ByteDance’s PICO to Launch VR Version of The Three-Body Problem

On September 27, VR device brand PICO held its first new product release conference in China since it was acquired by ByteDance. During the event, it revealed the PICO 4 and PICO 4 Pro products with a rich VR content ecology. Attending the conference by video was Liu Cixin, the author of wildly popular science fiction novel “The Three-Body Problem,” who said that PICO has been authorized to jointly produce the first interactive narrative work of the book’s VR version, to be launched next year.

The Three-Body Problem is a modern masterpiece of Chinese science fiction. Its charm comes not only from its imaginative scientific themes, but also from the perspective of philosophy, sociology and ethics, considering the influence of science and technology on social systems, humanity and future lifestyles. In 2015, the fiction novel won the prestigious Hugo Award for Best Novelfrom the World Science Fiction Convention. In the same year, it was nominated for another heavyweight award in science fiction, the Nebula Award.

Both Netflix and Tencent have gained rights to adapt this sci-fi work to the screen. On September 25, Netflix released a behind-the-scenes teaser, showing off a few key moments. So far, the first season of the series has been filmed, and post-production is now under way ahead of next year’s planned launch.

In June this year, the official Weibo account of Tencent‘s Three-Body Problem adaptation also released new posters, teasers and cast details. In the teasers, the classic designs of the original Three-Body Problem novel, such as “Farmer Hypothesis” and “Ghost countdown,” have been released. According to domestic media reports, the TV series will be broadcast in the near future.

For the cooperation between PICO and Three-Body Problem, a senior metaverse industry practitioner said that the content is the first productive force for the rapid development of AR/VR. “At present, the main application of AR/VR is games, and the interactive games focusing on fitness and competition are the main stream,” said the source. “The cooperation between Three-Body Problem and PICO has opened a new window for future AR/VR content.”

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Audio-visual experiences and interaction are the focus of efforts to combine AR/VR with content. This cooperation between Three-Body Problem and PICO may serve as a starting point.