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Can technology help kids develop empathy? Due to the rise of virtual reality experiences, there's been some buzz lately about the impact technology might have on how we understand and share the feelings of others.

Since video games have an inherent ability to transport us to places and meet people we normally wouldn't, teachers can use them to create authentic experiences in their classes - where students reflect on their own lives, share personal stories with peers, and hopefully begin to share in the perspectives of others. Games can't be the sole tool to help build empathy, but emotional and powerful moments in games can drive meaningful discussions in the classroom.

Though it may be a leap for educators to incorporate mainstream video games into instruction, these types of games can sometimes offer more convincing experiences than those created specifically for the classroom - especially when it comes to building social and emotional skills.

Check out these picks to help jump-start conversations around empathy in the classroom.

Gone Home
This narrative-driven exploration game's story will elicit very different reactions from players - it's about life, love, identity, and family. Used in ELA classes to teach students about character development and theme, it can also be used as an empathy builder. As kids learn about the characters, they will inevitably find struggles that mirror their daily lives, and this is a great place to start having a discussion. Kids can take screenshots of situations they relate most to and create storytelling groups for sharing in class.

Brothers: A Tale of 2 SonsThe control scheme - using one device to control two characters independently - is a perfect metaphor for this game's theme of working together. By the end, kids will also have experienced a tale of family bonds and perseverance after grief and tragedy. Students can work in pairs to solve a problem after playing the game, and document how having a partner changes the way they think, talk, and act - especially when things don't go right.

That Dragon, Cancer
The creators of That Dragon, Cancer used their game as an outlet for making meaning of tragedy, and that is conveyed to the player as they relive memories of dealing with grief. Kids will experience strong emotions as they play, and will recognize how we all need healthy outlets for tough times. Students can work in groups to brainstorm ways they can respond to difficult emotions they might experience in their lives - maybe by creating a video or designing an app or game.

Journey
There's more to Journey than the beautiful vistas. Along your trek, you'll inevitably run into another player (controlled by another human or the computer). With only the ability to communicate through simple tones and sounds, it's up to you how much you work together to reach your destination. These interactions - and how each student might respond to them differently - are the perfect setting to talk about empathy and how limitations in communication may have an effect on how much we understand and relate to each other.
This article's content is an extension of the We All Teach SEL blog series from Common Sense Education. Check it out for a complete look at social and emotional learning in the classroom.
4 Games to Spark Empathy-building in the Classroom

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4 Games to Spark Empathy-building in the Classroom

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Can technology help kids develop empathy? Due to the rise of virtual reality experiences, there's been some buzz lately about the impact technology might have on how we understand and share the feelings of others.

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Clouds Over Sidra Lesson

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Clouds Over Sidra: A Virtual Reality (VR) film | Within

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Meet Sidra. This charming 12-year-old girl will guide you through the Zaatari Refugee Camp, home to 130,000 Syrians fleeing violence.

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Tilt Brush lets you paint in 3D space with virtual reality. Unleash your creativity with three-dimensional brush strokes, stars, light, and even fire. Your room is your canvas. Your palette is your imagination. The possibilities are endless.

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The Body VR: Journey Inside a Cell on Steam

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The Body VR: Journey Inside a Cell is an educational virtual reality experience that takes the user inside the human body.

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A new way to experience 3D creation. Sculpt and paint using intuitive, dynamic and powerful tools that allow you to easily build tangible objects, colourful environments, and high quality models. You can sculpt with friends or coworkers in the same virtual room in real time, or invite spectators to watch while you create.

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Hey Musician and Audio Fanboy! Ever wanted to try the Theremin without paying hundreds of Dollars? Now you can!

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Thread Studio is a new, interactive way to bring t-shirt ideas to life with virtual reality. Flip through color swatches, lay out your designs, and even model your creations on fully posable mannequins! Once you're done creating, you can share photos with friends, get your shirts printed and delivered, or sell them online.

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Limelight puts you on stage and provides the perfect virtual conditions for practicing public speaking or performance skills. Become a fluent presenter, overcome anxiety, attain higher self-confidence, and be a happier person. Are you ready to step into the Limelight?

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Relax your mind and body with WiseMind, a series of science and evidence based trainings built in virtual reality by scientists and therapists. Develop a healthier self, starting today!

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Google Earth VR lets you explore the world from totally new perspectives in virtual reality. Stroll the streets of Tokyo, soar over the Grand Canyon, or walk around the Eiffel Tower.

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If you want to try it without it being too overwhelming this is a cool first try.  Could also be used for relaxation if you are stressed out or for a creative writing project.

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Explore one of nature's greatest wonders from the comfort of your home with the Grand Canyon VR Experience for HTC VIVE and Oculus Rift! Transport yourself on an epic journey into the heart of nature through the magic of Virtual Reality completely immersed in a fully dynamic and interactive beauty never before seen in VR.

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Gravity Lab - Gravitational Testing Facility & Observations on Steam

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Build your incredible machine with gravity bending appliances from Gravity Lab! Our new lunar testing facility welcomes you to try out our standardised testing scenarios - now designed for humans!

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This one is admittedly a little gamey but still good as intro to VR and can be a good "hook" or station for the visual learner.

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InCell is an action/racing VR game with a bit of strategy and science thrown into the mix. You'll take an exciting journey inside the highly unusual micro world of human cell and stop the virus advance. The game is focused on VR but you can play just fine without a set.

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Welcome to The Lab, a compilation of Valve's room-scale VR experiments set in a pocket universe within Aperture Science. Fix a robot, defend a castle, adopt a mechanical dog, and more. Still not sold? It's free!

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The Puzzle Room Mimics the Escape Room- Good for VR Club and getting used to controls

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The Puzzle Room Mimics the Escape Room- Good for VR Club and getting used to controls

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The Puzzle Room VR ( Escape The Room ) on Steam

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It is a VR Experience where you need to find clues to solve puzzles and find your way out of the Room. There are some items that can be grabbed and carried around. With some items you can interact (such as switches,piano and numpads).

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June 7th, 1995. 1:15 AM. You arrive home after a year abroad. You expect your family to greet you, but the house is empty. Something's not right. Where is everyone? And what's happened here? Unravel the mystery for yourself in Gone Home, a story exploration game from The Fullbright Company.

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Micro Cosmic Worlds is a discovery based journey into unseen worlds of the microcosmos. Using the power of virtual reality, you (the player) are transported deeper and deeper into the worlds of the infinitesimally small.

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"The Physiology of the Eye" is an educational VR experience that teaches you about the anatomical structures and physiology of the eye. As you work your way through each of the chapters you will be quizzed and given a GPA at the end.

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JUST UPDATED: Explore the Second Floor of the Museum! Explore a virtual museum in room-scale VR: see famous sculptures in full, 1:1 scale and see famous paintings without the limitations of glass and security guards.

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YOU is a real-time simulation of the human body. YOU allows anyone to freely navigate and explore an anatomically accurate 3D model of the human body, its organs, and their natural function. Visualize how your body works. Explore organs and systems in a fully immersive 3D environment.

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https://www.discoveryvr.com/

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Student testers will complete this form to evaluate software and determine how it can be used in class

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With Magic Hour, get started with VR photography! Take beautiful pictures by exploring an island lit in the perfect light and experiment with an accurate virtual SLR camera that incorporates all the physics of a real camera, in VR.

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The Stanford Ocean Acidification Experience on Steam

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Stanford researchers have produced a virtual underwater ecosystem to allow you to observe firsthand what coral reefs are expected to look like by the end of the century if we do not curb our CO2 emissions.

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Who says data visualization has to be boring? Have you ever wanted to see your data in real 3D? Imagine going inside your data and viewing it from any angle, manipulating any aspect of your data visualization with simple hand gestures. Now you can, in true "Minority Report" fashion with DatavizVR.

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Enjoy the first educational lab for VR. Interact with several different educational objects, simulations, animations, environments and games.

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Paint or sculpt your own 3D creations and play around with them in Virtual Reality! It's free, easy to use and a lot of fun to use PaintLab with friends and family!

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The Night Cafe: A VR Tribute to Vincent Van Gogh on Steam

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The Night Cafe is an environment that allows you to explore the world of Vincent van Gogh first hand. Take a moment to enjoy his iconic sunflowers in 3 dimensions or walk around the chair he painted in his bedroom to see it from another angle.

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VEX VR allows you to immerse yourself into VEX Robotics history. Every game since 2007 has been created and programmed which allows you to play each game with realistic physics, including this year's game: In the Zone. Students can also use this simulation to strategize game play.

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Visualize the hydrogen atom's electron orbitals. Use the controllers to select one of thirty five excited states, and to use the new cutting plane tool. Point cloud colored by probability density.

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This original immersive virtual-reality project is told through the voice of Lt. James Downing, who at 103 is the second-oldest living American veteran to have witnessed that day, and is geared towards audiences of all ages.

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Apollo 11 VR is the story of the greatest journey ever taken by humankind. This VR experience is a recreation of the events which took place between July 16th and July 24th 1969. Now for the first time ever you get to experience this historic event through the eyes of those who lived through it.

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Explore the 7 wonders of the old world in this immersive and high fidelity VR experience from the comfort of your own home.

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3D Organon VR Anatomy is the world's first fully-featured virtual reality anatomy atlas. Learn human anatomy with over 4,000 realistic anatomical models/structures sided with quality text descriptions per body structure. Explore the human body like never before with this revolutionary medical app!

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Reviews

"Verdict: Buy, buy, buy. A must-have video game."
Ars Technica

"...you'll have a lot of close calls as you're sweating bullets down to sometimes literally the last second."
9/10 - Destructoid

"I loved playing Keep Talking. I think it's the most fun I've had in a cooperative game in a long time. I'd recommend it to everyone. I wish I was playing it right now."
Rock Paper Shotgun

Includes Steam Workshop Support

Check out the Steam Workshop to try out new modules, missions, a driveable bus, a double bomb with up to 23 modules, sound packs, and much more!

About This Game

You're alone in a room with a bomb. Your friends, the "Experts", have the manual needed to defuse it. But there's a catch: the Experts can't see the bomb, so everyone will need to talk it out - fast!

Put your puzzle-solving and communication skills to the test as you and your friends race to defuse bombs while attempting to communicate quickly before time runs out!

Rounds are fast-paced, tense, occasionally silly, and almost always loud.

Whether it's defusing a bomb or deciphering information from the manual, everyone has a crucial role to play.

A local co-op party game for two or more players

While usually played in person together, you can play remotely using your favorite third-party voice chat service.

Play a different bomb every time

Procedurally generated puzzles keep the action fresh.

Only one copy of the game needed

Have friends join in as Experts by printing or viewing the free Bomb Defusal Manual at http://www.bombmanual.com

Explore Mission and Free Play Modes

Missions increase in difficulty as players face new modules. Unlock Freeplay Mode to set the pace by configuring your own custom bombs.

Supports mods

Try new community-made modules, missions, and more from the Steam Workshop!

Supports VR

Enter an unmatched immersive experience, isolated from your Experts. Swap out between rounds and share the experience with your friends!

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Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes on Steam

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Find yourself trapped alone in a room with a ticking time bomb. Your friends have the manual to defuse it, but they can't see the bomb, so you're going to have to talk it out - fast!

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A surreal building game for VR. Create life-sized contraptions as tall as you can reach, then send them whirling, flinging, and trundling off to solve puzzles on the other side of a floating island. There are no right or wrong solutions, so bring your creativity.

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theBlu 1.3 Released!

Hola theBlu fans!

We just pushed out the 1.3 Update to all users. This is a bigger update than usual with a new mode (Preview Mode), and a couple of fixes! We think you'll dig Preview Mode- a unique new way to demo theBlu to family and friends.

New Features & Additions:

Preview Mode is now available on the menu. Preview Mode will give you a shortened, two minute version of the Reef Migration or Luminous Abyss. It has all the interactivity, audio and events from the full experience.

Please note that Inspector & Ambient Mode will NOT work with Preview Mode.

To use Preview Mode, just toggle it "On" on the menu. By default, it will be off to avoid any confusion.

When entering a scene in Ambient Mode you'll now see the Ambient Mode icon below the logo.

As per usual, if you see any issues or hit any bugs, don't hesitate to let us know-- email us at support@wevr.com. And keep sending us those amazing screenshots! We love seeing theBlu from a new perspective!
About This Game

theBlu: is a deeply immersive VR series that allows audiences to experience the wonder and majesty of the ocean through different habitats and come face to face with some of the most awe inspiring species on the planet. The series, which is directed by Jake Rowell (Call of Duty, Final Fantasy, Superman Returns), has been designed as beautiful moments in passing or a collection of memories that powerfully tap into the vast potential of VR. The debut episode, featuring an incredible close encounter with an 80 foot whale, is already recognized as one the most iconic room scale VR experiences to date (a Sundance Film Festival 2016 selection). Additional episodes in this bundle take place on a teeming coral reef and in the very deepest region of the ocean. Gain access to new modes of discovery in each episode. Slow time and capture pictures in Inspector Mode, and return to a meditative version of each location in Ambient Mode.

The first three episodes of theBlu, contained in this bundle, are:

Whale Encounter
An undersea encounter with the largest species on earth.

Reef Migration
Witness the magnificence of an undersea migration on the edge of a coral reef.

Luminous Abyss
Venture into the deepest region of the ocean to discover the iridescent abyss.

theBlu Copyright © 2011-2016 Wevr, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Experience the wonder and majesty of the ocean through a series of habitats and come face to face with some of the most awe inspiring species on the planet.

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Bounce is a VR physics-based puzzle game for HTC Vive and Oculus Touch. Players are tasked with helping their playful robot companion, D1G-B, bounce, sling, shoot, and roll his way through an increasingly complex labyrinth of rooms on a galactic spaceship making his way to his final destination.

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Are you ready to build organic molecules such as Carbon, Oxygen, Nitrogen and Hydrogen? nano-one is the first molecular visualization and modeling tool for today's virtual reality platforms.

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Storm is an atmospheric survival game. This is the first, short introduction to a series of episodes of Storm. You wake up in an intense snowstorm. As you look around for ways to get out of the biting cold, to somehow find shelter, your body gets colder, your hands freeze up, and the storm intensifies.

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NEW: 'Animal Kingdom' update. Explore tropical beaches, underwater oceans and even take to the stars. Discover over 60 different animals. Command the weather, take control of the night or create and shape your own world. Relax and immerse yourself into the Nature Treks VR experience.

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Jam Studio VR is an interactive music performance application that allows anyone, at any age, to create and perform music or be a DJ, regardless of musical experience or ability. It also provides a broad range of Fun, Learning & Therapy benefits for families and individuals with special needs.

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Diving to the bottom of the North Atlantic, you take on the role of Dr. Ethan Lynch, Associate Professor of Maritime Archaeology. With funding from a mysterious investor you set out to answer questions that have remained submerged for a century.

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Get up-close and personal with Gravity. Chunky Orbits is a simulation of free-floating objects in space based on real life physics. Each object in the scene attracts each of the others in a cosmic tug-of-war that we call Gravity. Toss out a few boulders and contemplate the wonders of the Universe.

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Oneiric Masterpieces - Paris is the most complete VR museum visit experience. Here you can discover 25 of the most beautiful masterpieces available in Paris and interact with each one.

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The VR Museum offers exclusive access to original VR works by the world's leading contemporary artists. The premiere of our subscription-based museum features an original VR artwork by Olafur Eliasson and soon by Anish Kapoor, Jeff Koons, Marina Abramović, Nathalie Djurberg and more.

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Altar Show is a VR productivity tool that lets you spatially brainstorm, design, roadmap, present, plan projects, build Memory Palaces, and more! It's inspired by and based on the science of spatial thinking in order to improve your memory.

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About This Software

Blocks lets you easily create 3D objects in virtual reality, no matter your modelling experience. Using six simple tools, you can bring your applications to life, create a volumetric masterpiece, or simply let your imagination run wild.

Get inspired by others' creations or publish your own to inspire the world around you. No matter your modeling experience, you'll create beautiful 3D objects in no time.

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Blocks lets you easily create 3D objects in virtual reality, no matter your modelling experience. Using six simple tools, you can bring your applications to life, create a volumetric masterpiece, or simply let your imagination run wild.

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Immerse yourself in the world of the Surrealist master like never before in this encounter, venturing into the towers, peering from them to distant lands and discovering surprises around every corner.

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"A dimly lit train cabin ... swaying grassy plains ... flickering fireflies ... a mighty dragon." Found is an interactive short film experience. Its story speaks to the connection and lack there of between nature, technology and fellow travelers as you make your way through a fantastical yet familiar world.

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GIPHY Arts Presents the Museum of GIF Art

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Feel the whizz of the puck fly by your skull in this fun and fast-paced goalie VR simulator. Fully immersive with surround sound and haptic vibration for a realistic hockey experience. Play against friends with new local shooter mode.

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Pumpkin SculptrVR is a FREE pumpkin carver that makes it easy to create and share brilliant Jack'O'Lanterns. Carve at massive scale or shrink down to add tiny details. With Pumpkin SculptrVR's intuitive tools, your imagination makes anything possible.

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Explore what was out of reach before - travel to mesmerizing real world places and discover their stories!

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Teleport yourself to Rome, hold a beating heart, or walk among dinosaurs. Open Sketchfab VR to discover a showcase of explorations through remote places, fantastic creatures, game worlds, cultural heritage, science and other wonders.

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Snow Games VR is a single-player Virtual Reality snowball fight in a winter wonderland. Make and throw snowballs to hit targets, while under attack from the ever moving enemy snowmen.

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Get teleported to a psychedelic world of music and light in the classic version of Soundscape! For the best experience and visuals, be sure to download the latest version - http://store.steampowered.com/app/636930 - and stay tuned for regular upgrades!

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The Body VR: Anatomy Viewer will display 3D volumes generated from traditional CT/MRI scans that will allow radiologists, medical students, and patients to view anatomical scans in entirely new ways. To apply to the private beta contact us at http://TheBodyVR.

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An immersive, animated VR film. Crafted by the artists, animators and storytellers of Penrose Studios, "The Rose And I" is about loneliness, friendship, love, and loss. Come meet a lonely Rose living in the unlikeliest of places, and join her as she transports you to a brand new universe.

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4D Toys: A box of toys from the fourth dimension.

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City Car Driving - realistic car driving simulator, which will help you master the basic skills of the car driving in various traffic conditions, with plunging into the environment most closely resembling the real one.

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This application simulates a starry sky in realism. Please enjoy the full sky starry sky. There are three modes that enjoy starry sky in this application.