Portal comes to the real world thanks to augmented reality HoloLens demo

A Microsoft HoloLens developer has created a demo based on classic Valve series Portal which brings the portal-based puzzle gameplay to the real world thanks to the augmented reality headset.

Developer Kenny Wang is responsible for the tech demo, a side-project of his, which he uploaded a demo of to YouTube. Safe to say, it looks like a pretty incredible use of AR technology.

In the video (embedded below) the HoloLens headset, which allows visuals to overlap and interact with the real world, lets the user create portals that attach to walls, ceilings and other flat surfaces and then use a companion cube to test them out.

That companion cube reacts with the real world, toppling into and out of portals, onto table, slamming into walls and in one instance knocking over a virtual sentry turret from the game.

At one point in the video, the cube is sent through a portal, appearing out of the other at the top of some stairs before falling down them and into the first portal again. Players can't use the portals themselves as, we imagine, the sensation would be vomit-inducingly disorientating.

Sadly, given this is just a side-project for Wang and Valve itself is not involved, it's unlikely to ever become an actual game. However, it may catch Valve's attention and inspire whatever it is they're working on for the HTC Vive virtual reality headset.

Valve has brought the Portal universe to virtual reality in The Lab, which didn't feature portals but did take place in the same Aperture Science laboratories, and featured characters GLaDOS and Portal 2 co-op stars Atlas and P-body.

Wang has worked with a recognised IP before, creating a Pokémon AR project last year that looked just as impressive. Whatever the developer ends up working on full time in augmented reality, we'll be interested to see what he comes up with.

There is a huge amount of potential in augmented reality, as evidenced last year by the enormous success of Pokémon Go on mobile. With HoloLens, Microsoft made developer kits available in early 2016 as it continues to work on the tech.

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