The Future Is Wild VR

The subject of this article was cancelled

It was never created or filmed, there are no plans for continuing it, and it is not considered canonical

The Future Is Wild VR
Developer	STUDIO CGARTIST
Release Date(s)	Cancelled
Platform(s)	Vive, Rift, OSVR
Genre	Speculative science

The Future Is Wild VR was a planned virtual reality game based on The Future Is Wild, produced by STUDIO CGARTIST. It was to have included a number of concepts by Dougal Dixon, with creative control held by Joanna Adams, the original creator of The Future Is Wild. It would feature the familiar worlds of 100 and 200 million AD, as well as the new worlds of 20 and 50 million AD, with 20 new animals. It was conceived as an exploration game with survival elements.

It was planned to be compatible with VIVE, Oculus Rift, and Open Source Virtual Reality, and was planned to have an estimated playtime of 100 minutes. The contracted head of the project was CG artist and VR developer Cornel Hillmann. In 2024, series creator Jo Adams confirmed that the game was no longer in development.

Story

“

FIW VR tells the big-picture story of speculative evolution and sends you on a mission as a scientific explorer to collect, study and investigate the bizarre worlds of future ecosystems. — The Future is Wild VR - STUDIO CGARTIST

”

Development

On 2 May 2016, Hillmann made a post on the Speculative Evolution forum requesting advisors for a Virtual Reality experience based on The Future Is Wild, but many of the forum members considered it suspicious, leading to the post eventually being deleted.

A glimpse of the design process behind the The Future Is Wild VR demo.

A demo presentation version utilising mobile VR headsets, "The Future Is Wild Google VR Cardboard edition," which ran at the Mipcom TV- and broadcast-tradeshow in Cannes, and the Bookfair in Frankfurt from 5 to 9 October 2016, was created first. This demo included the megasquid (the model of which was a reassembled and retextured version of the TV series' original model) and and a creature originally designed for the cancelled second series of The Future Is Wild, the titan dolphin, alongside static models of the rainbow squid and sharkopath. The concept of the titan dolphin caused some controversy due to its unlikely evolution, flawed descriptive information, and apparent defiance of The Future Is Wild canon, leading user Scrublord of the Speculative Evolution forum to contact Hillmann, who, in his reponse, wrote:

“

Please keep in mind that this is mostly a tech demo using one of the creatures concept proposals that are considered for production. These are internal early concepts not intended for a consumer release. The final content will go through a number of proofreading, evaluation and simulation circles. — Cornel Hillmann.

”

He also confirmed that, as well as featuring designs by Dougal Dixon, creative control of The Future Is Wild VR is held by original series creator Jo Adams.

As of 30 May 2019, The Future Is Wild VR was still in development: Hillmann noted that "patience is needed" to ensure scientific credibility and high-quality CGI animation, to "provide the best possible simulation of a future ecosystem," and to ensure funding. Hillmann also revealed that The Future Is Wild VR is set to be released as part of a "major brand relaunch" which will include other new The Future Is Wild media.

In September 2024, Adams confirmed to a staff member of the The Future Is Wild Wiki that the VR game had been cancelled.

Appearances

Times & locations

Some of the worlds included in The Future Is Wild VR. Counter-clockwise, from left to right: Fire World, Bengal Swamp, Northern Forest, Global Ocean, Tidal World.

Concept art of the Aeon II by Cornel Hillmann.

• Fire World
• Tidal World
• 20 million AD
• 50 million AD
• 100 million AD
• Bengal Swamp
• 200 million AD
• Global Ocean
• Northern Forest

Organisms

• Skyswimmer
• Titan dolphin
• Ocean flish
• Mammal (The Future Is Wild VR)
• Megasquid
• Rainbow squid
• Sharkopath
• Terabyte
• Garden worm

Technology

• Aeon II

Notes

• According to STUDIO CGARTIST; The Future Is Wild VR would explore how cosmic events would impact evolution and biodiversity, implying that an asteroid collision may have been planned to appear in the game.