Augmented Reality App Development

XGameDev develops Unity augmented reality apps for education, heritage experiences and location-based activities. Our work connects the camera experience with the rest of the product: content delivery, QR entry, maps, APIs and mobile release builds.

We are based on Australia's Sunshine Coast and work directly with clients in Australia and overseas. Jacques and Melanie handle the engineering and the agreed 3D asset work, with your team supplying or approving the subject content.

AR work in a released learning app

Step Out Academy is an outdoor learning product for Android and iOS. XGameDev worked on its Unity app, AR Foundation integration, QR flows, Node.js API, multiplayer server and mobile-ready 3D models.

The work included a Bankfoot House heritage tour accessed through the Step Out Academy app. Melanie created the project's custom 3D models. On the application side, the work covered tour flow, asset loading, location and heading behaviour, and recovery when a device or connection did not behave as expected.

This is the basis for our AR offer: a connected mobile experience with content and delivery requirements beyond displaying a model through a camera.

What an AR development scope can include

• A Unity mobile app with an AR interaction suited to the target devices.
• QR entry into the relevant activity or tour, with clear next steps for a new user.
• Maps, location-based content selection and the surrounding user interface.
• 3D model preparation, optimisation and asset delivery.
• APIs, content configuration and live group-session features where required.
• Device testing, build signing and the agreed app-store release work.

Each project needs a defined device list and a clear description of what users should see and do. A museum visitor opening one exhibit, a school group following a trail and a customer viewing a product create different requirements.

Test where the app will be used

Outdoor AR needs field checks as well as desktop development. Lighting, reflective surfaces, moving users, GPS drift, camera permissions and weak reception can affect the experience. We identify representative locations and devices and agree the behaviour for interrupted tracking or unavailable content.

An experience should explain what to do when AR cannot start. Depending on the activity, that may be retry guidance, a conventional model view or an alternative way to read the content. Those alternatives need design and implementation time in the estimate.

Prepare the models and content

Source models need appropriate scale, origins, geometry, materials and texture sizes for mobile use. We review a representative asset before committing to a large content pipeline. An existing high-detail model may need work before it can load and render comfortably on the agreed phones.

Content also needs an owner. Confirm who approves historical or educational material, who updates a tour after launch and how the app receives revisions. If your project is primarily a desktop model viewer or an engineering data tool, our 3D visualisation and AEC development pages cover those scopes.

Start with the uncertain part

For a new AR idea, a feasibility build can test the key interaction, a sample model and a representative device before a larger rollout. Scope the question first: tracking in a particular setting, acceptable asset loading or the full entry-to-activity flow.

Our prototyping service covers that first playable milestone. Bring your target audience, locations, device assumptions, available models and any existing application or backend. We can then explain the work needed and what a useful first test would demonstrate.