Is VR The Future of Gaming?
VR games can vary widely in style and gameplay, from realistic simulations of real-world activities like driving or flying to more fantastical experiences like exploring otherworldly realms or battling supernatural foes. Technology is certainly advancing fast, but will it really cement in the mainstream, or fade away as so many other innovative ideas have?
Failed concepts in the 1980-the 1990s kick-started an industry that struggled for quite a while before finding success. In 2012, John Carmac partnered with Palmer Luckey to present a prototype Oculus Rift at E3. This presentation intrigued the gaming community the Oculus Rift launched on Kickstarter that same year. While the clunky first-shipped product made users feel as if they were sitting too close to an old TV, gamers were hooked on this new concept. Shortly after the company released the Rift DK2, it was purchased by Facebook for $2 billion. VR’s foray into mainstream gaming had finally been a success.
We then fast-forward to current times where other companies have found their footing in the industry. The HTC VIVE SteamVR was the first product to introduce sensor-based tracking which allowed users to move more freely. They started taking preorders for the Vive XR Elite in early 2023. The Playstation VR or PSVR launched its second iteration, PSVR 2 in February 2023. HP stepped up their game with their Reverb G2, and Valve is presumed to announce the Valve Index 2 sometime in 2023. All this new tech comes with a hearty price tag with a complete VR system (either standalone or requiring an additional machine) usually costs a user over $1,000.
The most common complaints that come from VR gaming is virtual reality sickness (much akin to motion sickness) and eye fatigue, and while companies have done their best to mitigate this with better screen quality and high refresh rates, the problem persists for many users. Heavy headsets with close screens tend to get disorienting after extended use and some people argue that our bodies are simply not meant to process information this way. We have certainly come a long way from our parents telling us not to sit too close to the TV, but with no clear solution to VR sickness in sight, they may have had a point after all.
There seem to be two common ways a gamer can enjoy VR. One is with a game completely intentionally made for VR such as Beatsaber and the other is simply integrating VR into games that function without it. Games like Fallout 4, Skyrim, and Minecraft merely offer a player the option to play in VR. While players have enjoyed seeing their favorite games in virtual reality, even if VR sickness doesn’t get the better of them, extended gaming sessions can still get tiring having to physically move your arms and head around so dynamically.
With these issues in mind, there’s a strong argument for it becoming a worthy additional experience, but do you think VR is going to be replacing our current technology in the future?
