In celebration of the latest Star Wars flick, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, fans of the franchise have been offered the opportunity to participate in a global program, called 'Awaken the Force Within'. Google (together with Disney) prepared two VR 'experiences' for its Cardboard headset platform that will, according to their press release, "combine a compelling story, which ties directly into the opening of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, with the very latest cutting-edge Virtual Reality technology". 

If you don't want to miss out, all you have to do is log onto Google.com/starwars and choose your side – either the Dark or the Light Side of the upcoming film. By choosing side, all your favourite Google services will transform, reflecting your chosen side.

Special Star Wars themed experiences have been created for Android Wear Watches, Google Calendar, Chrome, Chromecast, Gmail, Google Maps, Google Now, Waze, and YouTube, including additional features for Inbox by Gmail, Google Translate, and Google Search.

For example, in Gmail, a blue (Light Side) or red (Dark Side) lightsaber will appear instead of the standard loading bar, and the inbox background will change and display images, according to your chosen side. If you use Chrome, gorgeous browser background images will say hello to you each time you click to open a new tab. 

ILMxLAB (Lucasfilm's, Industrial Light & Magic's and Skywalker Sound's immersive entertainment laboratory) created the episodes that you'll be able to experience in VR with the Cardboard viewer. December 2 is the day you will be able to access them via Star Wars app (both for Android and iOS), so tune in and enjoy!

If you don't own a Google Cardboard yet, but wish to get one, this is the place to click! You can make your selection from various designs, priced at roughly € 30 (some cost less, some more, depending on design).