So I was asked if my head tracking approach of reading the IMU data from my Viture Pro to OpenTrack and SBS (side-by-side) mode with ReShade would also work with StarCitizen.
It works with the Breezy GNOME xr_driver: https://github.com/wheaney/breezy-desktop (but the Vulkan one works probably too but that’s untested). It should also be compatible with other glasses that have IMU for Breezy available.
There is an unlisted SBS version of this video linked in the description. You will need XR glasses that do FULL SBS though to watch it!
Until now I used OpenTrack with my DIY IR tracker or the Neuralnet tracker. I knew that my XR glasses feature IMU data though and the xr_driver of the Breezy Desktop project allows to access the data via IPC on Linux PC. So I did what Linux user do: I wrote a script to access the IMU data and forwarded it via UDP to OpenTrack:
This reminded me that I also wrote a proof of concept to implement the FaceTrackNoIR (or OpenTrack) protocol into FreeSpace 2 Open on Linux PC ( https://makertube.net/w/7VtfAjW7EiAUS5aiPwG7if ) so I gave it a spin to test the data bridge. That was smooth sailing!
The mod is Diaspora: Shattered Armistice, still awesome today: http://diaspora.hard-light.net/ (Warning: This may fuel a desire to re-watch the BSG series again 😀).
It works with the Breezy GNOME xr_driver: https://github.com/wheaney/breezy-desktop (but the Vulkan one works probably too but that’s untested). It should also be compatible with other glasses that have IMU for Breezy available.
Update: hodasemi wrote a Rust connector based on the idea that works without Breezy: https://github.com/hodasemi/xr_to_opentrack_rs – comes with a systemd service file so it can run in the background. Once installed the only step left to do is fire up OpenTrack 🤘
So bear with me if I mix something up, this is all news to me and I’m still flabbergasted. I got myself some XR glasses mostly for watching movies and perhaps some gaming on the Steam Deck a while ago.
Now I learned about “SBS” (Side-By-Side) mode like ~3 days ago, that the glasses support. I tried this with the game Elite Dangerous first, since this has an SBS mode built in too, and was mind blown. My current favourite time stink is Ace Combat though so I started digging.
Turns out there is this Reshade tool that would forcefully enable such a mode for basically any game with the right shader. Several exist but the first I found, “SuperDepth3D.fx”, seems to do the trick. Enabling it split the 1920×1024 in half with two slightly different view ports, one for each eye. There are many options to fine tune this and I’m still fiddling with this to find the perfect settings but results look great already.
My glasses do Full SBS though and have a resolution of 3840×1024. I read somewhere that wide-screen is possible with more DLL shenanigans with Ace Combat 7 too but I run the game on a Linux PC anyway, where we utilise a tool named “gamescope”. This allows basically to configure a virtual display for each game and override the game resolution in various ways. It also has a stretch option, which is exactly what I needed to get the “compressed” SBS view from 1920 to 3840, where the aspect ratio would fit again. BTW: This also has FSR built in so any upscaling looks good enough too. I’m not entirely sure but I think there’s a similar tool on Windows called “Virtual Deskop”?
Anyway, I already managed to get my head tracker working by mapping the output to a virtual gamepad on the look-around axes before. I also found a mod that enables a wider FOV. Imagine my stupid grinning when everything fell into place: Full SBS with head tracking, a more sane FOV and yes, I jumped all the hoops to get my HOTAS and rudder pedal of my old ViperPit working (which is a different story because my devices are so old that I had to upgrade em to USB before, which involved some Arduinos, programming and soldering). I guess that makes me a member of multiple niches at once 🤓
And since I’m aware that nobody can “see” what I’m talking about, without having XR glasses or a VR headset (or a DIY VR Box for smart phones) on their own, have also an Anaglyph 3D render. This requires just some old school two coloured (red and cyan) glasses often made of paper, that many people still have around somewhere, to get an idea.
The colour of the sky? It’s perfect. A deep dark blue.
Little did I know what a pain in the neck it would be to get this running. No, Linux wasn’t the problem. That was just Press Play, as usual.
There is however no settings menu for #HOTAS joysticks so any mapping has to be done by manually editing the `Input.ini` of the game in an text editor, which is a guessing game. Head tracking is also a no go. I pulled the old trick to map the head tracker to a virtual XBOX controller but the game comes with an annoying deadzone where the camera snaps to the center.
Ah well, got it all working okay-ish in the end and enjoyed some pew pew in the skies. There seem to be plenty of #Macross mods too so trying that will be next 🤘
Today we player all together on the 50″ TV in the living room from the [Linux powered] Steam Deck. We used the Viture USB-C adapter, so the Steam Deck didn’t discharge, attached an OTG cable and an ancient USB hub so we could connect our zoo of accumulated controllers. This way we could all play together the Windows game GoGo Town in early access 😁
`@ozoned` interviewed me on my home cockpit on a live stream via his #Owncast instance at https://stream.ozoned.net/. This is a more condensed version of the stream that is still just 1h shy. We’re going over almost every feature of my Primary Buffer Panel and I explain how everything works. I also decided to add various photos, slideshows or video snippets during the talk only sections so things don’t get too boring. Sometimes that even complements the talks 😄
Ever wondered how to start your own DIY #homeCockpit / #SimPit on? It’s easy. Just watch this stream 🤓
This one flew under my radar so far (haha, sorry):
Rescue the civilians, race the clock, and raze the enemy in MH-Zombie, the world’s only helicopter arcade simulator! Three flight physics modes, three difficulty modes, and a tutorial mode provide a stepped learning curve and wider accessibility to realistic helicopter flight.
The reason this came to my attention is because it’s one of the few games that [just] implemented #headTracking via UDP e.g. available by #OpenTrack (and various others). This is great because it doesn’t force people to jump the hoops of #TrackIR, which is only supported for Windows and officially limited to their proprietary devices. See this in action at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMGFdO7VXiY
Apparently it’s written for mobile games but runs on PC as well – that seems to include Linux PC which even makes this a #LinuxGaming title! 🤓
I don’t know about you but for 3 bucks I’ll totally get this for the occasional pew pew fun. Game seems to be a labour of love so sharing is highly appreciated.
I totally love this. So in Flight Of Nova some players noticed that some stars in the distance looked not like stars and started venturing out and after a 10h realtime flight they managed to crash on another planetary 😄 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fih4peTebyk
This is the next attempt holding enough reaction mass back to survive re-entry and do a proper landing too.
I love this level of nerdism. And I so hope they get to name that bugger 😄
This video is how I gutted my already modified old Thrustmaster F-16 FLCS joystick of my ViperPit and made it work again with the help of an Arduino Pro Micro. This flight stick (and also the other peripherals) do belong in a museum but where’s the fun in that? I modified it and now it’s a generic USB joystick that works on any recent system. I focus mostly on the 5×5 button matrix since this is the hardest part to understand. In the end are a few minutes of playing X4 Foundations with it to give it a good test run. Now it just needs some oil for the creaking 😅
Bandai Namco Studios Inc.
