Virtual trips | A whole world to discover… virtually

We see this with new productions like The horizon of Khufu Or Space Explorers – Infinity : Virtual reality experiences are increasingly compelling and allow us to travel to otherwise inaccessible places. Could they possibly replace travel in the flesh? Focus.

“I think it would be good for us to travel less, but to travel better,” says Stéphane Rituit, executive producer, CEO and co-founder of the Montreal studio Félix & Paul, which notably created the experience Space Explorers – Infinitypresented at the Old Port of Montreal last year. Can virtual reality be a support to better choose your destinations, and still continue to discover the world around us? Yes quite. »

The idea of ​​limiting travel thanks to virtual reality is gaining ground – one of the themes last year at HUB Montreal referred to ways of transposing the participant into a project, a place or an activity at means of technology.

“It is certain that with everything that is developing, there will be a change in the way we travel,” says Rachel Parent, project manager and responsible for programming for the annual event which aims to be a market international digital creativity. We will develop a collective awareness of the notion of travel and its environmental impacts. One of our objectives is to encourage studios that design this type of project and to contact broadcasting venues to create total experiences. »

I don’t know if it will replace travel, but it will allow you to discover unknown places. However, the feeling of being there, the contact with people, we probably won’t be able to replace that.

Rachel Parent, project manager and programming manager for HUB Montreal

This is why creators talk first and foremost about complementarity. This is particularly the case of Émissive, the French studio which created the experience The horizon of Khufucurrently presented in the Old Port of Montreal, right next to the Science Center.

“I think that if we do The horizon of Khufu before going to see the real pyramid, we will appreciate the real visit much more, maintains the general director Fabien Barati. The exhibition allows you to see the pyramid as it is today, but also as it was 4,500 years ago; you can access areas that are closed to the public, or even completely inaccessible in reality. We walk through the heart of the pyramid which has been emptied of its stones to better understand its interior architecture. »

The virtual experience is therefore intended to be an excellent context which allows us to better appreciate reality, which can appear daunting according to Mr. Barati: “The real visit is limited to a large corridor which goes up to an empty rectangular room where it “It’s very hot,” he explains. We don’t have any explanations on site, so it’s an asset to be able to understand how these corridors were built, what they were used for and how incredible it is to have built this 4,500 years ago. »

With experiences such as Infinity or its series Nomades, the Félix & Paul studio rather places its achievements in the concrete, although we are well aware of the fact that it is not within everyone’s reach to visit the International Space Station, to accompany the Mongols in the steppes of Central Asia or the Bajau on the waters of the Celebes Sea. “For us, the objective is to encourage people to want to discover, so it’s more of an invitation to travel,” says Stéphane Rituit.

Currently, we are working on a big project that will take us even further into space. As there are very few people who are capable of doing this, we are democratizing space tourism through virtual reality.

Stéphane Rituit, CEO and co-founder of Félix & Paul

The new era of AI

For the moment, virtual travel experiences are therefore akin to immersive documentary films with an element of interactivity – an essential element because “the engagement of the body is extremely important”, according to Fabien Barati. “Moving around in a physical environment imprints itself very strongly on our memory, unlike watching a film. »

However, with the advent of artificial intelligence, we are on the threshold of a new era that could make virtual travel even more immersive. “It is certain that AI will support the creation of content, then allow people to walk around in a photorealistic environment,” says Stéphane Rituit. For example, we could meet at the foot of the Tower of Pisa in Italy and then move through physical space and see ourselves through our avatars which will also have photorealistic shapes. So this could extend the notion of virtual travel where, by mutual agreement, we could go visit the Masai in Kenya while witnessing a ceremony that would have been filmed virtually. »

We could also easily imagine ourselves having a discussion with a photorealistic virtual guide who would benefit from artificial intelligence to constantly refine its range of interactions, not to mention augmented reality applications, which could enhance lived experiences. on site with stunning realism. “I am not sure that we can set limits on what it is possible to do in artificial intelligence,” maintains Fabien Barati.

If we think about something, we can say to ourselves that in the more or less near future, it will be possible to simulate it and experience it using tools like virtual reality.

Fabien Barati, general manager of Émissive

“I think that in the coming years, we will especially see biological technological improvements that affect our senses, mainly sight and hearing,” continues the French designer. The tools will also be lighter, more accessible, of better quality, with resolutions that will really give us the illusion of reality. I believe that in a few years it will be difficult to know whether it is real or virtual. »

Visit the website of The horizon of Khufu