Gatineau’s Techtoberfest II: another hit

For this second edition, virtual reality was once again the main attraction with demos galore, but this year visitors were also able to discover electric vehicles, including a Tesla Model S in our parking lot.

Video game players were especially spoiled, being able to test a brainwave-controlled Flappy Bird game with the Muse headband. But AR and VR gamers also got to play with all the best wares: the Oculus Rift, the HTC Vive and Microsoft’s Hololens. Richie’s Plank on HTC Vive, presented by TCI, was especially exciting: imagine walking on a narrow plank atop a skyscraper! Gatineau’s Escape Room also offered several games on the HTC Vive platform, while with the Oculus Rift and Project Cars, you could drive race cars using an actual steering wheel and physical set-up, for a completely immersive experience. Finally, those who love destroying robots gone berserk could practice their shooting skills with Robo Recall.

We also demonstrated the Matterport tool, which we used to digitize our Gatineau office in 3D, as per last week’s column.

The artistically inclined discovered the Masterpiece VR sculpture application, with which they could perform 3D modelling with their hands by manipulating virtual matter. Visitors could also have themselves digitized in 3D with MadeMill’s scanner, then discover their digital selves in VR on Oculus Rift. Finally, Gibson Product Design, specializing in industrial design, displayed their considerable skills.

Many thanks to our partners William J. Walter for their yummy, varied sausages, and CoqLicorne bistro for their great pretzels.

But the best part of the evening was without a doubt meeting the community and getting to know each other. And since “third time pays for all”, go ahead and pencil in Techtoberfest III in 2018!