Shadow Client Replay Rendering for VR Sessions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing technologies fail to efficiently capture and replay virtual reality and 3-D generated sessions across disparate platforms, leading to resource allocation issues and the need for re-architecting of game engines, which increases development complexity and computing overhead.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a shadow client system that runs on a separate machine, consuming the same data stream as a spectator client to render various points of view within a session, allowing for automatic recording and playback support without modifying the original game engine's source code, and converting messages and assets into a common format for cross-platform compatibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the game is re-rendered on the local machine for spectator views, then the replay can be viewed from multiple points of view, but the computing resources are doubled causing performance degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates the rendering function into two independent components: the game engine that generates the base game state, and the spectator client that independently renders spectator views. This segmentation allows the game to run once while multiple spectator clients render different viewpoints without competing for the same rendering resources.
Solution Approach 2:
The spectator client acts as an intermediary between the game engine and the display. It receives game state data from the game engine and independently generates the visual output for spectator views, eliminating the need for the game engine to perform multiple rendering operations.
2Extent of automation
If a spectator places a camera to record the game play, then the recording can be captured, but the game play computer takes on additional rendering overhead negatively impacting performance
Solution Approach 1:
The recording function is extracted from the game engine and implemented as a separate feature in the spectator client. The spectator client captures game state data and generates recordings independently, removing the rendering overhead from the game play computer and allowing automatic recording without impacting game performance.
3Manufacturing precision
If replay is created using the original game engine, then the replay quality is high, but the development complexity increases due to re-architecting requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The spectator client is designed with multi-functionality, serving as both a replay viewer and a recording device. It can consume game state data to generate high-quality replays and automatically record sessions, eliminating the need for separate replay creation tools and reducing development complexity while maintaining high replay quality.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for generating a spectator controlled replay of a gameplay session. The system may include a session client having a processor and memory containing instructions that when executed by the processor may cause the session client to: initiate a gameplay session, receive gameplay inputs from a gameplay participant, extract gameplay session data, and record the gameplay session data. The system may also include a spectator client configured to: initiate a replay of the gameplay session based on the recorded gameplay session data, render the recorded gameplay session, receive camera data for rendering and recording the replay, and record camera data. The system may also include a shadow client configured to: receive the recorded gameplay session data, receive the recorded camera data from the spectator client, and render the recorded gameplay session data based on the recorded camera data.