SAN FRANCISCO -- As part of the inaugural Vision VR/AR Summit 2016, the finalists for the 2016 Vision Awards have been announced. The winners will be revealed at the Vision VR/AR Summit, taking place February 10-11 in Hollywood, CA.

The 2016 Vision VR/AR Awards recognize the most innovative virtual and augmented reality projects to date across eight categories, including Best Film/Interactive Story, Best AR experience, and Artistic Achievement, among others. The winners will be announced at the Vision Awards Ceremony taking place on February 10th, 2016 at the Loews Hollywood Hotel in Hollywood, California. Hosted by Nonny de la Pena, senior research fellow at the University of Southern California, the ceremony will be preceded by a networking reception during which attendees will have an opportunity to ask finalists about their projects.

Winners will be selected by a distinguished panel of judges, including: Brandon Bray from Microsoft, Jed Ashforth from Sony, Chris Pruett from Oculus, Timoni West from Unity Technologies, Per Nielsen from PTC, and Will Mason from UploadVR.

The finalists are:

VISION INSPIRE AWARD

• I Expect You to Die – Schell Games
• Fantastic Contraption – Radial Games
• Faster Than Light – Anomaly Productions
• Honorable Mentions: Job Simulator, Lucid Trips – Whateverland, BRAVEMIND

 BEST VR EXPERIENCE

• Fantastic Contraption – Radial Games
• Job Simulator – Owlchemy Labs
• Thunderbird: The Legend Begins – Kai and Tony Davidson
• Honorable Mentions: Classroom Aquatic, Apollo 11 VR, Modbox

BEST AR EXPERIENCE

• Table Zombies – SRG United Solutions
• Eleanor of Ayer – Gelly Bomb Games
• Faster Than Light – Anomaly Productions
• Honorable Mentions: Kraft Interactive Placemat, Clandestine: Anomaly

ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

• Technolust – IRIS VR Inc
• SENS – Red Corner
• Lucid Trips – Whateverland – Lucid Trips Team
• Honorable Mentions: Jake and Tess’ Finding Monsters Adventure, Arizona Sunshine, Residential Condominium Architectural Simulation

TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

• Modbox – Alientrap
• Residential Condominium Architectural Simulation – Arch VirtualEasyAR Engine – EasyAR
• Honorable Mentions: Kraft Interactive Placemat, Fantastic Contraption

 BEST GAME

• I Expect You to Die – Schell Games
• Budget Cuts – Neat Corporation
• Classroom Aquatic – Sunken Places
• Honorable Mentions: Jake and Tess’ Finding Monsters Adventure, Adventure Time: Magic Man’s Head Games, Vanguard V

 BEST FILM/INTERACTIVE STORY

• Apollo 11 VR – Immersive VR Education
• The Shoebox Diorama – Daniel Ernst
• The Fabulous Journeys of Tess & Leonie
• Honorable Mentions: Waves of Grace, Happyland360

BEST LIVE-ACTION EXPERIENCE

• U2 Song for Someone – Chris Milk, U2, Universal Music Group, Vrse Inc., vrse.Works
• Get Barreled in Tahiti – Rapid VR
• Sinking – Maren Demant
• Honorable Mentions: Waves of Grace, Imago

Attendees of the Vision VR/AR Summit 2016 will have the opportunity to demo new and award-winning experiences in the VR/AR Showcase, with four rooms of expertly curated content from around the globe. Across from the Showcase will be the exhibit hall with 25 exhibitors, giving attendees more opportunities to experience an array of content on the latest hardware.

Early bird passes are available through January 18, 2016 and can be purchased here. Additional Summit details can be found on the event website.

Source: Vision Summit 2016