Create your own virtual world – no coding expertise necessary

Mtion’s new product opens novel ways for creativity and connection via live-streaming

September 13, 2023

There is a massive world online forging human connection through virtualized forms of reality. Live-streaming services, like the popular content platform Twitch, allow creatives to stream to tens of thousands of viewers who watch live and interact with content creators.

Creators are hungry for artistic autonomy, and viewers want a better interactive experience, said Jeremy Hartmann (PhD’ 21), founder of mtion.tv, a company at Velocity, University of Waterloo’s startup incubator, which has just released a new gaming engine to the public.

“The gap right now is that existing game engines require a lot of expertise and years of software developing experience, but we are providing a tool that lets anyone build out these online spaces without having extensive developer background,” Hartmann said. “It’s a no code game engine, which enables gamers to build 3D spaces to express themselves and engage and interact with their fans in immersive settings.”

Choosing from a catalogue of virtual spaces, mtion users can create mini-games, interactive experiences and build an expansive universe with their avatars and characters who have backstories, all of which they can live-stream to their fans. Mtion is also working on features that enable multi-player options, allowing streamers and their fans to interact in a virtual space.

“Creators want to expand beyond what is available and differentiate themselves from the sea that is the creator space right now,” said Hartmann.

“The hardest thing about entrepreneurship is the vast uncertainty of choice — you’re in the middle of the sea, and you don’t know what the signposts are. At Velocity, advisers and other founders can provide insight into the right choices, insights that have to come from having prior startup experience, about where to turn at a time when you don’t know what choices to make.”
Jeremy Hartmann, mtion.tv founder

Full story on Waterloo News.