Mirai Komachi Performs at ASOBINOTES ONLINE FES
On Sunday, June 28 at 5:15 PM (JST), Mirai Komachi became a DJ once again for her fans and performed an impressive set of Bandai Namco video game music as part of the ASOBINOTES ONLINE FES (hereafter “AOF”)!
Fans may remember how she previously DJ’ed for us last October during the Bandai Namco Entertainment Festival and its accompanying events at the Asobi Store.
But her performance at AOF was more than just another broadcasted DJ event; fans could vote for songs in real-time and determine her set list! Read on for details on how this was made possible!
BanaDIVE™ AX Announcement
Two days prior to the show, Bandai Namco Research Inc. released a press report announcing brand new technology that they call BanaDIVE™ AX.
From the official press release, BanaDIVE™ AX is described as:
“An interactive virtual performance system created by integrating game AI (Artificial Intelligence)1 and xR technology. In this system, using pre-analyzed music, the game AI that incorporates DJ performance (seamlessly joining music, controlling the tempo of music, arousing the audience etc.) is linked with the motions of 3D characters and ambiance generated in a live music entertainment venue. We also incorporated interactive entertainment elements such as song selection by real-time voting, music linked visual production and AR audio visual direction. As a result, DJ and audiences can, whether at the venue or in remote locations, experience immersive live performances together.”
Source: https://bandainamco-mirai.com/documents/20200626/info_20200626_en.pdf
Read the full press release for more information.
Preparing for Mirai Komachi’s Performance
The press release wasn’t just all talk, though. They promised that they would actually demonstrate how BanaDIVE™ AX would work during Mirai Komachi’s performance on June 28th during AOF!
On the big day, before Mirai took to the stage, Hiroshi Okubo of Bandai Namco Research Inc. first appeared to instruct viewers on how to use BanaDIVE™ AX.
Once in AOF’s Twitch room or specially made webpage, viewers could use their smartphones to scan a QR code to start BanaDIVE™ AX on their devices. Then by aiming their BanaDIVE™ AX-equipped device at their computer monitor where the show is playing, they will be able to enjoy it with various AR effects, and even interact with the show by pressing buttons to vote for the next song to be played!
It sounded very exciting and different from other online shows I’ve watched, so you can bet that I quickly whipped out my phone and gave it a try as soon as the QR code was shown!
A Show to Enjoy on Two Screens!
And that’s when Mirai Komachi’s show began! The first song of her set was none other than her brand new song, Future Melody – 心から未来へ – / Future Melody – Kokoro kara Mirai e – from her first official album, FUTURE NOTES 01 ～ミライ～!
Here is how she appeared on my computer monitor…
And below is how my phone screen appeared when I aimed it at my computer monitor!
As you can see, on my phone was a lot cool-looking effects popping out of the screen, making the show quite a spectacle on the smaller device! And that wasn’t all. Along the bottom of the screen were two options for songs that Mirai could play next: EUPHORIA (RR 20th Anniv. Mix) from Rave Racer, or Drive U 2 Dancing (AJURIKA Remix) from Ridge Racer. All I needed to do was tap on an option to cast my vote!
And when the time came to decide which song would be played, the votes from viewers were tallied up to determine that it would be Drive U 2 dance! That happened to be the one that I voted for, so I was quite happy to see my choice win!
The roughly 30-minutes performance continued on with many different game music tracks played by Mirai with many cool background effects, and even cooler AR effects on my phone screen!
Unfortunately, no archive of the performance is available for those who missed watching it live, but I hope you can still enjoy these screenshots that I took of the remainder of Mirai Komachi’s performance at AOF!
Needless to say, thoroughly enjoyed this wholly new way of watching a live DJ concert online. While many of us continue to practice social distancing and staying at home, if experiences offered by BanaDIVE™ AX keep on being this enjoyable and continue to evolve, then I’m very excited to see what Bandai Namco Research Inc. will develop next!
Stay tuned for info on Mirai Komachi’s next big show!
Links
Mirai Komachi’s official site and Twitter
