Beside the seaside

Virtual reality is about more than just games, so it's nice to see Sony embrace the idea of interactive movies for PlayStation VR. Gary the Gull, a beach-based short by ex-Pixar and Bungie writer Tom Sanocki, sees you interacting with a gobby seagull using the power of the PlayStation 4's upcoming add-on.

"You can respond to him – you can talk back, answer his questions by nodding or shaking your head, or just ignore him," the veteran scribe wrote on the PlayStation Blog. "He tries to distract you by making you look away, and if you lean in too close he'll jump back. Because virtual reality makes him like he's there in front of you, it feels natural and fun to be part of his story just like he is part of yours."

This seems like a simple little thing, but with Pixar veterans involved, it could be a fun time waster at the right price. The developer's demoing this one at GDC 2016 this week, and is also sharing the interactive character technology that it's created with other studios. That's rather generous of it, isn't it?

[source blog.us.playstation.com]