VFX Master Phil Tippett Brings His Grotesque Creations to HoloLens in ‘HoloGrid: Monster Battle’

Game studio HappyGiant and Tippett Studio, the production firm founded by stop-motion guru Phil Tippett, has launched HoloGrid: Monster Battle (2017) on Microsoft’s HoloLens platform. First appearing on Samsung Gear VR, the tactical strategy game combines elements of chess, board games, and collectible card games—of course with the grotesque HoloChess-style monsters spawned from the mind behind visual effects of the original Star Wars trilogy, Jurassic Park (1993), and RoboCop (1987).

HoloGrid: Monster Battle is now on now on the Windows Store for $4.99, and includes the full gamut of things only currently possible with HoloLens; spatial mapping and spatial sound, gaze tracking, gesture input, and voice control.

“HoloGrid: Monster Battle allows you to see table top games in an entirely new way, mixing digital holograms of chess battle with the real world,” said Brandon Bray, leader of Microsoft’s Windows Mixed Reality Developer Ecosystem. “It’s amazing! I’m excited to see Happy Giant pioneering the path to bring games to life in your own home.”

According to the press release, HoloGrid was inspired in part by the Star Wars HoloChess scene and created in conjunction with two-time Academy Award winner Phil Tippett. Bringing Tippett’s grotesque creatures to life in augmented reality, gameplay has been compared to card games like HearthStone, but rather set on a grid like Chess where players duel against both AI and real opponents.

The game currently supports cross-play multiplayer between iOS, Android mobile devices and Samsung Gear VR.

“Playing HoloGrid on HoloLens is the ultimate experience. It fulfills the purest vision yet of the game we set out to make, and that I was inspired to play 40 years ago when I saw Star Wars as a young kid,” said Mike Levine, HappyGiant Founder and Creative Director. “Phil Tippett called it “magic” when I showed it to him, and I think that says it best.”