Brekel OpenVR Recorder

Devices and recording

It records any device SteamVR can track, and multiple devices at the same time. It can run alongside your VR game or experience and record in the background. What it needs is what you already have for VR: a system with OpenVR / SteamVR drivers, and SteamVR itself installed, which the app starts automatically if it is not already running.

• Works in real time, no offline processing
• Finger data for Valve Index / Vive Knuckles controllers; other controllers produce rough finger poses
• Devices are tracked at high framerates (300 or more frames per second, depending on the device), with optional resampling to a fixed frame rate like 24, 25, 30, 50 or 60 fps
• Start/stop recording and change basic output settings from inside VR via an overlay panel
• Recording can be synced between multiple Brekel apps on the same machine or across machines on the same network
• Virtual cameras can be attached to any device, visualized in the 3D viewport and exported to the output files
• A global offset (with snap-to-device) places the origin wherever you need it
• Can be set up to run without a headset for controller/tracker-only capture (somewhat experimental, SteamVR may show warnings)

Export

Recordings export to FBX (compatible with almost all 3D apps), TXT and CSV, with rotations as Euler angles or quaternions for TXT and CSV. BVH is not supported, the format is not suitable for storing data from HMDs, controllers and trackers. Audio records in sync from any source, including the headset microphone, saved as WAV. On headsets with an accessible camera (like the original HTC Vive) video from that camera can be recorded too.

Live streaming

The app comes with plugins for Autodesk MotionBuilder (up to 2026) for live streaming and recording directly in MotionBuilder. Device data can also stream over OSC (Open Sound Control) to other apps, as positions plus Euler angles or quaternions.

Licensing

The free trial is the full application with two limits: recording and exporting stop at 10 seconds, and live streaming into MotionBuilder and over OSC is disabled. Every device type, the in-VR overlay and all three export formats work, so you can check the data against your own hardware before buying.

A license is perpetual: it never expires and updates are free. There is no maintenance plan for OpenVR Recorder. How trials, evaluations and licenses work in general: see licensing.