Virtual Reality games

[Onkel Neal]

You've heard of VR, right?


So, I've been hearing about VR for years, and in the last few, Oculus Rift. I could imagine what it would be like, to have a 360 view from inside a game, I'm sure you have the same concept.

Then I tried it.....

Ok, can you imagine describing what a cloud looks like to a blind man? Or how chocolate tastes to someone who has never eaten anything except rice and water? That's what it's like to describe the first VR experience. You have to see it to understand.

I got my first hit of VR last week at the Stockholm University, the Project X devs are working up a demo of the game for VIVE VR. They asked me if I wanted to try it, I said, sure, ok. They set up a basic introductory demo, with castle, some wizards and trolls, a laboratory, and simple game with a bow and arrow. A space experience. And best of all, a trip inside the world of Portal. It was so cooool! Yes, you have no concept of borders between you and the virtual world. Everything is 3D. The resolutions is not as crisp as a monitor, but quite reasonable.

So, next we set up our U-boat game. And this sold me. We've all been playing subsims for years, and the ocean and sky portrayed in the games are fun to look at and we like to imagine we are out to sea aboard a sub. Well, with VR, you are really "there". All around you are huge waves, some higher that the deck. The boat has scale, it feels like you are standing on it. And without any way to resist, your body immediately tries to compensate for the "swaying" deck, the motion of the waves. You know you are in a room miles from the coast, but the VR is so compelling your body says, "Nuh uh, I know what I am doing and this is necessary for the place you've taken us to".

So, yes,I will be going VR soon, maybe by Christmas. Game selection is still limited and a 2nd version will probably make the current version obsolete soon. Still, this was a great experience, and I am excited about future VR games.