Thank God For VR

Thanks to illness, hospital visits and many, many hours playing Battlestar Galactica for charity we had zero progress on the games front this week. Instead of the current dev log thingy I'm going to write about a Jim Sterling (Thank God For Him) video. Specifically, this one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_h6GYI8ddA

This video isn't kind to VR. I like VR. Let's talk about the points raised and give you my 2¢ then!

VR Isn't the 'Future Of Video Games'

I agree. It's a side thing, separate to the path of "proper games." I think of VR as a different medium. You wouldn't say that games are the future of movies would you? If all goes well VR is going to grow up differently to games and become it's own thing. The faster it does this, the better.

Barriers to entry

While I agree that VR is god damn expensive it's not that surprising. It's new tech. New tech is always expensive. I dug up a wonderful 1998 article (http://www.nytimes.com/1998/08/20/technology/hdtv-high-definition-high-in-price.html) about HDTVs this morning. Turns out the cheapest ones were going to be $8000 (about $11,500 in today's money). You can get a HDTV for around 1 or 2% of that price now. New tech is always expensive and it's usually just the enthusiasts and hobbyists that get in at this point.

Physical disabilities are a barrier to entry that is going to be difficult to overcome. Seated experiences are not really more taxing than just playing a regular game but roomscale stuff is going to be limiting. Can't argue with that one.

I think Jim (TGFH) is way off on motion sickness. I get motion sick baaaad but have no issues with the Vive. In fact, I've shown it to a whole bunch of people and even ones who literally can't play FPS due to motion sickness can play roomscale Vive stuff with zero issues. I do get a bit of motion sickness if the camera lurches about by itself but, to be honest, that's the fault of idiots who think cutscenes are necessary in VR.

You don't need a colossal amount of space to work VR. The Vive works in a space a few cm bigger than a standard double bed so as long as you have that in wherever your PC is then that's fine. My office is tiny and shared but, with a bit of furniture movement, I get that min space. Just about.

Setup is a bit of a hassle initially. The first day of owning a VR headset is largely just screaming abuse at it but once it's set up it becomes plug and play. I do have to plan to play a bit more but I'd rather put the effort in and play VR than not and play something on my PC.

"VR is not yet proving it can make games better"

This is probably the most I've ever disagreed with Jim (TGFH) on any topic (apart from I preferred Tazos). VR changes how even the core fundamentals of games work. Take 'Space Pirate Trainer.' It's a wave shooter FPS where you stand pretty much still and shoot targets. Mechanically it's less functional than 1993's Doom.

But it's one of the best games I've ever played.

Actually aiming and shooting at a target is a thousand times more satisfying than moving a mouse or a stick. Dodging by leaning, crouching or collapsing to the floor holding a shield and screaming for mercy is even more fun. It's so engaging, I've put far too many hours into it and I keep going back. No mouse based FPS could feel as good as this does. It's just not possible.

It's Motion Controls 2.0

Nah, motion controls have a disconnect in that you have to look at a screen while they work. They control a character. In VR, they're just your hands and that's far easier to understand.

Take Wii Bowling. I understand how to bowl but when holding a wiimote I can't do it as well. I get no visual feed back about how I'm holding the ball, I just see an avatar on the screen moving a bit like me. In VR I'm actually holding the ball. I'd watch it release from my own hand, not that of a character. I'd also argue that Vive controllers are so much more precise than anything I've seen motion controls do in the past.

Developers have to make the games that fit the systems

Well, yes. That's how it's always been. DS devs had to suddenly use a touchscreen. Mobile devs have no buttons to work with. Every system has it's own traits and
foibles that developers have to overcome and work with. If your game doesn't work with VR, don't make a VR game! Simple!

You'll get used to the immersion

Well it's been 6 months and every time I put the headset on I feel a tingle of magic. Just being in a virtual world is madness. Utter, child-like wonder and madness. You know, every person I've ever put in VR has talked to the characters they see in the games. Everyone falls into the role of performer. Everyone role plays. The immersion of VR is something we've never seen before and I'm pretty sure it's going to continue to get better and better. Sure, it may stay niche for a few generations but VR has a bright future ahead of it. It's just probably not going to be the same future as games.

See you in the cyber.

- Dan