Any interest in VR?

Exo-Slayer

Exo-Slayer

Moderator
I use to be a regular around here but real life pulled me away from gaming for the most part and I became pretty inactive. I've recently purchased a Vive and it has renewed my interest in gaming but there doesn't seem to be a lot of people with them yet. I've been looking for people to play with and wanted to reach out and see if anyone else has one. I play a few multiplayer games like Hover Junkers, Rec Room, HordeZ and I'm interested in Onward if I had some friends that played, if anyone does give me a shout out on steam my name is the same on on here.

If you haven't tried it I highly recommend finding someone with one and trying it for yourself. This is beyond the Oculus Rift (until they get touch and room scale). The room scale is amazing and it really feels like you are in another place. You actually get a good workout too, I've been playing the Audioshield song of the day on the hardest difficulty and my heart rate is about what I'd get on a long bike ride.

I've started to record some of my play time and made a video of my favorite single player game Vanishing Realms. This is as close to a VR Zelda as I think we are going to get for a long time. I've got a play through of the first chapter below and my channel has some Audioshield and some first time videos from my family playing. If anyone wants videos of something else I've got a good number of games.
 
Exo-Slayer! Good to see you, sir! :)

I am most definitely interested in VR and all related technologies, but the steep cost of entry is the #1 thing keeping me away right now. I'd love to try out the Vive or something similar just to experience it for myself, but it's hard to justify hundreds of dollars when I don't have time for the games I have purchased. :(

But I will most definitely check out your channel as I'm hoping perhaps I can live vicariously through your videos. :D

EDIT: How much was the Vive and all required accessories? Maybe it's not as expensive as I'm thinking?
 
Mildly interested because of the dream of VR worlds SURE! 800 dollar interested for a system with no must have games NOPE! (honestly unless I can actually live in the VR world 800 bucks will forever be to much yeesh! X.x)

Seriously though I don't know why they took a step backwards with VR and now most games have you teleporting rather than walking (which I would consider a must in a device meant to immerse the user). I can only assume too many motion sickness complaints. If that's the problem I read some interesting stuff about stimulating the inner ear to give the sensation of motion so there is hope. There is also some interesting stuff about redirecting the player in circles but you can tell it's not going to be the solution. If the motion sickness thing is true I'd imagine a worthwhile experience is a few system intenerations down the line.

I also wonder how so many people can be so unimaginative with game ideas every time any new system launches. Maybe it's a rush to market thing that makes most of the VR games in particular so short and bland. I'm certain its fun for the "experience" but I'd want the actual games to be unique, fun and replay-able for as much as they are asking.

Ah well I guess I too will have to live vicariously though you Exo :) !
 
I found the $800 price tag last night THEN read the system requirements (which are greater than my current PC gaming rig, which I upgraded in 2012 or 2013). I'm out. :(

But I'll still stay tuned to your YouTube channel, @Exo-Slayer!
 
The price tag is steep but for 800 you get the headset, lighthouses and touch controllers everything to make room scale vr work. I expect it will come done over the time but the tech is very impressive. You also need a very modern pc to make this work. Also you need some open floor space to really make it fun. I've got it in my living room with about 10x12 feet free, not everyone can do that. I acknowledge this is a very high barrier to entry.

I was actually on the fence about buying one until my brother in law got one and I tried it. The next day I ordered mine. It's one of those things that's hard to get until you try it.

As for the movement a lot of games give you options between teleport and traditional stick movement because some people get sick. There has actually been a lot of progress made on this front lately though. Walkabout where whenever you reach the edge of your play space the world inverts and you turn around. Onward supposedly made stick movement work for most people. Some games use a dash type teloport that is more like taking small steps which tricks your vestibular system. The minecraft vr mod let's you choose between whichever is most comfortable for you.

One of my favorite games A Chair in a Room actually uses a one to one play space like myst where every room fills your play area and then when you open the door a new area loads. It gave me the greatest sense of place of any game I've ever played. This could reinvent the classic puzzle and adventure game.

There are now over 600 vr games and experience on steam. A lot of these are little experiments but most are priced commensurate with the length or in a lot of cases free.

I've had some of the best gaming experiences ever on this thing. I've flown around on a hover craft in a post apocalyptic desert in Hover Junkers, I've fought skeletons in a dungeon in Vanishing Realms, I've played Paintball and charades with people all over the world in Rec Room, I've flown through space and walked on alien worlds, I've built my own blaster in Blasters of the universe and I've held a light Saber. You can do a lot of these things on a monitor but the sense of presence is not there. When I think about these games I remember being in these places and actually holding those weapons.

Beyond games valve put out Destination which allows anyone to upload photogrammetry data to walk around real locations. I've walked on Mars, the bottom of the ocean, ancient churches and the Pyramids of Egypt. I could see the value of this in a classroom down the line.
 
I already have a PS4, and I would very much love a PSVR. Eve Valkyrie is the exact game I've dreamed about for...well...ever. The money isn't available for the October release of PSVR, but it's very much on my list. When I evaluated the landscape at the beginning of the year, the PSVR definitely seemed the most cost-conscious decision for me, especially since I was wanting to get a PS4 anyway. May not have as many options as a PC-based experience, but lower cost of entry and the fact that it has Valkyrie (seriously, willingness to pay $400 for that experience is not the issue; limited work hours and a baby on the way are much more the issue).
 
I'm interested in PlayStation VR. If nothing else it will get more units in peoples hands and maybe push some of the larger developers to start producing more VR stuff. Am I understanding that $400 gets you the headset but the controllers and camera are separate? To be honest the headset is cool but it's the entire package that makes it work for me. Being able to walk around a space and interact with your hands is way deeper then a controller.

Still keeping an eye on it. I'd really like these companies to create some kind of standard where the headset is like a monitor and you can just plug it into whatever game system you have. It's like a new console war already.
 
Here is a demo for a game coming out later this month. Little bit puzzle game with some FPS moments. It has teleport but it also has movement where you hold down the grip and tilt the controller to move around the play area. Even using the sprint option it didn't make me feel uncomfortable and it felt quite precise. Sorry about the breathing the vive mic has no pop filter apparently.

Also me getting a perfect score on Audioshield to Cowboy Bebops Theme.
 
I haven't posted in a while but I made a new video last night of one of my favorite games. This was my second attempt at the level and by the end my heart was pounding as I was so close to losing. This is still in early access but it's really polished and coming together nicely.

 
its koo yo.

I've been doing a lot more research on it as of late but I'm still not convinced...

To me, it looks like another platform war with VR vs AR and waiting to see who wins :/
 
They came out with a game that is basically Counter Strike now called Pavlov VR.

Few quick rounds 5vs5 with real people

Few rounds of death match with bots
 
If your referring to getting sick because of the movement I've played a fair bit and it doesn't make me feel sick. I think they are starting to figure out the triggers for it. Slowing down the initial acceleration and the max speed. Never decoupling what you are looking at from your head movement. I've played several games that have used trackpad movement and none have made me feel sick.
 
While I am certainly impressed with how far the technology has come, personally I wouldn't buy VR. I find that I don't have a need to transfer my out of game awkwardness into game. That with the added bonus of being less spatially aware. I am definitely excited for the future, but for now I will stick to clicking to attack things in Minecraft rather than flailing my arms. :D

How have you found the fluidity of motion? Do you think it causes motion sickness? I have heard that is something that occurs every once in a while.
 
Missed the reply. I've never had much motion sickness and I've played just about every time of game out there. They are getting better and programming the games to limit motion sickness. It's all about not decoupling head movement from your real movement and the way you move and accelerate in the game world. Some people are more affected by it or eventually get "vr legs" after playing enough and it goes away.

I've been playing To The Top which is basically a mirrors edge like parkour game in VR on steroids and surprisingly no sickness. I'll see if I can get a video to show how crazy it gets. I also play some Minecraft in VR and it's hard to play the traditional way now. The world has such a scale to it when you are inside of it.
 
Made a few new videos about the games I mentioned in the previous post.

First is To The Top which is a climbing Parkour type game. It really feels like a platforming game like Mario or even Mirrors Edge but in VR. When I saw the videos I thought this would make me feel ill but I've played through the entire game without a problem.

I also made a video for Vivecraft which is the VR mod for Minecraft. This is really well supported and can be played with just about any of the existing Minecraft mods. I had some audio on this but somehow my mic was not activated so it's just some raw gameplay showing some of the places me and my wife have made in VR. This is insanely fun just like regular Minecraft but the size and scale of everything in amazing. When you are up on the top of that tower looking down you can really get some vertigo.

Lastly is Echo Arena which just came out. This is actually a Oculus game but with Revive it plays just fine on the vive. This is basically the battle arena from Enders game done in VR.
 
It has been a long time since I last posted here but I was thinking about this place and if any of the opinions about VR have changed? It has become a lot cheaper and easier with new headsets starting under $300 and in some cases needing no external sensors or hardware. If you want the very high end it's still possible to spend $1000 on an Index but Oculus has a few great options under $300. There are also a lot of new games of a much higher quality that are being released with an increasing frequency as well. Has anyone purchased a headset or becoming interested?

If anyone has any questions I have a lot of experience. I'm still using an original Vive but I now have the wireless adapter and index controllers. In the last few years I have also moved to a new home and now have my VR setup in a large loft so I have a huge 20' x 15' area so the wireless is especially nice. I'll post two recent videos I made showing off Half Life: Alyx and The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners to show how far the medium has come. Warning the second half of the Half Life video has a ton of spoilers and shows the end of the game.


 
Exo-Slayer said:
It has been a long time since I last posted here but I was thinking about this place and if any of the opinions about VR have changed?
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Exo! Great to hear from you again, good sir. :)

I've always been interested in VR, in part because I have a weakness for any gaming hardware that makes the experience more immersive. (On a related note, I've been thoroughly enjoying playing through Bravely Default on my New 3DS XL and have the 3D effect turned all the way up more often than not. BD is GORGEOUS in 3D.)

But for better or worse, I'm in a season of life where I don't have the space or the disposable income to invest in a VR setup. If and when the day comes that I move in to a larger house and can have an office again, I'd love to splurge on a mid-range to high-end VR setup and dive right in to games like HL: Alyx.

TL;DR: Yes, I'm interested, but don't have the space or extra money for a VR setup right. I'm hoping both those situations change in the future.
 
Hi Exo :) . Sure the 80's kid in me has been dreaming about VR since then but between the cost, motion sickness, and lack of games that actually measure up to my imagination I'll pass.
 
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