in those locations won't be saved. Is my understanding correct? If my understanding is correct, how would I include multiple AR Locations but switch between them through code? I noticed that in the AR Location Manager, I can only select one from the dropdown in the AR Location field.

[@AliveStudios_]

Thanks a bunch for your kind words :) There are two ways to use VPS locations. (Also a combination is possible) Firstly, you can manually download locations from the geospatial browser (the meshes) and then very specifically place objects there (or let the user place objects). Secondly, you can use the technique shown in the later part of this video, where we retrieve automatically nearby locations with the coverage manager. Here we can localize, but there is no "mesh" loading. It is though possible like with the "meshes", to place and save objects at these locations by for example using live meshing or plane detection. Generally no matter what way you use, you can place and save objects at this position, as they all rely on a "anchor" object that is created while scanning, and relative to which all other objects are being placed. When working with multiple Meshes, downloaded from the Geospatial Browser you can change the AR Location that is supposed to be tracked like this: //You could create an array of ARLocation and store all downloaded AR location manifests here. Then based on a dropdown menu //or button set the current location like this: //SerializeField ARLocationManager _arLocationManager.StopTracking(); ARLocation[] locations = new[] { location }; _arLocationManager.SetARLocations(locations); _arLocationManager.StartTracking(); Hope that somewhat answers your question:)

[@tanx-pe5im]

@@AliveStudios_ In the scenario where there are two adjacent locations, I successfully localized and placed objects in the first location. However, upon moving to the second location, I encountered the following error message: You are already tracking the 1 closest locations. Call StopTracking() before calling StartTracking(). + gameObject It seems like the previous AR location wasn't stopped from tracking. Is this related to the issue you mentioned regarding working with multiple meshes? Could you provide a detailed explanation of how this code snippet is implemented? Thanks a lot.

[@Zero-kr2wr]

Thank you for your interesting video! I'm just beginning to explore Unity and am very interested in developing a game application using AR technology. Could you kindly advise me on the best approach to study and the resources I should focus on to reach my goal? Thank you for your guidance.

[@AliveStudios_]

Hi mate, sure :) I'd recommend to begin with a Unity beginners tutorial that has nothing to do with AR but will learn you the basics of the software. CodeMonkey does great beginners tutorials. After you have a good feeling of the engine you can create a little project by yourself for maybe 3 or 4 weeks. Something extremely basic. Then I'd recommend to get straight into AR Foundation (Unity native AR Tool) and Lightship. I would say that on my channel there are some great resources how to learn Lightship. But there are also great tutorials if you just enter "AR foundation tutorial" or "Lightship ARDK 3 tutorial" Hope this helps :)

[@user-hx5vm3sk8j]

Thanks for your hardwoking bro! I have a question for ya that my scan cannot upload to the cloud, do you know why?

[@AliveStudios_]

Thank you for the kind words :). I had this issue when recording too long. So I’d recommend to try below 30 seconds. I also have the feeling that sometimes uploading works better or worse depending on the servers of Niantic. So you can try select upload later and try upload at a different time.

[@johunbank5851]

Could you please create a video about Emoji Garden? I'm experiencing an issue with the loading screen when entering the app

[@AliveStudios_]

What kind of issue do you experience?

[@quantumaudiotv9065]

Hi, which device did you use to scan the room? and which 3d scanner you usually use? thank you very much!

[@AliveStudios_]

Hi mate, just using my phone (iPhone 11) + the niantic wayfarer app :)

[@shafqatali8672]

❤

[@maltesekink100]

Really appreciate your efforts. I am trying to enter testflight but dont have a code to redeem. How can I get one?

[@AliveStudios_]

Hi mate, thanks a bunch :) Did you use this link? testflight.apple.com/join/VXu1F2jf I think the code should be VXu1F2jf Let me know if this worked for you :)

[@ardiannn-vf2pn]

Excellent tutorial! But I have a problem, I have followed your video tutorial from the beginning to the 31st minute. The problem I face is that the object is drifting, not steady as seen in your video. How to solve this problem? I have made sure 100% of my configuration is the same as yours. Notes: - I scanned the VPS object with iPad Pro M2 (WiFi Only, no gps) - I tested the application on an Android device

[@AliveStudios_]

Hi mate, can you try to add multiple scans to that specific VPS? Often times one scan can cause problems because it lacks accuracy. Usually it needs about 5 scans in different lighting conditions.

[@caytoncay1023]

Hi bro, how do you do a test run at 15:26?

[@AliveStudios_]

Hi mate, I build to app onto my phone :)

[@jsy704]

In the process of saving and loading objects There is an error of about position x: 1.5, y: -1.09, z: -4.9. is there a such issue??

[@jsy704]

I didn't write any plus or minus on the position during loading

[@AliveStudios_]

@@jsy704 Can you post the exact error in here :) ?

[@jsy704]

@@AliveStudios_ I wrote code once again... then it works well I don't know why the object position had been changed before... anyway Thank you! I really appreciate your youtube

[@rashilyadav7437]

I'm having the problem with my app on my phone..I have signed in with the same id that I created on the website and when I'm clicking on "Scan" option, no camera opens rather it is loading endlessly and nothing seems to happen apart from that. Can you help please?

[@AliveStudios_]

Did you try to restart your phone? What kind of phone you have? Maybe Update the OS? Sounds to me like some kind of compatibility issue between the app and you phone. Do you have other AR Apps on your phone and do these work fine?

[@rashilyadav7437]

@@AliveStudios_ I've tried it all...I've cleared the cache, restarted the phone, re-installed it but nothing works. I'm having the latest version of Android installed on my phone. Also I asked my friend to install the app and use my credentials to login ...they were having the same prblm as me.

[@AliveStudios_]

@@rashilyadav7437 hm that sounds weird. Do you have any friend or family member with an iOS device and you could test it there too? In general the Wayfarer App is still a beta application and I also had some issues with it. For me it just did not upload the scans to the server. Then a few days later things seemed to work for some reason. I really hope that you can solve this issue, maybe create a new thread here: community.lightship.dev/ (same login as lightship.dev) Niantic employees will usually answer you within a day or two

[@rashilyadav7437]

@@AliveStudios_ I'll try on an iOS device. Thanks for your help, sir.

[@ferasalfarsi897]

Can you please, zoom in when you scripts?! What you are typing is very small. It is hard to see. Thank you for the video.

[@AliveStudios_]

That's a good point, thank you :)!

[@user-mn1yr5dq7d]

Why is the video quality 360p?😕

[@AliveStudios_]

it is still processing, KZbin says it should be HD in about 2h :)

[@NianticLighter]

This is ARDk 3???

[@AliveStudios_]

yes :) 3.1 to be exact

[@NianticLighter]

@@AliveStudios_ Bro, a question, you use URP here? I want to make a Portal in ARDK 3, but i have the black screem issue (even i already Fix all the septups, and put the backscreen, still all in black x.x)

[@NianticLighter]

@@AliveStudios_ i can use this for URP? on 3d i cant use portals and shaders :c

[@AliveStudios_]

@@NianticLighter Hi mate :) To get URP working with Lightship make sure to search for “URP” in your Assets (When Lightship is already installed) , you will find the LightshipURP asset (Should be there without installing the sample package) . Drag this in your player settings into “Graphics” -> Scriptable Render Pipeline Settings. Then it should work. You could too create -> Rendering -> URP Asset with universal and for the asset renderer add the AR Background + Lightship Occlusion features. Also make sure in Quality settings -> Rendering to not overwrite your Render Asset

[@NianticLighter]

ill test and tell you, thanks you bro, u r charming as always.. i try to do creating my rendering URP asset, but that dont work, ill try the first one.. @@AliveStudios_

[@user-mn1yr5dq7d]

Why is the video quality 360p?😕

[@DevDunkStudio]

Video was probably still processing. It's fixed now