Why isn't anyone here talking about virtual reality?

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 11:25 am

Dang, mine (which I ordered the day pre-orders were available) is still over a month out. Makes me consider doing what some are doing, canceling their pre-order, getting the rift bundle from best buy, then canceling the PC portion of the bundle, get the rift only a month+ ahead of schedule.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 11:29 am

People continue to report the Best Buy bundles coming in stock briefly every now and then this week, so if you want to go that route it might still be possible with aggressive F5-ing. Whatever you do, don't cancel your original preorder unless you actually get an unbundled bundle unit in hand.

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 11:37 am

Toe wrote:Dang, mine (which I ordered the day pre-orders were available) is still over a month out. Makes me consider doing what some are doing, canceling their pre-order, getting the rift bundle from best buy, then canceling the PC portion of the bundle, get the rift only a month+ ahead of schedule.

Mine had an estimated shipping date of 2nd May to 12th May, and it still shipped much earlier. Others have reported being even further out. Don't take the estimates too literally, as Oculus is trying to beat them.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 12:01 pm

Toe, do you know your minute:second timing for your preorder placement? In the US they're up to 6m25s orders, but from obsessive analysis of preorder data polls, people have found that order volume is much denser in the 5-6 minute range. Once we get past the 7m mark, we should start seeing a quicker progression up through later order times.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 1:03 pm

wonderpug wrote:Toe, do you know your minute:second timing for your preorder placement? In the US they're up to 6m25s orders, but from obsessive analysis of preorder data polls, people have found that order volume is much denser in the 5-6 minute range. Once we get past the 7m mark, we should start seeing a quicker progression up through later order times.

What was the initial starting time? And is the preorder placement time on the confirmation email or somewhere else?

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 1:21 pm

Toe wrote:What was the initial starting time? And is the preorder placement time on the confirmation email or somewhere else?

The clock started at 8am Pacific, January 6. It's super easy to figure out your order time! Just be sure you're using Chrome as your browser and...

Go to this URL and login: https://shop.oculus.com/en-us/history/
Click on your order
Open the developer tools (F12) and click on the network tab
Refresh the page
Filter by XHR (next to JS, CSS, etc)
Click on the bottom XHR call that is called "graphql?access_token=..."
In the Preview tab, you should be able to see the server data that Oculus has on your order
Open each dropdown: (orderID number) > payment_account > physical_orders > 0 > preorder_time
This will show a number like this: 1452096369
Convert that number into a readable time and date using this website: http://www.unixtimestamp.com/

And that's it! In 10 easy steps you've found your preorder time, and learned something about using Chrome developer tools in the process.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 1:44 pm

Thanks for the info wonderpug. Yikes. I tried placing my order within the first minute, but it would not process my credit card when i got the final checkout. I searched online and saw where people had the issue and were able to log out and back in and get it to work. I guess the process of trying and trying, giving up, searching the internet, logging out and back in, placing order again took longer than I remembered. 1h and 43m

Guess I took a nap or something, lol. Oh well, not going to bitch too much since I can still VR with my vive.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Wed Apr 27, 2016 2:03 pm

Damn, yeah. Glad you have the Vive to tide you over. So far the updated shipping window estimates we got have been reliable, I think, so you still have a good chance of getting your Rift on the early end of your window or possibly even earlier.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 8:17 am

Been playing more with the vive over the last couple of days so wanted to provide an update on some of the things I spoke about previously.

While the pixel-noticing is still present (especially when there are large amounts of white being displayed), in many situations it is no longer really registering with me (therefore not annoying). God rays (the white, cloudy streaks that emanate from white/light objects toward the center of the lens. almost like lens flare) are still an issue in situations where you have black/dark backgrounds and bright objects on the peripheral. I hope that game devs pay close attention to these things as its obvious that you can mitigate a lot of this stuff by using appropriate colors/brightnesses and positioning when designing a game.

I spent a lot of time yesterday playing Valve's The Lab. This, imho, is a superb introduction to VR as its basically 8-10 mini-games/experiences. Unfortunately, you really need tracked controllers to play most of the games like its meant to be played, so oculus people will not be able to have the same experience until the Touches are sent. This will be my go-to app for introducing friends and family to VR for the most part. Some non-gamers might have issues moving around in the Lab, so might have to enter a mini-game/experience for them, then put the headset on them.

The cable situation with the headphones is still really frustrating. I need to try to come up with a better solution, maybe shortening the the headphones cord or somehow taping the headphones to the headset. I could seriously make a comically frustrating video of the mess that comes about putting on and taking off the headset/headphones.

I also tried a demo (free on Steam) called The Brookhaven Experiment. Simple design, yet extremely effective at showing how intense VR experiences can be. You are basically in a courtyard at night (standing pretty much in the same spot throughout) fending off approaching zombies (coming from all directions) with a pistol (and flashlight in off-hand). It goes for 0 to 100 very fast in terms of intensity and gets that adrenaline pumping. This is another game designed for tracked controllers, so not sure how well it would translate to the Rift. I will probably utilize this game to record people's reactions as it can scare the living crap out of you. I believe I saw some such reaction videos to this game on youtube already.

I have had a few instances of games not working right (no video, controllers not working on interfaces, etc). When that happens, sometimes you have to shut all VR/steam stuff down and restart it to get things back to normal. Not really that big a deal, but it kind of lets you know this is new tech and there will some bumps along the way.

I don't know if over time I will get use to stuff, but for now, I really don't want to spends hours and hours with the headset on. It gets hot and heavy after a period of time, so I find myself taking short breaks after 30 or so minutes. Sit-down experiences may be different, time will tell in the regard. Overall, while initially a bit disappointed in the graphics, I am pleased with the vive and what it has to offer at this early stage, and, while it might not be the future of gaming, it seems destined to be a part of it.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 9:30 am

I took some great videos of a friend playing The Brookhaven Experiment. It really does get the adrenaline going. Have you tried the demo of The Abbot's Book? It seemed like it had promise as a creepy, adventure game.

I think my favorite Vive game I played was Audioshield, but it really is pretty simple in terms of mechanics.

Buatha · Post by **Buatha** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 9:51 am

So, to the uninitiated, is there some sort of VR standard for games like DirectX? If a game is "VR-ready", I'd hope that either headset would work.

I'm personally leaning toward a Vive since I like the idea of being able to move around a bit and the controllers are available today (although I like the look of the Oculus controller). I like the simplicity of the Oculus with its single sensor and lighter weight, but if I'm going to drop $600 or more, Vive seems more immersive unless the single sensor is just as good tracking everything.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 9:55 am

Ralph-Wiggum wrote:I took some great videos of a friend playing The Brookhaven Experiment. It really does get the adrenaline going. Have you tried the demo of The Abbot's Book? It seemed like it had promise as a creepy, adventure game.

I think my favorite Vive game I played was Audioshield, but it really is pretty simple in terms of mechanics.

I have Abbots book downloaded, but not fired it up yet. Does it use the vive controllers? Some stuff I have downloaded do not support the vive controllers, instead recommending a gamepad (I think Robot and I is one) which I do not have. I am getting one with the Rift, so am just waiting for it to arrive to play games that recommend utilizing gamepad. I balked at Audioshield (and hover junkers) due to their relatively high prices (and seemingly limited gameplay). I might get them anyway, truth be told, as I want to have all bases covered when showing off VR to friends and family.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 10:18 am

The Abbot's Book uses the controllers to move (point and click where you want to move to) and, at least in one instance, to push a gate open. I assume the full game will have more interactivity than the demo did (shooting, maybe?). Not sure if it supports controllers or not.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 10:19 am

Buatha wrote:So, to the uninitiated, is there some sort of VR standard for games like DirectX? If a game is "VR-ready", I'd hope that either headset would work.

I'm personally leaning toward a Vive since I like the idea of being able to move around a bit and the controllers are available today (although I like the look of the Oculus controller). I like the simplicity of the Oculus with its single sensor and lighter weight, but if I'm going to drop $600 or more, Vive seems more immersive unless the single sensor is just as good tracking everything.

I think for the most part either headset will work for most games, but there are exceptions. Lucky Tales comes with Rift purchase, for example, and you cannot purchase it on Steam. A little googling reveals that you can get Lucky Tales (which you "purchased" through the Oculus store) to run on the Vive, but requires a lot of work (and utility apps), so generally not worth the effort. If you browse VR games in the Steam store (click on Games on the top ribbon and select Virtual Reality), it defaults showing you games for rift both vive. Changing the option to just show one or the other gives you a good idea what is happening from the steam side of things.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 10:32 am

Toe wrote:God rays (the white, cloudy streaks that emanate from white/light objects toward the center of the lens. almost like lens flare) are still an issue in situations where you have black/dark backgrounds and bright objects on the peripheral. I hope that game devs pay close attention to these things as its obvious that you can mitigate a lot of this stuff by using appropriate colors/brightnesses and positioning when designing a game.

I had a pretty similar experience with the god ray thing on my Rift last night. I thought people were blowing it out of proportion in reviews/impressions, but it really did jump out at me right away. Like you say, though, it's only noticeable in those very high contrast situations, especially when there's not much going on on the screen. White text on black is the worst offender, and of course almost everyone has white text on black in their opening title sequence.

I'll nitpick later, but I'm pretty damn blown away by VR. From watching youtube reaction videos I've seen the intro scene of a T-rex walking down a museum hall dozens of times. I went in knowing exactly what was going to happen, and it didn't matter. I had to duck my head and cower when the T-rex loomed over me. I couldn't help it. When the scene shifted and I was on the edge of a skyscraper, I could not just waltz over close to the edge and look down. Some primal part of my brain was taking over and giving me all the same self-preserving fear of getting too close to the edge as I would in real life.

It's absolutely true that you have to try VR to understand what it's about. I had BlazeRush preinstalled and ready to go because I had heard so many people say it's one of the best VR launch titles, but I didn't get it. It looked like a cute little racing combat game, maybe a modern take on Death Rally, but nothing all that special.

I completely changed my tune after trying it. It's the game I'm most excited to jump back into when I get more VR playtime. It's honest to goodness like opening a box of childhood Hot Wheels cars and having them come to life Toy Story style. I was grinning from ear to ear just in the opening tutorial race, and then when I got introduced to the weapons and jumps it just got better and better.

A common question from VR skeptics is "Why does a game like this need VR?" This game absolutely could be done on a regular flat display, just like Death Rally, but VR takes it up to another level entirely. It's like... it's like choosing whether you'd rather play a racing game on your cell phone or open a box with a tiny race track and a bunch of little remote control cars that can shoot each other.

My wife was also blown away and I think she put in more VR time than I did last night. She was mainly interested in games/experiences where you just look around or where you just use the little remote control. She had fun for a bit with Lucky's Tale using the Xbox controller, but she hasn't gamed on a controller since the NES days and it was really unnatural for her. The Touch controllers can't come fast enough.

I was also extremely happy to see that VR worked for her despite her having really crazy vision issues in real life. She's got maybe a 15 degree field of view in one eye, almost no vision in the other, and almost nonexistent depth perception in real life. She was still totally immersed, and even remarked "oh wow it's 3d" at one point early on. For comparison, 3d movies in theaters never work for her, so I think all the other kinds of natural monocular depth perception cues are what's kicking in for her in VR. Also, she's generally far sighted and needs reading glasses for anything close up, but she felt no need to use her reading glasses with the Rift despite the screen being inches from her face. Those magic lenses really are magic.

Buatha wrote:So, to the uninitiated, is there some sort of VR standard for games like DirectX? If a game is "VR-ready", I'd hope that either headset would work.

I'm personally leaning toward a Vive since I like the idea of being able to move around a bit and the controllers are available today (although I like the look of the Oculus controller). I like the simplicity of the Oculus with its single sensor and lighter weight, but if I'm going to drop $600 or more, Vive seems more immersive unless the single sensor is just as good tracking everything.

Two competing standards right now, Steam's and Oculus's. I've read that porting between the two isn't all that difficult. Steam's OpenVR (which isn't actually open) works on both, but Oculus's only works on the Rift (and GearVR) unless you use a 3rd party hack. The blame on why the Vive can't access Oculus SDK games falls on Valve, Oculus, or both, and is the subject of many internet rage debates.

So far we haven't seen any Vive exclusives, except for ones that are exclusive for the next ~6 months because they'd need the Touch controllers to work on the Rift. There are already a handful of Oculus exclusives, with more being announced every few weeks. Oculus Studios has been backing development of VR games for years, and it seems like anything they backed is starting out as an Oculus exclusive. They say they won't stop the developers from porting their games over to Steam, but I don't believe we've seen that happen yet.

As for your Rift vs. Vive decision, I really think the Rift is going to be superior in almost every way once the Touch controllers come out, but after one evening with the Rift it really is a shame it was released without them. Your first instinct in VR is to reach out and try to touch everything around you, and the lack of motion controls cuts out a big potential piece of immersion. Oculus should have at least found a way to have the Xbox controller and the Oculus remote be tracked in VR. It would have gone a long way to at least be able to see your VR hands holding a VR version of your controller/remote the same way you were in real life.

Room scale already works on the Rift, even with just one sensor and no motion controls. Farlands is a game sort of like Pokemon Snap where you're on an alien planet taking pictures of wildlife, and I was able to walk around in the game world as far as the headset cord would let me, with no tracking issues even if I was facing away from the sensor.

Gotta run for a bit, more impressions to come.

Buatha · Post by **Buatha** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 11:23 am

wonderpug wrote: Room scale already works on the Rift, even with just one sensor and no motion controls. Farlands is a game sort of like Pokemon Snap where you're on an alien planet taking pictures of wildlife, and I was able to walk around in the game world as far as the headset cord would let me, with no tracking issues even if I was facing away from the sensor.

Ah, thank you for that information!

wonderpug wrote: Steam's OpenVR (which isn't actually open) works on both, but Oculus's only works on the Rift (and GearVR) unless you use a 3rd party hack.

Well, that sucks.

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 11:34 am

The Climb was just released, btw. It seems a bit expensive for what it offers, but it could be one of those "essential" early VR experiences.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 11:44 am

TiLT wrote:The Climb was just released, btw. It seems a bit expensive for what it offers, but it could be one of those "essential" early VR experiences.

I'm just about to fire it up. I agree $50 is way too expensive for what it offers, but they've got me by the virtual balls right now while I'm so hungry for content to try.

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 11:52 am

Surprisingly and counterintuitively, I'm hearing that The Climb might actually work better with a classic controller than it would with motion controllers. Thinking about it, it does kind of make sense. Keeping your arms stretched out into nothing while pretending to hold onto a cliff face for what might be hours doesn't actually sound all that pleasant or immersive.

Buatha · Post by **Buatha** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 12:24 pm

Where's the first-person sword & shield fighting game?

Man, can you imagine playing Dark Souls in first-person VR?

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 12:33 pm

Buatha wrote:Where's the first-person sword & shield fighting game?

Man, can you imagine playing Dark Souls in first person VR?

The nutty thing is that nobody has figured out a good way to have you walk around in first person (other than the amount you can walk around in your room) without making you motion sick. Chronos gives you an idea of what a 3rd person Dark Souls game might look like, but so far in 1st person you either need to be confined to a small space or use teleportation to get around.

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 12:47 pm

Buatha wrote:Where's the first-person sword & shield fighting game?

Man, can you imagine playing Dark Souls in first-person VR?

I'll say the same thing I've said about the Kinect in the past: simulating sword-fighting with motion controllers (or with the Kinect: high-latency camera scanning) wouldn't be a good experience. Let's face it, few of us know the most basic skills required for swordfighting, and wouldn't even know how to begin parrying, nor would we have the reflexes for it. The game would have to dumb down the enemies to such a degree that you'd notice, and you'd notice it real good. Then there's the weight of the swords, something that's far less of an issue with, say, guns. Without the weight, sword movement would look and feel horribly unrealistic and unbelievable. And what would happen when you attack the enemy and he parries? What happens to the sword and to your arm in the virtual world (which are now stopped by the enemy's sword) compared to your real life controller and arm (which are still moving)?

No, the reason nobody has made a first-person sword-fighting game for VR is because they realized that we can only create hugely unsatisfying and deeply disappointing simulations with the current technology. It'll happen in the future at some point, but we're not anywhere close right now. VR has limitations, and this is one of them.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 1:00 pm

Buatha wrote:Where's the first-person sword & shield fighting game?

Man, can you imagine playing Dark Souls in first-person VR?

There's a Vive game called =http://www.gizmag.com/best-htc-vive-ga ... ing Realms where you fight with a sword & shield. I don't know how good it is, but it's out there.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 1:13 pm

Ralph-Wiggum wrote:
Buatha wrote:Where's the first-person sword & shield fighting game?

Man, can you imagine playing Dark Souls in first-person VR?
There's a Vive game called =http://www.gizmag.com/best-htc-vive-ga ... ing Realms where you fight with a sword & shield. I don't know how good it is, but it's out there.

Vanishing Realms

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 1:16 pm

TiLT wrote:Surprisingly and counterintuitively, I'm hearing that The Climb might actually work better with a classic controller than it would with motion controllers. Thinking about it, it does kind of make sense. Keeping your arms stretched out into nothing while pretending to hold onto a cliff face for what might be hours doesn't actually sound all that pleasant or immersive.

I just played through the tutorial and half of the first climb, and the Xbox controls seem really intuitive. I'm having a hard time imagining how the Touch controls would work. The game has you repeatedly snap to a new position each time you grab a new hold, and I can't see how you'd keep your real hand position in sync with the game hand position.

I'm gonna have to step away from The Climb for a while though until I get more accustomed to VR. The movement over short climbing grabs worked ok for me, but some of the jumps, larger grabs, and mantling were starting to give me hints of motion sickness. Falling is also not very pleasing to the senses.

Buatha · Post by **Buatha** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 1:24 pm

TiLT wrote: No, the reason nobody has made a first-person sword-fighting game for VR is because they realized that we can only create hugely unsatisfying and deeply disappointing simulations with the current technology. It'll happen in the future at some point, but we're not anywhere close right now. VR has limitations, and this is one of them

I thought the fighting game included with Sports Champions for the PS Move controllers was pretty good and I kept thinking that someone would make a good game with that system...that never got made.

While I understand that lack of feedback from hitting a sword or shield is not satisfying, they could have the controller vibrate. Additionally, I wonder if the Oculus controller's sticks will be utilized for movement.

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 1:41 pm

Just got my shipping confirmation, so my Rift is now officially on its way here. Currently installing Eve Valkyrie.

wonderpug wrote:I'm gonna have to step away from The Climb for a while though until I get more accustomed to VR. The movement over short climbing grabs worked ok for me, but some of the jumps, larger grabs, and mantling were starting to give me hints of motion sickness. Falling is also not very pleasing to the senses.

Yeah, that's probably a good idea. The worst thing anyone can do when they begin to feel to onset of motion sickness in VR is to try and push through it, both because it will only get worse, and because your brain could start to associate VR with nausea, and you really don't want that to happen.

Buatha wrote:
TiLT wrote: No, the reason nobody has made a first-person sword-fighting game for VR is because they realized that we can only create hugely unsatisfying and deeply disappointing simulations with the current technology. It'll happen in the future at some point, but we're not anywhere close right now. VR has limitations, and this is one of them
I thought the fighting game included with Sports Champions for the PS Move controllers was pretty good and I kept thinking that someone would make a good game with that system...that never got made.

While I understand that lack of feedback from hitting a sword or shield is not satisfying, they could have the controller vibrate. Additionally, I wonder if the Oculus controller's sticks will be utilized for movement.

I'll admit that my expectations for what a good swordfighting game with motion controllers and/or VR might be higher than what most other people expect. I can't really see how they would work well considering the limitations I mentioned though. The biggest issue is the parrying I mentioned. With a non-VR game using motion controls, having your avatar's arms come out of sync with your own isn't a big deal, but in VR it's a huge deal that can rip you straight out of the experience and even make you nauseous. I don't see a solution to this issue until we get some way to provide real resistance that can stop player movement in real life.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 1:45 pm

wonderpug wrote: Falling is also not very pleasing to the senses.

Yeah, of all the games and experiences I tried so far, the only one that really got me was Apollo 11 when you float down (fall slowly) around a big object. After that, and a few more segments, I had a huge headache and had to call it off for the rest of the night.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 1:53 pm

TiLT wrote:I'll admit that my expectations for what a good swordfighting game with motion controllers and/or VR might be higher than what most other people expect. I can't really see how they would work well considering the limitations I mentioned though. The biggest issue is the parrying I mentioned. With a non-VR game using motion controls, having your avatar's arms come out of sync with your own isn't a big deal, but in VR it's a huge deal that can rip you straight out of the experience and even make you nauseous. I don't see a solution to this issue until we get some way to provide real resistance that can stop player movement in real life.

Solution: Wield a light saber (against only non-light saber weapons)

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 2:02 pm

Toe wrote:
wonderpug wrote: Falling is also not very pleasing to the senses.
Yeah, of all the games and experiences I tried so far, the only one that really got me was Apollo 11 when you float down (fall slowly) around a big object. After that, and a few more segments, I had a huge headache and had to call it off for the rest of the night.

Yup, I had an issue with that exact same part. It's a bummer, because I thought Apollo 11 was going to be one of my go-to showcase games for introducing people to VR. I also can't believe you can't skip watching JFK's speech from a couch. Don't get me wrong, great speech, but that's a long time sitting on a virtual couch when what you really want to do is land on the moon. I wish I could fine-tune the game to just do the launch, the LEM extraction, and the final moon portions.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 8:54 pm

Chronos is amazing. I totally thought VR was going to be all about the first person experiences, or at least that first person experiences were where you'd find the best 'presence' and immersion, but Chronos is proof that 3rd person games can be just as immersive.

It doesn't make you feel like you're are the guy running around with the sword, as in a 1st person game, but you totally feel like you're sitting there in the same room as him as you control him. From Chronos previews I thought the scene transitions would be jarring, but I haven't found it to be at all an issue. It's oddly natural, like how teleportation movement works so well in first person games that use it.

This is one of the most 'presence' invoking games I've tried so far, but man do I need to figure out how I want to plug the Rift nose gap. It's been amusingly helpful to use when I'm trying to find my controller or phone or something else in the real world, like my ghetto version of the Vive's front camera, but I'm also finding the gap to be my biggest immersion breaker. Most of the time the gap isn't noticeable, but if I ever look up toward the ceiling and some brightness from a window or my monitor shines through, it's very distracting.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 10:06 pm

Toe, have you tried The FOO Show yet? If not, you should! I didn't watch the whole episode, but it's very much worth at least watching to fast forward to when they let you look around the watchtower from Firewatch in VR.

Toe · Post by **Toe** » Fri Apr 29, 2016 7:18 am

wonderpug wrote:Toe, have you tried The FOO Show yet? If not, you should! I didn't watch the whole episode, but it's very much worth at least watching to fast forward to when they let you look around the watchtower from Firewatch in VR.

I saw it in the vr list on steam and briefly looked at it, but thought it looked rather weak. I guess because of a screenshot I looked it, I thought it was just some type of lame talk show converted to a VR experience, which did not appeal to me in the least. Thanks for recommendation. I will download it tonight and take a look.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Fri Apr 29, 2016 9:09 am

Toe wrote:
wonderpug wrote:Toe, have you tried The FOO Show yet? If not, you should! I didn't watch the whole episode, but it's very much worth at least watching to fast forward to when they let you look around the watchtower from Firewatch in VR.
I saw it in the vr list on steam and briefly looked at it, but thought it looked rather weak. I guess because of a screenshot I looked it, I thought it was just some type of lame talk show converted to a VR experience, which did not appeal to me in the least. Thanks for recommendation. I will download it tonight and take a look.

For what it's worth, the host is Will Smith from Mythbusters and Tested, but yeah, it is just a talk show converted to VR. The show is also available on Youtube, and at about the 3 minute mark you can see them interviewing the Firewatch developers from inside the lookout tower.

Just now, my brain gave me a feeling of "oh yeah, I've been there" when I looked at the youtube video of the Firewatch tower. My memories from playing the game are memories of great graphics and set pieces I saw in a game, but my memory of the tower in VR is more like a memory of visiting a place in the real world.

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Tue May 03, 2016 3:23 pm

Holy shit, I just tried the Apollo 11 VR Experience on the Rift, and I'm blown away. This must be the most powerful experience I've had in VR so far, both because it portrays a real event that pretty much none of us will ever be able to try for ourselves in our lifetimes, and because it's very well made. I didn't time it, but I think it lasted for more than 30 minutes, yet time flew by.

My impressions of how the moon landing took place and what it looked like are completely changed now. Seeing video and pictures couldn't prepare me for this. The sight of the atmosphere gradually receding while looking through the tiny windows in the cramped cockpit was breathtaking and claustrophobic at once. Seeing Earth far below as the lander detached to fly towards that tiny sphere, the moon, in the distance. Gazing out the windows as the lander slowly descended, taking in just how desolate our moon is. Looking up from outside the parked lander and realizing how dominating the Sun is without an atmosphere to filter it. Seeing Neil Armstrong bounce past you across the surface while he talks about its charcoal texture, all the while being able to look down and see it for yourself. Sitting inside the tiny capsule as it finally descends towards the Earth in a chaotic turmoil while a flaming inferno rages on the other side of what feels like very thin walls and windows. And much more.

I can't recommend it enough. It's very relieving to know that the Kickstarter campaign for this, which I backed, ended up this good.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Tue May 03, 2016 3:30 pm

You just wait for the Kerbal Space Program VR mod.

If anything ever got me to get into VR, it'll probably be space games. I play X3 and Freelancer in order to feel that isolation and vastness between me and a world - and VR would certainly kick that up. I'd just need more disposable income and time where no one needed anything from me to get into it. Time like that is a freakish rarity.

wonderpug · Post by **wonderpug** » Tue May 03, 2016 3:45 pm

Paingod wrote:You just wait for the Kerbal Space Program VR mod.

If anything ever got me to get into VR, it'll probably be space games. I play X3 and Freelancer in order to feel that isolation and vastness between me and a world - and VR would certainly kick that up. I'd just need more disposable income and time where no one needed anything from me to get into it.

I don't know how much EVE:Valkyrie is going to grab me, but Elite Dangerous in VR is as amazing as you'd hope. It's so amazing looking out your window at planets and stars with such a great sense of scale and distance that I just want to fly around the galaxy and sightsee. Even though the game isn't really designed for you to do it, in the bigger ships you can even step out of your captain's chair and walk around your bridge to look around. (It works perfectly other than the headless avatar you leave sitting in the chair as your disembodied head floats around.)

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Tue May 03, 2016 3:56 pm

Paingod wrote:I'd just need more disposable income and time where no one needed anything from me to get into it. Time like that is a freakish rarity.

The Oculus Rift actually makes it easy to quickly jump in and out of VR if real-life issues suddenly get in the way. Not only can you angle the attached headphones away from your ear(s) if you need to be more aware of your surroundings, but if you need to quickly step away, you just lift the headset off of your head, and the game should automatically pause until you put the headset back on. Unlike the ski-mask design of the DK2 (and to a lesser degree, the Vive), the Rift is more like putting on and taking off a hat, and is done equally fast.

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Tue May 03, 2016 4:23 pm

Toe wrote:
TiLT wrote:I'll admit that my expectations for what a good swordfighting game with motion controllers and/or VR might be higher than what most other people expect. I can't really see how they would work well considering the limitations I mentioned though. The biggest issue is the parrying I mentioned. With a non-VR game using motion controls, having your avatar's arms come out of sync with your own isn't a big deal, but in VR it's a huge deal that can rip you straight out of the experience and even make you nauseous. I don't see a solution to this issue until we get some way to provide real resistance that can stop player movement in real life.
Solution: Wield a light saber (against only non-light saber weapons)

Too bad Neal Stephenson gave up on his swordfighting game before VR hit.

Buatha · Post by **Buatha** » Fri May 06, 2016 8:43 pm

Na na na na hey hey hey good-bye!

Well, I was NOT able to get one after all.

However, here's an interesting article for you on Valve and HTC.