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A fan made a playable augmented reality game based on a scene from 'Star Wars'

Ian Martin holochess Dejarik Star Wars
A full-sized, functional replica of the "Dejarik" game from "Star Wars." Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations

The "Star Wars" movie universe is full of inventive droids and fictitious weapons and battleships. But some of George Lucas' original concepts were more trivial.

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Take holochess, for example. This game, known as Dejarik, was featured in the original "Star Wars" movie. It's a holographic battle game, where players pit various creatures against each other using chess-like moves. 

This was our first look at Dejarik, back in the 1977 release of "Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope." The scene memorably includes C-3PO's game strategy advice: "Let the Wookie win."

holochess full view from Star Wars
Disney

Unsurprisingly, superfans have taken it upon themselves to make their own versions of Dejarik. One fan in particular, Ian Martin, went above-and-beyond in crafting a full-sized playable replica.

The 28-year-old web application developer builds detailed recreations of "Star Wars" characters and props. He's made a Salacious Crumb puppet, and built a C-3PO suit so realistic that George Lucas joked about hiring him when they met in 2010.

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Ian Martin Star Wars fans
Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations

Martin's latest project was building a Dejarik table with hand-sculpted creatures. "It's a full-sized table with working electronics (10 working knobs, 54 functional buttons, 26 lights, and two LCD display screens), that can actually play the unofficial game using a circuit I designed and a program I have written," Martin told Tech Insider.

Here's how it looks:

Ian Martin holochess Dejarik Star Wars
Martin posing with the recently completed table. Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations
holochess ian martin star wars
Depending on the monster's complexity, it can take 1-2 weeks on average to sculpt one figure. Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations
holochess ian martin star wars
Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations
Ian Martin holochess Dejarik Star Wars
Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations

Not only is the game fully functional and life-size, but with the help of a developing partner, Adrien Trouillaud, Martin is creating an augmented reality (AR) app. "Using 3-D scans of my monster sculpts we are able to create and animate 'holograms' that will appear on each of their corresponding game pieces when viewed through a cell phone application, or Augmented Reality capable headset," he told TI.

Martin previewed the augmented reality feature in his uploaded video of the completed table.

We first spotted the video of Martin's completed (and fully-functional) game table when he uploaded a video of his project to Reddit. So by the time Tech Insider was rounding up our list of impressive "Star Wars" fans, Martin was a shoo-in. 

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"At the beginning of the year, I started the Dejarik project just as a creative outlet," Martin told TI. "I began to hand sculpt and cast 1:1 scale replicas of the original Holochess monsters."

Here's a close up look at one of the painstakingly crafted creatures: The Savrip. This guy took nearly a month to complete because Martin handsewed its clothes.

holochess monster comparison star wars
Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations

Here's the Savrip in action during the original "Star Wars" scene. 

holochess fight gif star wars
Disney

Another monster, the M'onnok, took three weeks of careful sculpting, molding, and assembling with 12 separate parts.

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holochess sculpt model star wars
Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations

The passion project turned into a full-blown effort to make the game playable. Martin adapted rules from an online source (another fan who wrote them out) and then his brother created a rulebook. Using a set of handmade dice, players roll to determine how far to move their creature, and then the option to attack or defend is selected from the buttons. 

Ian Martin holochess Dejarik Star Wars
Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations

The table was made partially by 3-D printing. Martin printed large sections of the table, and put them together in his workshop using a mold. So far, feedback from his followers on Facebook and YouTube has been overwhelming positive — and rightfully so. But despite requests from fans who want commissioned tables for themselves, Martin cannot sell the table due to copyright and licensing laws.

"I get an obnoxious amount of requests from those who want their own working tables and copies of my monster sculpts and game pieces," he explained. "It's difficult for me to have to turn many of them down due my not being licensed to sell these.

Ian Martin holochess Dejarik Star Wars
Martin showed off the table at a recent Maker's Faire in Washington. Ian Martin/Dejarik Creations

But Martin has plans to share what he can with the "Star Wars" fandom. "We are hoping to put this application on our website for free along with the rules and printable game pieces so that other fans can play at home," he said. "I’m also hoping I'll be able to bring the table to Comic-Cons and Maker Faires so that people will be able to sit down with a pair of AR glasses and live out their geeky dream of playing an actual game of Holographic Chess."

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Martin and his developer aim to have the AR application completed by April 2016. For updates on the AR features and more, follow Martin's "Dejarik Creations" Facebook page and YouTube channel

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