Microsoft Garage's new Sketch 360 app allows anyone to easily sketch and prototype 360 degree VR scenes

Microsoft Garage today revealed its latest project, Sketch 360. Sketch 360 is a drawing app for Windows 10 devices that be used to create 360 drawings from a single point looking out in all directions. It enables anyone to easily sketch and prototype 360 degree VR scenes. These created 360 sketches can be viewed in a web browser or on sites like Kuula.co or Facebook which support 360-degree photos.

“Sketch 360 is another really exciting tool for designers, just like Microsoft Maquette will be for in-device rapid creation. We want to empower creators to be more productive with Windows Mixed Reality and this Garage project joins a group of experiences all aimed at that. Microsoft Maquette is a mixed reality tool for creating immersive prototypes using a PC VR headset. While Maquette strives to make spatial prototyping fast and easy with a focus on 3D objects, Sketch 360 focuses on the setting around those objects. Designers can use these two, complementary experiences to prototype both the environment of a VR experience and the elements within it,” said Tom Mignone, a Program Manager on the Mixed Reality User Experience team.

App features:

• Trace along embedded, equirectangular gridlines designed for 360 degree scenes
• See your design come to life with a side-by-side, dual interface
• Create designs in a variety of thicknesses and in any of 30 colors, powered by Windows Ink
• Use pen or touch to make your masterpiece, best on Surface with the Surface Pen
• Adjust the settings for your preferred drawing experience including sketching on the right or left pane, changing gridline opacity and canvas color
• Export your creations as JPEGs with 360 metadata that immersive experience sites like Facebook and Kuula enable or embed in full websites (HTML, CSS, JS, JPEG)
• Tilt and rotate in senor-enabled devices
• Import Sketch 360 files to edit and collaborate on a design
• Work offline or on-the-go, works great on Surface Book 2 or Surface Go
• Created with ease using Windows Ink APIs

Download the app here from Microsoft Store.