Extended reality (XR) is a technology that allows you to combine virtual and physical worlds together using (AR) Augmented reality and (MR) Mixed Reality in live production environments to create fully immersive experiences.

With the Extended Reality (XR) industry looking so promising, those seeking to grow their skills to enter the extended reality market which comprises Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Mixed Reality (MR) are faced with a vast decision which includes:

1. Going into the development path and developing applications from the scratch or
2. Embracing the path of a designer, creating end-to-end experiences for the metaverse, and ensuring users have an exciting interaction.

So now what is Metaverse: Metaverse is a perfect fusion of physical, augmented, and virtual reality in which individuals can communicate and transact with each other using digital 3D items. It relates to collaborative virtual worlds where currency is key to buying and selling lands, buildings, avatars, and even identities.

In XR development there are complementary relationships between designs and development in building applications.

In designs, XR designers do a lot of storyboarding, forecasting scenarios, research, and testing, and in the end, pick the solution that is more logical to the user and product. While in development, developers take the design proposal and build it up using dedicated software. They go through the schematics and blueprints, determine the right approach and pick the right tools, and collaborate with design to offer feedback on what’s precisely feasible and where adjustments could be made.

Assuming an XR app was a house, the XR Designer in this scenario would be the architect, who draws up the plan and ponder on how the house will be used (i.e., where to place the doors, how the doors will be interacted with, and how the home-owner will naturally navigate through the house). While the XR Developer, on the other hand, would be the contractor who decides on the construction materials and stockpiles them into what was planned.

Skills needed for XR Design or Development Job

As an XR Designer or Developer, you need this set of skills to be in the spotlight.

For Designers

Acquiring these skills should be your primary target:

1. Good understanding of 3D model environments
2. Good Graphics rendering technique
3. Problem-solving skills/ creatives solutions
4. UX Designs to craft solutions for complex workflows
5. Understand and develop sketching, storyboards, wireframing, and product mockups.
6. Rooted in design decisions with real data, business OKRs, and product market needs
7. A good knowledge of user-centered and user experience design
8. Good presentation and communication skills

Developers

As an XR developer, the following skills are the most sought:

• Basic programming knowledge in languages like Java, C#, Swift, Javascript, etc
• Software development which includes web design, mobile app development, and game development
• Good understanding of 3D Modelling & Animation
• Good understanding of 3D pipeline procession reproductions
• Good grasp of loops, OOP principles like inheritance, control-logic, abstraction, and encapsulation.
• Good knowledge of React/Unity
• Debugging complex multi-component issues
• Interpreting design documentation

Examples of available job roles for an XR designer:

XR Designer, XR Product Designer, XR UI designer, XR UX designer, XR Narrative Designer, Interaction Designer, etc

XR Designer Salary Expectations:

Salaries for XR designers range from $65,000 to $115,000 annually

Examples of available job roles for an XR developer:

XR Software Engineer, XR Developer, XR Programmer, etc

XR Developer Salary Expectations:

Basic salaries for XR developers range from $79,000 to $150,000 per year.

Featured image source: Vyrian