Submitted by stoneman217 t3_zu0kdg in Futurology
b_lett t1_j1gms9e wrote
I think VR showed a lot of promise, but it's ultimately too uncomfortable for extended use. Stuff like Beat Saber and Half-Life Alyx is pretty much peak VR still, so it's not making a ton of leaps forward right now.
I've honestly just seen such a resurgence of old as much as people try to push new. Pixel art and retro games are arguably as strong as they've ever been with classic libraries existing on the Switch and indies being very affordable and on all platforms.
I've also seen a big uptick in table top gaming. Deck building games, Dungeons & Dragons and more are all on the rise.
I think playing games will always be a part of how humanity has fun. I think the question may be less about the format of the games themselves, and more about how humans choose to stay connected.
VR implies disconnecting personally in the same room, and being more online. And the way people are moving in online connectivity, it isn't VR. It's streaming, Discord servers, live chats, Twitch, messengers, etc. It seems a lot of people don't want to be so immersed into a game world they lose a lot of communication and interaction with other humans in the process.
I think gaming will move in all directions. So many niche markets and Kickstarters of all kinds are making it because people want a little bit of every thing. There won't be some homogenous push in one direction. Nintendo proved it by going back handheld when others were focused on graphics. How we play is often more important than what we play.
Just my two cents.
MrCyra t1_j1gudgd wrote
After pandemic tabletop hit golden age. Hobby got way more popular and there are tons of new games released we honestly already had hit a point where it's no longer possible to play every good board game out there. It actually slowed down currently as it became harder and more expensive to release new stuff.
But doubt it will be replaced any time soon. Often the charm of board games is getting together with some friends, probably nerds and having an activity with limited social interaction. We already can simulate board games in pc or vr, but none of these feel close to real thing.
b_lett t1_j1hxcao wrote
I'm not even the biggest tabletop gamer, but am playing more strategy tabletop games and D&D with friends than the pre-Covid years. Nice to just be able to sit at a table with friends, have a drink or two and order a pizza or something and play a game.
The biggest problem is the learning curve is typically much higher with board games than most video games because it takes about 30 minutes to explain the rules to a first time player of a lot of these games. Once a game is in more common rotation, it goes much smoother, but can't tell you how many game nights we start so late because it takes us forever to decide on what to play and then cover the rules on top of that.
Something like Mario Kart or Super Smash Bros, you just turn the TV on, hand the controllers out and you're rolling almost instantly
MrCyra t1_j1i0bl9 wrote
It's a wonderful medium but has it's downsides. Learning curve is there because people are not that familiar with board game mechanics, personally I have bunch of experience in video games and board games and whenever I play some new board game it's just familiar mechanics but arranged differently and thus it's easy to pick it up.
But every person is different and often learning a new board game is like learning entirely new medium. Also 30 minutes to explain rules is on the light side, some games require an hour and some playthrough. Also people often lack the patience to learn. Last board game I got had bunch of different elements, like deck building, area control, worker placement, set collection, and probably something else I forgot. Essentially you have loads of options and need to find most optimal way to get points. Mid rule explanation others decided they want to learn it on the go, did not fully grasp game mechanics and complained that they do not get it.
Getting a group together can also be quite difficult, specific groups need specific games and as someone who likes heavy games face more difficulties there. Oh and set up can be a torture. But once in a while it's possible to overcome every hurdle and have an amazing experience that overshadows everything else.
Suekru t1_j1gv0n7 wrote
I really enjoy VR, and I personally don’t find it too uncomfortable. I think one of the main cons is the price to get into it, especially if you don’t know anyone who can let you test their VR headset out.
Another factor is a lot of people play games to relax, but VR really pushes being more active while playing. The wii really tried to do this too, but most people ended up just sitting on the couch casually flicking their wrist instead of being fully engaged like the commercial made it seem.
If you have a VR set and have tried it yet, Boneworks is also another top tier VR game. It’s extremely impressive, especially since it came out before half life alyx
Bamnyou t1_j1hixma wrote
And VR being “active” is not a necessity… when they are smaller and lighter it could become just a cheapish 200” tv. I have watched plenty of hours of Netflix on my quest. If it was a little lighter with a better battery I would do it more.
The biggest thing stopping me is that I forget to charge it… then when I want to use it, it’s like 10% battery.
Suekru t1_j1hl9cw wrote
I guess it depends on what you’re into. I don’t have much reason to use it as a TV, and I have a PCVR so I haven’t had experience with battery powered VR’s
DarthBuzzard t1_j1jr7lx wrote
> I don’t have much reason to use it as a TV
The tech is just way too early. If it was just a pair of glasses today, your TV is still leagues better in resolution and clarity.
There will be a day where VR reaches parity with TVs and allows you to have any size you want in any space/position you want, complete with lighting control and the ability to share the screen with anyone across the planet as if they are sitting next to you - in a small form factor.
When that day comes, the reasons become a lot clearer. Though I think AR/VR will share this virtual display category as there are reasons why having a view of the real world is important at times.
b_lett t1_j1hwjjd wrote
I enjoy it. The price was really cheap before they changed the name from Oculus Quest 2 to Meta Quest 2. Was only like $200 for the full set. Don't think the price will be a heavy barrier of entry for VR for long considering what the PS5 sits around.
I mostly play games to be single player experiences more than multiplayer. So I do actually really appreciate the immersion level of VR, counter to me knocking it pretty hard in my initial post. I do think the tech is awesome, 3D immersive sound and motion controls is all deeply fun.
As far as interacting with others, I just find it limited. I think microphone chat in a virtual space with an avatar that you wave your hands is kind of where it tapers off. A lot of people like to share more than just speech or text with each other.
Also, you can't really drink or eat while playing VR while you can playing games at the desktop, table or couch, so there's that as far as talking about social aspects of gaming.
stoneman217 OP t1_j1gqiw4 wrote
So interesting. For a brief moment in the early stages of the pandemic, I was super bullish on VR as a way to connect since in-person was considered unsafe. However, I think one of the biggest feelings of loss (besides lives) from the pandemic was that in-person connectivity. So given the option to socialize in-person, I agree that VR loses its footing a bit.
DarthBuzzard t1_j1hgtug wrote
> However, I think one of the biggest feelings of loss (besides lives) from the pandemic was that in-person connectivity. So given the option to socialize in-person, I agree that VR loses its footing a bit.
If we take a scale of 1-10, then letters would be a 1, texting would be a 2, phonecalls a 3, and videocalls a 4.
Everything before 5 would feel very much like a screen-based experience, devoid of the main social expectations of real life. Anything above 5 would feel very much like a real world experience.
If reality is a 10, then VR when it has matured 10-15 years from now will be a 9, which is close enough to make it invaluable.
TehMephs t1_j1gxhn7 wrote
My VR headset has been collecting dust only because every time I think about using it, I remember the intense fatigue and intentional effort that comes along with having to prepare the headset and use it. It gets fogged up if I sweat even lightly, I have to arrange the cord using this ceiling rig I bought and installed to keep it out of my cats reach so they don’t chew through yet another cable and render my headset useless until I order a replacement
I think about how awkward it feels to play some normal pc games in VR which I could save a lot of time and fatigue by just playing on PC normally, and usually within 20-30 min of booting it all up I just realize I don’t enjoy standing to play games or exerting energy to do so either. The game section is so limited and not all that exciting to replay the games I already played in VR (namely HL:A, beat Sabre, and pop1 is too full of sweats and bad matchmaking to enjoy anymore - and that kind of ends my list of interesting games to venture into with my headset anyway).
It’s just a cumbersome and annoying medium to use. Not to mention the constant fogging of the lenses from any physical activity, the heavy equipment on my head and frequent double checking my cat isn’t chewing on the cable again. The constant rearranging so I don’t get tangled up in it, the awkward control schemes setting me back considerably trying to play normal PC games with a VR component - I just find myself shrugging and avoiding pulling out the headset anytime I remotely consider playing something in the VR space. That and the industry is so limited - I haven’t heard of any remarkable VR games since pop1 or HL:A and thus I see no reason to pull it out and plug it in again.
It sucks because the tech is cool as shit but I just can’t bring myself to go through the effort involved to plug into that world
Suekru t1_j1h5vp0 wrote
You can fix the fogging by warming the headset up. Which is yet another prep step so it’s annoying but still.
I take a hair dryer and just blow warm air on it for a minute or so. Once it’s warm it doesn’t really fog up anymore.
Sir_wlkn_contrdikson t1_j1hq22t wrote
Will this work on my minivan windshield?
Suekru t1_j1iwux5 wrote
Yeah, that’s what the defrost setting does
Sir_wlkn_contrdikson t1_j1ixebn wrote
I’m well aware of the defrost setting that comes standard on almost every vehicle. I’m referring to when random pockets of moisture just appear despite using defrost
b_lett t1_j1hwqtr wrote
Turn the VR defroster on, heat up, AC on with air to max, air recirculation mode off.
reddy-or-not t1_j1j9qvi wrote
I feel VR would be interesting for travelogues. Like if the “game” was choosing a city like Venice or Berlin and being able to walk around it, seeing a realistic depiction of its buildings via google earth and with local sounds. Might help you decide on destinations to visit for real.
Introsium t1_j1jsnxy wrote
VR is still in its toddling stages: we know what it’s supposed to do, but it’s clunky and cumbersome. These aren’t fundamental limits. The first cell phones were clunky and cumbersome, too, but now they’re an omnipresent extension of most humans.
Media will continue to get more immersive; the question is of whether it’s headset-based VR, or if that technology gets leapfrogged by something like direct nerve stimulation.
DarthBuzzard t1_j1hg4dq wrote
> VR implies disconnecting personally in the same room, and being more online. And the way people are moving in online connectivity, it isn't VR. It's streaming, Discord servers, live chats, Twitch, messengers, etc. It seems a lot of people don't want to be so immersed into a game world they lose a lot of communication and interaction with other humans in the process.
This actually shows just how well-suited VR is.
Streaming, discord servers, live chats, twitch, messengers - how can all of this be improved? What is the ideal interface for all this social stuff? Meta has it right; it's VR where you go beyond chatting on a 2D screen and actually get to feel like you are face to face with other people.
b_lett t1_j1hvbc7 wrote
You are still very limited to how you communicate in VR. It's basically microphone chat with an avatar version of yourself.
Chatrooms and other online hangouts give you access to a lot more information to send back and forth, be it photos, hyperlinks, videos, gifs, memes, audio files, etc.
There's a lot more than just text that is being sent back and forth between people now, and it is a huge pain to send anything text related in. VR from aiming and shooting with motion controls on a virtual keyboard vs. just using mobile phone or keyboard/mouse.
The problem with Meta is ultimately it is some corporate controlled play space, and they will strip the type of content you can share, so kids or people will move somewhere else if it feels like there's too much censorship.
Not to mention Facebook/Meta shadowbans people from having very little customer support and leaves almost every account ban up to algorithms with no great way to recover your account or access to your own VR device without looping in some local state attorney general. Current FB/Meta is already kind of dystopic Black Mirror.
DarthBuzzard t1_j1hwssh wrote
Actually it's pretty easy to make the argument that VR stands to be the highest bandwidth of communication information across all mediums, including real life.
Well, touch and smell and taste are technically a part of communication, so real life has VR beat there, but as far as our vision and hearing, VR can over time replicate every detail of real world communication - all our microexpressions - put that onto a perfectly realistic avatar of ourselves, or go Disney/anime style and have overly expressive avatars instead, which have an extra layer of communication that real life can't provide.
If you've watched VTubers or even just seen Disney movies, you know that there are things that can only be conveyed by such abstractions.
So VR will have as much visual/auditory expressability as the real world when going for full simulation of our real selves, or can offer extra expressability. And all other mediums exist in VR. I've shared photos, hyperlinks, videos, gifs, memes, and audio files in VR social spaces. You can also dial this up further and become the meme. I could have an avatar of the kool aid man.
b_lett t1_j1i8hwx wrote
I do agree there's a lot of potential. I just become a bit pessimistic seeing how platforms instantly take people down for copyrighted content detection through algorithmic scanning of audio or visual content.
I think stuff like VR Chat scrapes by through 'Fair Use' practices because it's a free application, but the second you try and broadcast what you're doing elsewhere to like Facebook or Twitch or YouTube, you can get struck down in seconds, especially if you are playing music owned by someone like Disney.
It's a rough thing to navigate when it comes to intellectual properties all being used and abused on someone's platform.
Admin083190 t1_j1knezn wrote
I agree and disagree with some of what you said all I can say is I have a VR headset that gets hooked up to my gaming PC and the resolution is out of this world. I play a game called Pavlov that’s like COD and it’s so lifelike, I literally play for hours sometimes doesn’t make me sick or anything playing four a long time
b_lett t1_j1knmly wrote
Do you do the hop teleport travel or smooth analog stick movement to control feet? I hate teleport movement, but they say it's less nauseous to do it that way.
Admin083190 t1_j1ksga2 wrote
It’s more like a trackpad. I have the HTC Vive check their controllers out I think they’re extremely comfortable and well thought out.
Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments