Mercedes-Benz X-Class
A virtual reality brand and product experience.
Sebastian Steudtner, double XXL Big Wave Award winner and brand ambassador of the Mercedes-Benz X-Class presents this virtual ride of an XXL Big Wave. Experience the fascination of the wave and get to know a vehicle for a lifestyle beyond the ordinary.
Task
The open sea. Waiting for the Big Wave. Then, the ride of the wave, entering the tube, reaching the beach. Pure adrenaline. This experience should be experienced as a mobile VR experience on a real surfboard. Immersive to the maximum, fascinating to the maximum.
Implementation
It quickly became clear that the creative requirements of this project could not be realised with a real film shoot. The user should experience the unique feeling of really being in the tube of an XXL Big Wave. We solved this challenge with the virtual production of the Experience. Using complex fluid simulations, a realistic Big Wave was animated and ridden with a virtual surfboard. The board was equipped with a stereoscopic 360 degree camera, which recorded the experience. The finale of this adrenaline trip was made up of people watching the event, playing volleyball or jogging, together with two arriving X-classes at the finish line of the Experience on the beach. Complex character and crowd animations form the virtual audience and interact with the vehicles which are perfectly located in the scene.
In the next step, our developers created an app that controls a moving surfboard and a wind machine synchronously to the 360 degree film. Together with 360 degrees of sound, an immersive surf experience was created which, like the vehicle, lies beyond the ordinary.
Result
The ultimate XXL Big Wave VR experience. Developed for maximum ease of use, the exhibit is an all-in-one solution. The mobility, the easy handling and the low hardware and software costs of this solution allow the international use at events and the POS. Initially developed for the IAA, due to the extremely positive response, visitors to small and large events worldwide now receive the opportunity to take this unique ride on an XXL Big Wave.