spatialcomputing.info

ShapesXR (2021), the 3D and XR prototyping platform, just got a new animation feature that allows design teams to make their XR prototypes even more expressive and lifelike.

The studio says the new ‘Animation’ feature introduces an “easy-to-use frame-based animation system, enabling creators to add transitions and dynamic interactions between scenes—all without writing a single line of code.”

Things like UI motion, storytelling beats, or interactive gestures can all be scripted with ShapesXR’s Animation feature, the studio says, noting that it’s designed to make XR prototypes “more immersive, expressive, and engaging.”

“Animation is in our DNA—we started from animation years ago, and it’s always been our dream to bring it into ShapesXR in a way that’s fast, intuitive, and accessible,” said Inga Petryaevskaya, CEO of ShapesXR. “Our goal was to enable rapid prototyping without losing the speed and creative freedom to explore new ideas.”

As with any ShapesXR creation, the new Animation feature lets design teams collaborate in real-time, and animate assets on any device with a browser, letting users switch between traditional monitors and XR headsets, including Quest and Pico headsets.

Additionally, the Animation feature is launching with new sample spaces and in-space interactive tutorial guided by a virtual instructor to teach users the ropes on how to animate assets in-app.

Released in 2021, ShapesXR is primarily targeted at creatives and businesses, although the app is actually offered for free on the Horizon Store for Quest 2 and above and the Pico Store with a wide variety of tools, features and export formats for anyone looking at getting into XR app prototyping.

Being a free users does come with a few caveats though, namely only one editable space, a 10 state cap per space, and a 20 MB cap on asset imports. Any more than that, and you’ll need either a Business or Enterprise license.