I have an HTC Vive and an Oculus Rift pending, though delayed. It's very cool. I can answer any questions if anyone has them.
funny you mentioned this and I saw this article from Verge http://www.theverge.com/2016/5/9/11638818/nintendo-virtual-boy-games-google-cardboard
I have a Nvidia 780Ti. Supposedly below the recommended specs but since it's overclocked I think it's equivalent to a 970 or 980. Either way it's run fine. I haven't had any VR sickness but I know what can make me sick and I stay away from those. I stick to games that require me to move in 3D space or games that have a teleport mechanism for moving. Any game that you turn and move via the trackpad or analog stick then I know I'll get sick. The tracking is extremely good... when it works. There are some times I do lose tracking but I think it's more my setup than anything. Due to the way my office is laid out I don't have the lighthouses in the ideal locations, in the corners opposite each other. They're more on the same side of the rectangle I've set up so there is possibility for occlusion.
Thanks, man! Yeah, that's exactly what I was wondering on, my friend is thinking of getting one and has a 780ti also, I was telling him it's basically a 970 so it should work well (so thanks for confirming, I didn't want him to get it after his wife was okay with it.. Only for it to suck ) . I'll probably get one too eventually, I'm thinking Vive, but definitely let us know once you try Oculus. Also.. do you like the touch controllers? And... What games have you tried? Mainly just tech demo stuff or anything crazy yet? I'm honestly pretty excited to try it, I have a 970 currently, but was also worried if I'd need a 1080/70 etc. I've seen the demos and the devkit videos etc of people flipping out (I've not used one yet) but does it really seem to trick your brain as far as movement etc? And I think I understand what you mean on how you'd experience vr sickness, I've read up on it previously and I was thinking of that situation being a problem for me as well. Lastly, as far as early impressions are you enjoying it? Thanks again for info!
Honestly at this point the games are past demo phase but most of them not too far past it. Don't get my wrong, they've very engaging but you won't find Witcher 3. I think 1) everyone is still learning the medium 2) not many AAA devs have come into it quite yet. It will come though. With that said, even the games they have can be really awesome already. Especially the AAA games that were easily converted to VR like Elite Dangerous, Project Cars, Dirt Rally, and other obvious candidates. And there is a hack for Minecraft to work in the Vive and it's fantastic. The sense of scale in that is just crazy because that guy is actually you now. And Creepers are 6 ft tall scary mother effers. I have a ton of VR games and I still really enjoy them. Some of them you can pull up on Steam and watch the videos and you'll be 'meh, why does it get such good reviews?'. But the truth is, you can't really understand until you're in the game in VR. Audioshield is a music rhytm game. Looks simple but very fun. Holoball is a cheap Pong type game in 3D. Look at the video and graphics look cheesy and meh. But damn it's fun and you get some good exercise. You'll have to just try it to see what the hype is about. Words are hard to express.
I've seen the reviews etc, but what do you like better on the Vive? I mean I know it's better spec wise, but was curious what you thought since you're in the industry.
Question: Would either of these systems be useful in an education setting? I wonder if there are any, say, math software to be used to learn 3-d coordinates system, multivariable calculus, etc.
I bought the Blade Runner game when it came out back in 1997 (shocking, isn't it!), and it had potential. The atmospherics were great. You really felt drawn into the world of the film, but there were simply too many flaws and, more than anything, the technology/software development simply wasn't there yet. I can easily imagine a new version using VR. It could be amazing.
They are some educational software. For example, there is Apollo 11 VR which lets you go through the entire Apollo 11 mission as one of the astronauts and you hear the original audio and some original video, etc. Very immersive. But generally you have games and some applications. I don't know of any math stuff yet.
I am sure they will slowly adopt them once the price drops. When I graduated we got "smart boards" the second semester of my senior year but we only got 6 for the entire school. They were incredibly expensive and delicate but they looked pretty awesome to use. Now pretty much every classroom at my old school has them. I bet they will start with a BYOD class at an advanced learning center or elective for upperclassmen and then maybe a VR "Lab" where there are units that a class can schedule for special activities. It definitely has a place in schools, I would have been falling over to take a class about it in high school.
So far my favorite things to do with the VR beyond demo like games.....are things like Racing sims. Games that involve motion like a controller to move around etc tend to make me a bit sick. But Flight simulator, Project Cars, etc. Are great.
I don't know if this has been posted but I just saw this. The range of the possible application of the VR technology just blows my mind. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dhIxY6G-UHE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
VR pr0n is pretty awesome. Unfortunately with my google cardboard pornhub drifts to the left slowly, but this is mitigated with a swivel chair.
