Discussion
130R said:
eah, early launch, the tie-up with Valve, plus the fact it has specifically designed controllers and seemingly superior tracking could be bad news for Oculus. I think I will wait for both of them and see which one is best (or buy both depending on price ..)
I think OR have shot themselves in the foot by taking too long to get their consumer version out the door or possibly announcing the product too soon (although I know they needed to do this to get people interested). Still they managed to secure a deal with Facebook so maybe not such a silly move for the original developers after all. However I still think that in terms of the actual product, the timing has been way off and has given the opportunity for other firms to jump the gun.
I'm just glad that after so long, the VR market finally seems to be hotting up again, competition can only be a good thing.
Agree with that. I'm a big fan of OR, didn't quite make it as a backer on the original campaign but I have had a DK1 and now a DK2 and it's amazing.
However, I'm also a big fan of Valve and their solution will likely be more focused on PC gaming than the Facebook/Samsung tie up that OR have.
However, I'm also a big fan of Valve and their solution will likely be more focused on PC gaming than the Facebook/Samsung tie up that OR have.
I am not 100% sure on the whole VR gaming thing. I play a lot of RTS games were I don't think it will really add anything and most of the other games I play either need both a joystick + keyboard or gamepad + keyboard and it would be rather annoying switching between the two blindfolded.
Although it will be amazing for racing games, fps and flight sims I am not convinced that a bit of hardware that costs as much as a good 4k monitor is a good buy when the monitor would be used 100% of the time and the rift maybe 40%.
Also I have a feeling there are going to be some game exclusives that will only work on Oculus, Steam or Microsofts headsets.
No doubt a family or friend will get it and I can give it ago first
Although it will be amazing for racing games, fps and flight sims I am not convinced that a bit of hardware that costs as much as a good 4k monitor is a good buy when the monitor would be used 100% of the time and the rift maybe 40%.
Also I have a feeling there are going to be some game exclusives that will only work on Oculus, Steam or Microsofts headsets.
No doubt a family or friend will get it and I can give it ago first
Chuck328 said:
Ok, stupid question time...
How many of you were told by your parents when you were kids, "don't sit too close to the telly, you will damage your eyes"
So, I ask, any potential effects of long term exposure to this kind of tech?
The lenses focus to infinity, so less of an issue than sitting in front of a TV/monitor.How many of you were told by your parents when you were kids, "don't sit too close to the telly, you will damage your eyes"
So, I ask, any potential effects of long term exposure to this kind of tech?
Daston said:
I am not 100% sure on the whole VR gaming thing. I play a lot of RTS games were I don't think it will really add anything and most of the other games I play either need both a joystick + keyboard or gamepad + keyboard and it would be rather annoying switching between the two blindfolded.
Although it will be amazing for racing games, fps and flight sims I am not convinced that a bit of hardware that costs as much as a good 4k monitor is a good buy when the monitor would be used 100% of the time and the rift maybe 40%.
Also I have a feeling there are going to be some game exclusives that will only work on Oculus, Steam or Microsofts headsets.
No doubt a family or friend will get it and I can give it ago first
Forget about the current genres in the videogames industry, they don't really translate for the most part. Even the head guys at Oculus happily admit they don't know what will and will not work in VR. No-one does. No-one knew how videogames would evolve in the 70's, there were plenty of people who thought the idea was stupid and wouldn't catch on. It only took a couple of guys (in this case a few Atari staff and a Pong coin-op) to kickstart what would quickly become a multi-million, and later a multi-billion Dollar industry. VR might still seem hokey and kinda pointless right now, but trust me, in 5-10 years' time, absolutely no-one will be saying that.Although it will be amazing for racing games, fps and flight sims I am not convinced that a bit of hardware that costs as much as a good 4k monitor is a good buy when the monitor would be used 100% of the time and the rift maybe 40%.
Also I have a feeling there are going to be some game exclusives that will only work on Oculus, Steam or Microsofts headsets.
No doubt a family or friend will get it and I can give it ago first
Simulation stuff is amazing. Car racing specifically, it sort of tricks your brain into feeling the way the car moves, you can look through corners, find the apex etc. In car view finally makes sense! It works because it's static and you need few controls.
Elite is great in space but with more controls it relies on muscle memory but then you do that when playing with a mouse/keyboard anyway. It's rare I look at the controls when gaming.
Typing is the only pain, you'd be ok if you could touch type.
OR purchased a company called nimble recently (I was following them on Kickstarter) they had a product which tracked your hands and fingers. So you would in theory have been able to type on in game keyboards, push buttons etc.
Elite is great in space but with more controls it relies on muscle memory but then you do that when playing with a mouse/keyboard anyway. It's rare I look at the controls when gaming.
Typing is the only pain, you'd be ok if you could touch type.
OR purchased a company called nimble recently (I was following them on Kickstarter) they had a product which tracked your hands and fingers. So you would in theory have been able to type on in game keyboards, push buttons etc.
Mr Whippy said:
All exciting stuff, I just hope we don't have genres that don't need 3D getting made all 3D OR for the sake of it.
Ie, stuff like C&C and Civilisation that were 2D iso/sprite and are now all 3D and worse for it.
Dave
That's actually a very good point and I suspect that you words of caution might not be shared by game developers... Queue tetrisVRIe, stuff like C&C and Civilisation that were 2D iso/sprite and are now all 3D and worse for it.
Dave
Bullett said:
I think it will remain a niche overall as many people don't get on with VR (makes them physically sick), it requires good hardware to run and is pricey.
Have you not seen the Matrix or any of the other countless Sci-Fi films which depicts VR? Yes it's niche now but in 20 years time, people will laugh at the fact we had to type on physical keyboards, use a mouse to move a pointer and look at stuff on a flat 2D screen. This IS the future.Guvernator said:
Have you not seen the Matrix or any of the other countless Sci-Fi films which depicts VR? Yes it's niche now but in 20 years time, people will laugh at the fact we had to type on physical keyboards, use a mouse to move a pointer and look at stuff on a flat 2D screen. This IS the future.
There is lots of other technology required to make this really good though.Ie, feedback mechanisms are essential to good tactile interfaces.
As much as lots of frivolous stuff has gone to touch-screen interfaces (like the news shows now it seems), for actual productive work I'd be ripping my hair out trying to use anything touch screen based, or non-tactile based.
For actual productive work, 3D and VR and other stuff has been around ages already... remember the touching DNA scene in Jurassic Park back in 1992
Dave
Mr Whippy said:
There is lots of other technology required to make this really good though.
Ie, feedback mechanisms are essential to good tactile interfaces.
As much as lots of frivolous stuff has gone to touch-screen interfaces (like the news shows now it seems), for actual productive work I'd be ripping my hair out trying to use anything touch screen based, or non-tactile based.
For actual productive work, 3D and VR and other stuff has been around ages already... remember the touching DNA scene in Jurassic Park back in 1992
Dave
Oh I agree there is quite a bit to go, not just on the visual side but in all sorts of other areas but I still think we will see a move away from the traditional screen\keyboard\mouse interface we've been stuck with since pretty much the beginning of home computing in our lifetime. I for one can't wait!Ie, feedback mechanisms are essential to good tactile interfaces.
As much as lots of frivolous stuff has gone to touch-screen interfaces (like the news shows now it seems), for actual productive work I'd be ripping my hair out trying to use anything touch screen based, or non-tactile based.
For actual productive work, 3D and VR and other stuff has been around ages already... remember the touching DNA scene in Jurassic Park back in 1992
Dave
Mr Whippy said:
There is lots of other technology required to make this really good though.
Ie, feedback mechanisms are essential to good tactile interfaces.
As much as lots of frivolous stuff has gone to touch-screen interfaces (like the news shows now it seems), for actual productive work I'd be ripping my hair out trying to use anything touch screen based, or non-tactile based.
For actual productive work, 3D and VR and other stuff has been around ages already... remember the touching DNA scene in Jurassic Park back in 1992
Dave
Given the past history of VR and the false dawns we've seen over the years it is totally understandable to be highly sceptical. That scepticism will last right up until the moment you try it.Ie, feedback mechanisms are essential to good tactile interfaces.
As much as lots of frivolous stuff has gone to touch-screen interfaces (like the news shows now it seems), for actual productive work I'd be ripping my hair out trying to use anything touch screen based, or non-tactile based.
For actual productive work, 3D and VR and other stuff has been around ages already... remember the touching DNA scene in Jurassic Park back in 1992
Dave
Edited by Eidolon on Sunday 10th May 02:03
So given the waiting time and the potentially higher price of the first consumer version (not to mention the increased system requirements for the host PC), I was thinking about getting a DK2. I have no experience of the Oculus Rift at all, if I was to get a DK2 now instead of waiting for the commercial release, am I going to be missing out significantly? I'm not a hardcore gamer, this would mainly be for a few hours a week on Elite Dangerous and/or some racing games.
Oculus Rift retail version coming early next year - http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2015/06/heres-the-final-o...
JustinF said:
about to offload my DK2 to CEX for £227. Bought it for Elite:Dangerous but not really playing it much.
Will defo be investing in VR in the future though, it's jaw-dropping awesome.
How did you manage with ED using the Rift? What with all the keyboard controls. I have loads of programmable buttons on my stick and throttle but still not enough.Will defo be investing in VR in the future though, it's jaw-dropping awesome.
Having never used one are there alternative controls?
Voice attack is your friend, it's a bit of a faff to set up but costs peanuts. It pays for itself just by dropping into a system and being able to do the following by voice, 'disengage supercruise' 'request docking permission' 'deploy landing gear' amongst many other pre-programmed command and unlimited user defined ones, I even browse the options by voice, 'down six' 'accept' 'exit' 'launch' 'right panel' etc etc...
With rift and VA the only thing I had to take my hands off the stick for was beer and the galaxy map.
I have boost, chaff and various 'pips' settings all voice controlled. It's hard to go back once you start...
With rift and VA the only thing I had to take my hands off the stick for was beer and the galaxy map.
I have boost, chaff and various 'pips' settings all voice controlled. It's hard to go back once you start...
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