[Technology] Virtual Reality Gaming

[Paulie Gualtieri]

Toying with the idea of getting the family a VR headset / system this Christmas and hoping to draw on any experience / advice here as to products and specs etc

High level research suggests a Meta Quest (2 or 3) or a Sony PSVR (1) the PSVR2 is more than I want to spend (max £300).

We have PlayStation 4 and 5 in the house and was reading about an adapter for the PS5 being discounted this mont for the PSVR1, so may consider a refurbed version 1 as well.

There are obviously other brands available but don’t know enough about this market so please share

Any advice in this space welcome, you blonde bastards….from the future

 

[Commander]

My kids saved up for a year to buy the Metaquest 2. The day they finally had enough money, it was discontinued and impossible to buy a new one anywhere. Once I'd finished laughing I relented and put in the rest myself so we have a Metaquest 3. Have to say the technology is amazing. If they can get that tech into a pair of glasses or a contact lens one day, it really will change the world.

We've only had it a few weeks and haven't gone past Real VR Fishing because it is just so good!

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

My kids saved up for a year to buy the Metaquest 2. The day they finally had enough money, it was discontinued and impossible to buy a new one anywhere. Once I'd finished laughing I relented and put in the rest myself so we have a Metaquest 3. Have to say the technology is amazing. If they can get that tech into a pair of glasses or a contact lens one day, it really will change the world.

We've only had it a few weeks and haven't gone past Real VR Fishing because it is just so good!

Thanks

I’m thinking more the quest as it’s stand alone and by not being dependent on a console means we can take it away with us.

I was going to ask about the back catalogue but looks like you haddock really explored this yet yourself

 

[jcdenton08]

I’m only writing from my own experience here, but I strongly recommend using one first - ideally the model you decide to buy - before plonking down the cash.

I say this because I finally got a PSVR2 for my PS5 just before Christmas last year, and I had sold it to CeX within a month. Several reasons - but the main one is the nausea, hence recommending “try before you buy” if at all possible.

Motion sickness, headaches and migraines are quite common with these things, and I couldn’t play anything more than a few minutes without that familiar carsick feeling and a run to the bog. It may not be an issue for you, but it certainly was for me and many others when I googled it for advice in perhaps changing settings.

The other major thing is frankly the lack of serious titles on VR. There are only a handful of truly quality AAA titles on VR, and most of these are ports. Sure there are a small handful like Half Life: Alyx, but certainly not enough to buy a VR headset for in my opinion.

The majority of games on there are euphemistically called “experiences”. Because of the motion sickness aspect, very few games let you move around freely and at speed like in most FPS games, but kind of teleport you from place to place to try and cut down on needing to reproduce your lunch. It’s just not the same as playing on a screen with a controller.

In short, even if I had’ve been able to use it without needing to lie down for an hour afterwards, there really isn’t that much you can’t do better on your PS5 and quality titles are very few and far between.

Oh and lovely chest - but full of wires.

 

[mejonaNO12 aka riskit]

Used for "gaming"


Alright

 

[Commander]

I’m only writing from my own experience here, but I strongly recommend using one first - ideally the model you decide to buy - before plonking down the cash.

I say this because I finally got a PSVR2 for my PS5 just before Christmas last year, and I had sold it to CeX within a month. Several reasons - but the main one is the nausea, hence recommending “try before you buy” if at all possible.

Motion sickness, headaches and migraines are quite common with these things, and I couldn’t play anything more than a few minutes without that familiar carsick feeling and a run to the bog. It may not be an issue for you, but it certainly was for me and many others when I googled it for advice in perhaps changing settings.

The other major thing is frankly the lack of serious titles on VR. There are only a handful of truly quality AAA titles on VR, and most of these are ports. Sure there are a small handful like Half Life: Alyx, but certainly not enough to buy a VR headset for in my opinion.

The majority of games on there are euphemistically called “experiences”. Because of the motion sickness aspect, very few games let you move around freely and at speed like in most FPS games, but kind of teleport you from place to place to try and cut down on needing to reproduce your lunch. It’s just not the same as playing on a screen with a controller.

In short, even if I had’ve been able to use it without needing to lie down for an hour afterwards, there really isn’t that much you can’t do better on your PS5 and quality titles are very few and far between.

Oh and lovely chest - but full of wires.

You clearly never discovered the real reason for them then.

'Experiences' is the correct term...

 

[jcdenton08]

You clearly never discovered the real reason for them then.

'Experiences' is the correct term...

As long as they go slowly, too much fast motion on screen and I’d be feeling decidedly unsexy as I once again “inspect the porcelain”.

 

[Iggle Piggle]

I think it's great knockabout fun. My lad has got a Meta quest and I sometimes enjoy the cricket game and what the bat (a puzzle game where you have baseball bats for arms which is something I never knew I wanted).

Christmas is the ideal time for one.albeit it's expensive for what it is and doesn't have the longevity of a PS5 or Xbox.

You can get motion sickness but if that doesn't bother you generally, it probably won't bother you with this albeit its no guarantee.

 

[Jovis]

Got the original Oculus when it came out (2020 maybe?) and the novelty of it wore thin pretty quickly. Bought my son the Meta Quest 3 last Christmas and the two headsets are night and day. The MQ3 is brilliant - still in daily use nearly 12 months later, mainly for gaming and workout apps.

 

[Jam The Man]

I had the Oculus Quest 2 for years and then upgraded to the Meta Quest 3 about a year ago when it first came out.

I’d never in my life had anything to do with gaming with the exception of a spell playing Atic Atak on the Spectrum 48k+ in the mid 80s.

I love my VR and use it probably every other day for an hour or so, often doing something simple like 3D puzzles Puzzling Places) but I’ve played a lot of Star Wars games and have dipped into Meta Horizon which is like a chat room platform. There are lots of VR short videos though - I watched one about the JFK assassination the other night, and 911 docu too. It’s much more immersive.

I Really enjoy the boxing games, Beat Sabre, Peaky Blinders etc and very in-depth escape room games like Red Matter and Myst.

The nausea is a thing that irritated me but most games or experiences have teleport which totally takes away any nausea. I highly recommend people giving it a go.

 

[Joey Jo Jo Jr. Shabadoo]

I had the original PlayStation VR connected up to a PS4. At first it was fun, some of the effects in games are fantastic, but after a while it did start to feel a bit samey. I was an early adopter so there wasn't the number of games available as there are now. I might revisit it one day and grab one for the PS5 but I'm not in any rush.

 

[Motogull]

We've only had it a few weeks and haven't gone past Real VR Fishing because it is just so good!

I think it is Real VR Fisting the OP is interested in.

 

[Mr deez]

There is some decent fun to be had no doubt, but PSVR is dead, and support is pretty much over.

Meta is likely more viable but you're not going to get many serious games.

 

[Mr deez]

Also - you will almost certainly all feel sick for a bit on Xmas day.

 

[indy3050]

We have I believe an oculus 2 (since renamed) and it was fantastic, the I expect you to die games are absolutely terrific! It has sat in a drawer for 12 months though so the novelty DOES wear off.

 

[telboyWotR]

I love VR.

Originally had an Oculus Gear VR headset where you needed to connect it to a Samsung Galaxy S6 to work. It was great but only tracked head movement so you couldn't move around. That was sickness inducing!

We've had a Quest 2 for a couple of years now, it's very good. Golf+ and IB Cricket using a handle attachment really gives you the feel of playing the sports. Other games I'd recommend:

Les Mills and Beat Saber for fitness.
Cosmic Smash (VR version of an old Dreamcast game) and Eleven Table Tennis for racket sports.
Robo Recall for shooting robots.
Star Wars Pinball for pinball.

Would love to get a PSVR2 for Gran Turismo 7, it's supposed to be incredible in VR, just can't justify the cost at the moment. I also don't like the idea of being in VR with wires hanging out of the headset. Sitting down driving while using a force feedback steering wheel looks amazing though. Might pick one up second hand at some point.