Possibilities of Virtual Reality Technologies for the Development of Gaming Applications

The rapid development of virtual and augmented reality technologies is currently taking place in almost all spheres of activity. Elements of virtual and augmented reality are used in such areas as education, medicine, transport, gaming, tourism and others. The active spread of these technologies causes the emergence of special competencies in the IT labor market and, as a result, the formation of new professions.Many Russian universities are training students in IT training areas. Specialization in the development of computer games and virtual reality applications has begun recently. The provision of practical classes is accompanied by specific tasks, which gives students the opportunity to improve the use of software and technical devices.The relevance of the research is determined by the current demand for the use of the latest technologies by IT developers in the field of creating computer games. Today, technologies that provide a player’s immersion in virtual reality are becoming more and more popular. One of these technologies is a suit with wearable sensors that track a person’s position in space in real time. However, there are quite a few real described projects in the literature and on the Internet. This study examines the process of developing a task for creating a game application using virtual reality technology: a suit with wearable sensors for teaching students. Materials and methods of research . Timely identification of the needs of the IT market in personnel training allows educational organizations to form new training programs of different levels of training. This approach makes it possible to target the educational and methodological materials being developed to use the latest achievements in the development of the field under study.Using a systematic approach, the study characterizes virtual reality suits and sensors for monitoring the position in the user’s space. Thus, the goal of the task was to ensure the immersiveness and convenience of interaction between the player and the game environment.Based on materials on software, position sensors in space, the approach of pedagogical design was applied and the procedure was formed for a practical task, reflecting the relevant competencies. Results . The study was conducted on the basis in the framework of laboratory and practical work of students, as well as at a real enterprise. Training in the new profile of the direction of training “Applied informatics” is fully equipped with all the latest technologies in this field. As a result of the work, the content of the practical task was developed.Real development of virtual and augmented reality applications is conducted jointly with students. Almost all projects used a suit with body sensors. Conclusion . Our study examines in detail the process of developing an application using a suit with wearable sensors for further training of students. Based on the results, work can be carried out on real projects for any field. Based on the research materials, it is planned to issue a textbook for students with the profile of developing computer games and virtual / augmented reality applications.