What immersive PC experience would you rather have?

[xantub]

i just have much more interest in real life events. even if i go to a movie theater, for example, i find the various camera movements used and script writing techniques to be more interesting and captivating than the film itself. it really doesn't affect me anymore .. maybe 'had a hard life, idk. it just doesnt.

i did lose myself in minecraft a few years back, before the nerfing of *everything*. repeated world crashes kicked me back into reality.. hasn't happened ever again.

So basically sounds like you turned into a boring person.

 

[flexy]

I am actually entirely puzzled to see on various places how many people have a negative/anti stance when it comes to VR.....especially since many often heard arguments "against VR" are entirely false/irrational.

It's puzzling since someone else already correctly stated, we have VR tech for about 30 YEARS already, but no-one, in those thirty years, realized the potential or thought that it would be appealing for the masses. (For me entirely puzzling)

Only because Palmer Lucky, one of the few people who kept believing in VR and HMDs founded Oculus, the entire VR thing now kicked off. And now Valve, Oculus/FB, Sony etc. everyone is hyped about it.

(Remember how just 5 years back, even a crappy HMD cost you like $10k or something)

The often heard silly "anti VR" arguments:

* No one will want to wear inconvenient VR goggles etc.

True! But this is merely a technical issue. I have no doubt the devices will get smaller in time, there are already devices where they sort-of beam the images in your retina. VR kits and HMDs at some point within just a few years wont be bigger than sun-glasses or Google glass, this is a given.

* It's OVERPRICED

This is is the most ridiculous to read knowing that HMDs cost several grand not that long ago. Those current VR kits are priced between 300-400, how is this "overpriced"? It's ridiculous cheap. It's about the same as a low-cost, average monitor. It's MUCH less than a high-end GPU and it's also less than triple monitor setups. Still, people are really arguing that VR would be overpriced..and therefore won't likely be successful. (Those very same people probably own $600 smart phones). Seriously, BIZARRE argument.

* 2D "is immersive enough", so why would we need VR

... <--- sorry, no comment, just bizarre argument.

* Input devices are sort-of problematic.

I sort-of agree here but don't see it as a problem that cannot be solved. Sure, a keyboard or mouse are not optimal but I can imagine plenty of new devices that are suitable for VR...also something which is just a matter of time. Companies are working on this as we speak.

I know that some people might call me "over-enthusiastic" (as happened in the past), but ever since I saw my first 3D movie in a large IMAX I knew that this is the future and that the death of "flat 2D screens" is just a matter of time. I also knew and it was always my dream that only a HMD can provide such an experience (due to FoV)..and this was many, many years back where the idea of 3D for the home was entirely absurd. (I remember it like it was yesterday..amazing how things have progressed). And because of that enthusiasm and because I am convinced it will be "the future" and sure replace 2D over short or long I am always baffled why so many have a negative stance and weird arguments against it.

 

[Morbus]

So basically sounds like you turned into a boring person.

Gullible doesn't equal interesting.

There's nothing boring about not caring for crappy "here shiny!" tricks. In actual fact, I find it refreshing and interesting. I respect you may find it uninteresting, but not boring. Boring is a whole other thing entirely.

 

[GrumpyMan]

2-D screen for me, they'll find out in the future that having those sets on your head for extended periods of time will cause brain tumors and cancer........

 

[Morbus]

2-D screen for me, they'll find out in the future that having those sets on your head for extended periods of time will cause brain tumors and cancer........

If the fluorescent lights in our homes don't cause tumors, it's unlikely VR sets will...

Better yet, if the radiation PITS that were the old CRT monitors didn't cause tumors (they probably did though), VR headsets won't either.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Only because Palmer Lucky, one of the few people who kept believing in VR and HMDs founded Oculus, the entire VR thing now kicked off. And now Valve, Oculus/FB, Sony etc. everyone is hyped about it.

Correction. They are hyped to sell you another piece of hardware and since it requires special software, the software to go with it. They see a way to make more money and that's all they care about right now. It's like the 3D train a few years ago...look how many jumped aboard.

If it doesn't sell enough to be worth their effort, they will drop it. Simple as that really.

 

[bystander36]

3D is pretty awesome when working well. There are only a few issues:
1) You have to spend time to setup the software for your individual needs, as the differences in peoples eye separation has a notable effect on how depth is seen.
2) Many dev's simply did not accommodate it. It should not have taken hardly any effort for them to do this, as 3rd part mods have fixed most problem games. Had dev's spent a little time at all, 3D would have worked well on almost any game.
3) Some couldn't get past needing to wear glasses, particularly those who already wear glasses.
4) Perception from Movie 3D effects, which were most of the time, not actual rendered in 3D, hurt gaming 3D perception. Most people thought what they saw from cardboard cutout looking 3D from the movies, was what gaming would be like.
5) You have to have good FPS, which meant either having better hardware, or turning a few settings down.

I have a hard time believing 3D in general, is something people don't want. We live in a 3D world. It doesn't make sense that people don't want to play in 3D too. It is simply a matter of fixing technical and perception issues, and getting dev's on board. Occulus Rift seems to have gotten a lot of dev's on board, something that 3D Vision and HD3D hasn't done as well at.

 

[cmdrdredd]

As for 3D I have always had a little bit of a tough time seeing the peripheral in focus. What I mean is the part I am looking directly at is clear but everything around it looks like it is out of focus (blurry). The lines are not as clearly defined as a 2D image. I do like 3D movies, but for gaming I never liked it but I only had limited exposure to it.

 

[bystander36]

As for 3D I have always had a little bit of a tough time seeing the peripheral in focus. What I mean is the part I am looking directly at is clear but everything around it looks like it is out of focus (blurry). The lines are not as clearly defined as a 2D image. I do like 3D movies, but for gaming I never liked it but I only had limited exposure to it.

That is a technical issue. Eventually, these things can be ironed out, but it may take time. The Occulus Rift will definitely fix the blurry edge look, which isn't really a 3D issue, but a problem with the active glasses that you've used. They don't completely black out all the light, particularly on the edges of the glasses. This means you see a faint image from the wrong eye, which is worse on the outer edges of your vision. You may also be noticing the outer edges will cut off part of the image for each eye, losing some 3D at the far edges of the screen, though this can be fixed with a setting, but shrinks the viewing area. Both of these issues are fixed with Occulus Rift, but of course the OR does make you wear some big goggles, which is another drawback.

While I understand the technical issues may turn people off, I don't understand the idea of not wanting 3D at all, even if everything was perfect. I support these projects, as they will eventually result in something that will be near perfect, and even the flawed iterations can be pretty awesome.

 

[Cerb]

I like high contrast, good palettes, lighting that fits the mood, and ambient audio that fits the mood. Many years late, I got a chance to play Persona (non-PC, fine), and Nightmare 3D level graphics, and a UI that older RPGs could best easily, it was one of the most immersive games I'd played up to that time. Likewise, the first FEAR was something special, in that regard, as was Morrowind, modded with ambient audio pack mods. Ruins and tombs in that game can still raise my heart rate. All 2D. Give me time, and I could come up with more.

Usable 3D is still too far away to be concerned with, IMO, as a consumer. Plus, I hate contacts. My eyes will probably be stable enough to justify surgery in ~10 years or so, but until then, no. Plus, most games suck at immersion with 2D, despite lighting and sound not being new technologies, any more than stereoscopy. 3D doesn't solve any problem I want solved, but uses resources and time of smart people to fix them. To me, stereoscopic 3D is like the chase for photo-realistic graphics: a technical problem created by lack of creative effort and direction.

 

[ImpulsE69]

Any new tech is going to take time to perfect. 3D in itself isn't bad, it just doesn't have the impact at home as it will in IMAX due to the breakage of immersion. People also hate the glasses, but that never bothered me. The NEW 3DS actually fixed alot of what is wrong with 3D except that it is in a 4 inch screen. At some point you would think someone could implement this tech in a new large scale way (at normal resolutions, not halved).

For VR the same will apply. Keep trying till you get it right. Some will adopt it early some will wait until it's near perfect. I would have to try the consumer version of something before I can really pass any judgement. If the people who have tried it are this excited over it in its early phase, it can't be TOO bad.

What is fascinating is people who think the Xbox One and PS4 are something groundbreaking crapping on Oculus or other iterations of VR as a fad.

 

[Hdgamer]

I want a nice long big curved monitor that not only has high resolution, but has high refresh rates with gysnc/freesync. I think that would be awesome!!! As far as vr, never been a fan as I get motion sickness.