Identity in VR and AR: development for virtual spaces
Case study: why Google Daydream and Meta succeeded, but most others did not
The Google Daydream logo was originally built on six concentric and rotated lines of the golden ratio — a form inspired by natural spirals: the flight of butterflies, the arrangement of sunflower seeds, and plant growth. This geometry is equally readable in both flat and volumetric forms because it is structured, not merely drawn. Meta went further and created a spatial sign, the 'infinite loop,' designed for perception from multiple angles in VR — a rare case where a brand was designed for virtual space rather than adapted to it afterward.
Most companies find themselves in a different situation: they already have a flat logo, and no one will redesign the brand from scratch. A typical mistake here is stretching the contour along the Z-axis without reworking the geometry. The result: a brand cup that has no bottom or sides when viewed from the back destroys immersion instantly. An object in VR must be three-dimensional from all sides, even if the user never looks 'around' the sign — the moment of accidental overview will come sooner or later.
Technical specifications for 2D-logo translation into 3D
The process of adapting an existing logo goes through several technical stages, and skipping any of them results in runtime artifacts:
- Exporting the original logo to vector SVG format — raster files produce jagged edges when extruded.
- Importing into Blender and extruding the contour into volume with finishing of end surfaces.
- Converting geometry to mesh from triangles — most VR/AR runtimes work specifically with triangular topology.
- Creating UV-maps and texturing in Substance Painter — materials, reflectivity, and roughness are defined here.
- Export to FBX for final integration into Unity or Unreal Engine.
Polygon control is not an aesthetic adjustment, but a question of user comfort. A drop in frame rate in VR causes motion sickness, so overloaded geometry of a logo or branded object directly affects the physical state of a person in the headset. Texture optimization and polygon limits on an object must be specified in the technical brief just as strictly as the Pantone color in a regular guideline.
What full spatial identity consists of
A flat brandbook with a logo, fonts and palette in VR/AR does not work — there is no channel of perception other than vision, which is constantly engaged. The component system looks different:
- 3D-logo — volumetric geometry readable from any viewing angle.
- Materials — textures, level of reflectivity, gloss, surface roughness.
- Motion and animation — how the sign behaves upon appearance, rotation, interaction with the gaze cursor.
- Sound design — short audio signatures reacting to object proximity or touch.
- Interactivity — response of brand elements to user actions: hover, grab, voice command.
This is a fundamentally different set of rules than in traditional branding, and it cannot be encapsulated in a single PDF guideline — a library of 3D-assets with specified physical material parameters is needed.
How to maintain recognizability across different platforms
Decentraland, Roblox and Meta Horizon operate on different engines, with different polygon limits and varying light physics. A unified identity is only possible through a modular approach: the basic geometry and color remain unchanged, while technical parameters are adapted to the engine.
| Platform | Feature of rendering | What to adapt |
|---|---|---|
| Decentraland | low polygon count, WebGL | simplified geometry, low-poly version of the logo |
| Roblox | stylized cartoon graphics | materials without photorealistic textures |
| Meta Horizon | focus on social interaction | animation and sound reaction to avatars nearby |
A practical solution to the fragmentation issue was demonstrated by the Agog team, which works with XR projects of social orientation: they added a fallback version of their spatial identity for 2D-screens, so users without a headset could see a simplified but recognizable "3D-like" version of the brand. This eliminates the main pain point — not everyone has a headset, but the brand should still look cohesive.
Color, light, and materials: what really affects perception
Research on spatial perception reveals an unintuitive finding: saturated brand colors that work well on a website or packaging are perceived worse in a virtual environment than neutral tones. Brightness and contrast, familiar in 2D-design, create visual noise and fatigue in VR. Moreover, reducing the overall brightness of the scene enhances the feeling of immersion — too bright an environment, on the contrary, "pulls" the user out of the immersive experience.
Hence, a practical conclusion: the brand palette for VR spaces needs to be rebuilt separately, softening saturation and introducing more neutral background tones, while keeping the brand's accent color for spot elements — interface, buttons, and significant objects.
Mistakes that are repeated almost by everyone
The practice of implementing branding in virtual spaces shows the same set of problems:
- A flat logo is "pulled into depth" without reworking the geometry — the object looks fake from the side and from behind.
- Ignoring polygon control leads to a drop in frame rate and causes a nausea effect in users — this is a medical, not cosmetic, issue.
- They use saturated brand colors without adapting to spatial perception.
- They develop identity only for one platform, forgetting about the fragmented VR/AR market.
- Do not create a fallback version for users without headsets, thus losing part of the audience.
The only way to avoid this is to treat spatial identity as a separate discipline with its own technical brief, rather than as a secondary export of the existing logo.
Case study: why Google Daydream and Meta succeeded, but most others did not
The Google Daydream logo was originally built on six concentric and rotated lines of the golden ratio — a form inspired by natural spirals: the flight of butterflies, the arrangement of sunflower seeds, and plant growth. This geometry is equally readable in both flat and volumetric forms because it is structured, not merely drawn. Meta went further and created a spatial sign, the 'infinite loop,' designed for perception from multiple angles in VR — a rare case where a brand was designed for virtual space rather than adapted to it afterward.
Most companies find themselves in a different situation: they already have a flat logo, and no one will redesign the brand from scratch. A typical mistake here is stretching the contour along the Z-axis without reworking the geometry. The result: a brand cup that has no bottom or sides when viewed from the back destroys immersion instantly. An object in VR must be three-dimensional from all sides, even if the user never looks 'around' the sign — the moment of accidental overview will come sooner or later.
Technical specifications for 2D-logo translation into 3D
The process of adapting an existing logo goes through several technical stages, and skipping any of them results in runtime artifacts:
- Exporting the original logo to vector SVG format — raster files produce jagged edges when extruded.
- Importing into Blender and extruding the contour into volume with finishing of end surfaces.
- Converting geometry to mesh from triangles — most VR/AR runtimes work specifically with triangular topology.
- Creating UV-maps and texturing in Substance Painter — materials, reflectivity, and roughness are defined here.
- Export to FBX for final integration into Unity or Unreal Engine.
Polygon control is not an aesthetic adjustment, but a question of user comfort. A drop in frame rate in VR causes motion sickness, so overloaded geometry of a logo or branded object directly affects the physical state of a person in the headset. Texture optimization and polygon limits on an object must be specified in the technical brief just as strictly as the Pantone color in a regular guideline.
What full spatial identity consists of
A flat brandbook with a logo, fonts and palette in VR/AR does not work — there is no channel of perception other than vision, which is constantly engaged. The component system looks different:
- 3D-logo — volumetric geometry readable from any viewing angle.
- Materials — textures, level of reflectivity, gloss, surface roughness.
- Motion and animation — how the sign behaves upon appearance, rotation, interaction with the gaze cursor.
- Sound design — short audio signatures reacting to object proximity or touch.
- Interactivity — response of brand elements to user actions: hover, grab, voice command.
This is a fundamentally different set of rules than in traditional branding, and it cannot be encapsulated in a single PDF guideline — a library of 3D-assets with specified physical material parameters is needed.
How to maintain recognizability across different platforms
Decentraland, Roblox and Meta Horizon operate on different engines, with different polygon limits and varying light physics. A unified identity is only possible through a modular approach: the basic geometry and color remain unchanged, while technical parameters are adapted to the engine.
| Platform | Feature of rendering | What to adapt |
|---|---|---|
| Decentraland | low polygon count, WebGL | simplified geometry, low-poly version of the logo |
| Roblox | stylized cartoon graphics | materials without photorealistic textures |
| Meta Horizon | focus on social interaction | animation and sound reaction to avatars nearby |
A practical solution to the fragmentation issue was demonstrated by the Agog team, which works with XR projects of social orientation: they added a fallback version of their spatial identity for 2D-screens, so users without a headset could see a simplified but recognizable "3D-like" version of the brand. This eliminates the main pain point — not everyone has a headset, but the brand should still look cohesive.
Color, light, and materials: what really affects perception
Research on spatial perception reveals an unintuitive finding: saturated brand colors that work well on a website or packaging are perceived worse in a virtual environment than neutral tones. Brightness and contrast, familiar in 2D-design, create visual noise and fatigue in VR. Moreover, reducing the overall brightness of the scene enhances the feeling of immersion — too bright an environment, on the contrary, "pulls" the user out of the immersive experience.
Hence, a practical conclusion: the brand palette for VR spaces needs to be rebuilt separately, softening saturation and introducing more neutral background tones, while keeping the brand's accent color for spot elements — interface, buttons, and significant objects.
Mistakes that are repeated almost by everyone
The practice of implementing branding in virtual spaces shows the same set of problems:
- A flat logo is "pulled into depth" without reworking the geometry — the object looks fake from the side and from behind.
- Ignoring polygon control leads to a drop in frame rate and causes a nausea effect in users — this is a medical, not cosmetic, issue.
- They use saturated brand colors without adapting to spatial perception.
- They develop identity only for one platform, forgetting about the fragmented VR/AR market.
- Do not create a fallback version for users without headsets, thus losing part of the audience.
The only way to avoid this is to treat spatial identity as a separate discipline with its own technical brief, rather than as a secondary export of the existing logo.
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