Silicon Valley: Inside the Hacker Hostel is a captivating real-time VR experience inspired by the Emmy®-winning comedy series, Silicon Valley. The ambition: to create an interactive and intuitive piece of content that matched the creative and comedy standard of the show, appealing to both die-hard fans and those who had never watched Silicon Valley. The experience provides the most detailed and realistic replica of a TV set ever created in VR. Not only is the environment a faithful reconstruction using photos and blueprints from the set, but in addition to over 750 moveable objects, there are many iconic show elements you can fully interact with, from the Not Hot Dog app to the ‘Always Blue’ ball. You can even experience VR within the virtual Hacker Hostel. The experience is a hilarious virtual playground bringing users into the heart of Silicon Valley and offering firsthand encounters with the show’s talent.

Implementation

Authenticity was key, all elements were bespoke, created from the ground up to ensure consistency with the show’s aesthetic and branding.

Placement

The free experience launched with the premiere of Season 5 of Silicon Valley on HTC’s Vive via the Viveport platform.

Scale

The experience is currently only available in America, but further territories are being considered. The experience has toured to international events.

Brand relevance

Silicon Valley lampoons startups and tech, and therefore using VR, an emerging technology, to extend show/brand engagement was entirely fitting.

Touch points

A supporting webpage was created on SiliconValleyVR.com and news of the release was pushed out via the show’s social media channels and in relevant media.

Materials, style elements, design choices

A fully explorable virtual 1:1 representation of the Hacker Hostel was created in Unreal Engine. Simplified controls make it easy for users of all experience levels to explore the Hacker Hostel.

Methods and process

Unreal’s built-in systems, married with the studio’s own in-house VR template—specifically designed for convincing physics-based interactions—ensured a faithful replica was created

Highly detailed blueprint designs were used to model all of the Hacker Hostel’s floors, walls, and ceilings in 3DS Max and Maya, ensuring a perfect replica. From the set, thousands of photo references were captured, including 360º captures of each room, so every last detail—even the lighting—was exactly matched.

The show’s creative team and the show’s talent were heavily involved. There is original scripted content from the show’s principal talent, created in collaboration with the show’s writers within the experience.

The experience is packed with more than 750 items. This phenomenal number was made possible using forward rendering.

Timeline

Initial production ran over 12 weeks, with a capture and reference on-set session a month before.