Hi All,
Eventually got around to signing up after lurking for the last month or so as I wanted to share my first impressions. Rift arrived on Wednesday (I actually got this one off ebay for a reasonable (ish) quote, as I have two pre-ordered for the company, but they were only ordered in January and April, so started getting too impatient lol. Happy to answer questions, I will put my day one reactions here...
It has been an incredible afternoon. As mentioned, and most probably already know...this is the development kit, it does have limitations and those expecting to just put this on and be in a photo realistic 'other world' are in for a shock.
BUT...
screw me. The sense of scale is breathtaking. I have spent the last couple of hours just flying around some asteroids in a very basic 'space' demo (First Law). You can look around the cockpit, but just floating close to an asteroid and then following it with your head as it floats above or to the side of you...well, it astounds me and I feel we are on day one of a new way of immersing in a virtual world. As mentioned above, most of the demos at the moment are very simple, created by individuals as proofs of concept etc (although I haven't tried TF2 or Half Life 2 yet, that could be interesting). So they may not have the best textures, or be complete games, or whatever, but flying a helicopter around an island and then landing while the sense of scale is EXACTLY as it would be if you were in a real helicopter, well it's mind blowing.
The screams of horror / delight as my other half tried the roller coaster demo were almost worth the price of admission alone (it did take two attempts as she took the goggles off just before the first drop initially, but I coaxed her into having another go). Yet again, it's just a very simple demo put together quickly using existing assets. What could the big boys do with technology like this? It's not just the gaming landscape that interests me in terms of where this could go, but it is all experiences; flying, therapy, abstract mind bending fun...and games too of course. There are a world of possibilities and we are just at the very beginning of this journey.
Let me back a little. The unit comes nicely packaged. The case it comes in, while cheap, is pretty sturdy and the whole thing is incredibly light. The headset is very comfortable once you get it adjusted. Although I may try one of the other lenses (it comes with 3 sets) just to see what difference it makes in terms of focus as I feel my eyes aren't what they once were. However, regardless of that, a change in lens is not going to perform miracles on this screen. Yes, it is low res, yes, it has significant motion blur, yes, you can't see details that well due to the resolution, yes, you can see the individual pixels without looking for them, yes, you will probably get motion sickness if you're not careful. But look beyond that, look into the future, step into the new world.
The head tracking is fantastic, there may be some latency but you don't notice it, it works exactly as it should. The sense of scale blows my mind. I think that is the one element it is really hard to describe until you experience it. I guess it isn't that hard to describe, its generally the same scale as REAL LIFE lol. So look around you, that should give you some idea! I guess it depends on the demo etc, but I have had two or three very compelling experiences with software that has been knocked together in a few days in most cases. As I thought before I tried it, I really believe cockpit based experiences (or essentially anything that doesn't involve walking) may provide the best experiences initially . It's much easier to make the 'connect' if you are sat in a chair in the real world and sat in a helicopter or spaceship in the virtual world....that's not to say that there won't be compelling experiences with all kinds of game types.
I'm not really that interested in watching videos etc on it at the moment, the resolution isn't really up to it (but once that is fixed I think it could provide an IMAX like experience at some point in the future, and it is very good to not have to deal with ghosting issues etc, the sense of 3D through this with things that have been specifically designed for it is fantastic).
There are so many elements I want to dive into and discuss, not just games....I wrote my dissertation at Uni 20 years ago on implications of Virtual Reality...and then the technology just didn't progress in the way I imagined. UNTIL NOW.
Today, was my first true VR experience. I have taken the red pill. I will be going back in. I am so giddy with excitement for the future. It's a dev kit, the screen isn't great and you probably aren't going to be playing full games in this for hours at a time on a daily basis until the consumer version comes. However, as each day passes new content appears so it will be an exciting time to be a rift owner for sure. But if you have a passion for toys, new technology and things that can blow your mind, and you are awaiting delivery, then I don't think you will disappointed. It will only get better from here.
I'm in the rabbit hold and I love it down here. I'm going to take the dog for a walk (in the REAL WORLD) and will then come back and probably just fly a helicopter and spaceship for a few hours. Tomorrow I take it to the office to video some reactions and become a youtube sensation, or not. Happy Days. Oh Happy Days, More to follow....any questions please ask and I will do my best to address them later.
PS I haven't suffered from motion sickness at all yet, although I have been careful. I did feel slightly dizzy when strafing in the Tuscany House demo, so I changed my approach to playing it and would rotate on the spot before moving forwards. My guess is a better screen and positional tracking should sort motion sickness for many. Didn't feel any sign of it in the space, helicopter or roller coaster demo. Although my fiance did have to lie down for an hour after riding the coaster, but she does the same thing after looking at the 3DS for a minute so that was predictable!
Some Hours Later
Mind Blown!!!! I mean really really blown. Over the last 15 minutes I've seen the most amazing thing I've ever seen. Once you relax into it (and get the lens a comfortable distance from your face) well, it's just incredible. The other big change was being on the sofa in a darkened room and wearing headphones. And realising I could look directly above and behind, leaning over the sofa and the view is consistent. MInd boggling.
Good God, this is immense, it really just felt that I was sitting on the sofa floating through some alien galaxy. I mean this kitis insane....really
The key was getting the lens a little further from my face so everything just became a little sharper and easier on the eyes. The other part of the puzzle was moving to the sofa in a darkened room which has made a huge difference. It really is an incredible illusion. But I now understand the 60fps thing. Not everything is equal. And so far the space demo First Law is the winner, rock solid frame rate and it does feel like you are there, it's a very very clever trick. Lower the framerate and the illusion is lost. That's not to say it still doesn't look good at times, but you want that 60FPS for sure.
Of course then enhancing it slightly just had the same effect it normally does on me on the occasion I combine it with games. Makes it just a bit better. But that is not the reason for this praise...I think there will be a settling in period for people, finding out what works for them. Which is why is 3 minute demo may not be the best judge for everyone.
Since then.....so far have blown several minds, made a few people motion sick, and had one so so response, several 'amazed' responses and two clear 'I have just blown their mind' responses. I haven't had any real motion sickness to speak of, but I could feel the first signs a couple of times in Tuscany and TF2. But apart from that, no problems. I've floated in space with First Law for 30 minutes at a time with no issue. I think anything with a fixed frame of reference (such as being in a helicopter or spaceship) I'm 100% fine with, demos and games where you walk I will be a little more careful with. Also I cannot understate again just how crazy the sense of scale is and how utterly gob smacking it is to be sat in a spaceship, freely moving your head all around to take in the view, and the interior of the ship just sits there, rock solid as it should. At 60FPS it's like some crazy voodoo.
I feel like someone just visited me from the future and gave me a gift
PS Hi by the way
Great to be a member now posting, after reading so many useful and enthusiastic posts in this forum. Thank-you