The interface for the VR system in USV2 will differ from the mouse and keyboard system on desktop and will be centered around motion controls of the Vive Dixon explained: The simulation running, however, is the exact same as the desktop,” Dixon said. We’re targeting a more interactive, immersive, and playful experience in VR and trying to avoid the number tuning precise and precise dialing of properties. “I think it’s fair to say that VR just doesn’t work as well in that way. Realism will still reign supreme, but Dixon does believe that the VR version of the game should focus more on play and exploration and less on the level sliders and menu windows of the PC version. This means that, in US2, smashing the moon into the Earth, while fun and exciting, will also play out as realistically as it would in real life thanks to the physical laws that govern the game. Want to add another planet into our solar system? Have fun.

Want to see what happens if the sun was twice as large? Go for it. Universe Sandbox 2’s main mechanic is a realistic outer-space physics engine that allows you to play out the what-if scenarios of your cosmological dreams.

ChubbyEmbellishedAcornwoodpeckerĪs fantastical as this sounds, what Dixon is proposing would actually be quite scientific. But imagine being able to grab a moon in one hand, the earth in the other and smash them together right in front of your face.” You can move planets around and get results. “Most games have their planets on tracks. “VR is extremely compelling, and super interesting and the idea of being able to manipulate planets is mind boggling and super intuitive,” said Dixon. He says he is once again ready to reinvent this wheel by creating a VR version of Universe Sandbox 2. The sequel was released in August 2015 and is “a complete rebuild of the entire concept from the ground up and in a new engine,” according to Dixon.Īpparently, Dixon subscribes to a no rest for the weary worldview. Over time his hobby eventually grew into the original Universe Sandbox that was launched on Steam in May 2008. Now, more than 15 years later, the full set of outer space simulation tools is still Dixon’s passion project. Universe Sandbox 2 got its start when Dixon began dabbling with a simple gravity simulator in high school. “It really becomes the world’s best god simulator,” Dan Dixon tells me describing what will happen to his life’s work, Universe Sandbox 2, once the VR support he is working to implement goes live.

Universe sandbox 2 reddit