Hip Hop Gamer - best Oculus Rift preview ever?

[rmcclelland]

This was posted on another thread, but I think it deserves its own. Will this be the reaction of the 'average' gamer?
http://www.egmnow.com/hiphopgamer/oculu ... interview/

I think a lot of folks previewing the experience so far came in the expectations... This guy didn't seem to. If this is how people react, the dev units, which people will show off big time, will cause a major stir and ensure the success of a commercial version. I know I plan to demo my unit with everyone I know.

Palmer looks tired and a least managed to smile at the end. I don't think PR is his calling. Glad that VR hardware is though!

[IGameArt]

I saw this review earlier, gotta say it was amusing, and definitely a good judge of how consumers who dont know what they are getting into will react

[Steinsholt]

Palmer looks tired and a least managed to smile at the end. I don't think PR is his calling. Glad that VR hardware is though!

He may be tired, but I think he does a great job! Calm, nice and straight to the point; not overselling it before he knows how certain things pan out.

Hang in there Palmer!

[cybereality]

This video had my on the floor laughing. Best video so far, and really this is the kind of endorsement for VR I think anyone can get behind.

[brantlew]

I think he's just super tired. I saw all of those guys at the start of the campaign at QuakeCon and they were fresh - but they look like they have been through a war. I'm glad the PR campaign is over and they can just focus on the kit now. Also, I miss the occasional interaction from Palmer here on the boards and hope he can get back online sometime.

As far as the video goes - I really believe that this will be a common reaction from people that are unprepared. We have gotten use to VR as being a niche hobby and only appreciated by a few die-hards. But the Rift works so well and is such a visceral experience, I think it will be universally appreciated. If you put these things on demo at Best Buy, I believe they will fly off the shelves - even if the price approaches $800.

[brantlew]

My favorite parts...

Let's say you playin' Call of Duty - right. And there's an enemy to your right. You look over to your right and shoot that enemy cause it's comin'
...

Let's say there's sonthin comin' from the sky. You look up and you like "Oh shoot, there's sonthin comin down from the sky"

...
you look down, you see yo feet! It's crazy!

Let's say there's somebody creepin' up behind you trying to stab you or kill you. You turn around. Pull the trigger
or do whateva you gotta do.

There's no way I can make it sound as cool and as fun as he does. I love this guy.

[bobv5]

Was certainly funny. Also, that big thing round his waist, could fit some decent haptics in that!

EDIT: Think Palmer could get away with quoting "The best device ever created"?

[Flim]

It does look like Palmer was awake for about a week in a few videos! Get some sleep man... lol

[Okta]

Losing too many IQ points watching that, dont have enough to spare so had to turn it off Hip Hop could even make me hate VR!

[marbas]

This has nothing to do with hiphop. It's about people being enthusiastic. Nothing wrong with that.

[kalabalik]

If you lose IQ by listening to another person being enthusiastic I'd think something else is the problem here

I'm in no sense a hip hoper or gangstastyle aficionado, but this guy sure is charismatic and unique in his way of reporting gaming news; so it's a nice break to all these technical standpoints we've been expecting. And it sure turned a few friends in favor to the Rift. And in that matter he's at least as important a voice as any of the bigger companies supporting it.

[mahler]

As far as the video goes - I really believe that this will be a common reaction from people that are unprepared. We have gotten use to VR as being a niche hobby and only appreciated by a few die-hards. But the Rift works so well and is such a visceral experience, I think it will be universally appreciated. If you put these things on demo at Best Buy, I believe they will fly off the shelves - even if the price approaches $800.

I agree. Unprepared gamers will hype this device like crazy.

People who were prepared were even blown away.. but so far those reactions were tempered by the idea that it wasn't perfect.

This guy doesn't seem to care. Being unprepared made him hyperactive of excitement. The same passionate enthusiasm could backlash when the device doesn't live up to it's promise.
I can understand the slightly nervous reaction from John Carmack at the Quakecon keynote, saying that still a lot had to be done to make it a consumer product. But they do seem to get it; don't oversell, just make the core product and software of good quality. Get many developers on board for quality content and avoid it becoming a gimmick.

I'm excited, not just because of the specification and initial reactions, but I see the mentality of the people involved which makes me trust and believe this has a high chance of succeeding.

[Namielus]

As much as he is not a tech geek asking all the clever questions, he represents a much bigger audience than those of us who spend most of our time reading about IMU's, optical trackers, ODT's and other technical details.

What I saw was a genuinely enthusiastic guy who had a positive vibe going.
For me personally I would like to see interviews that dive a little deeper, but I think this is going to be it for many.

[brantlew]

At this point we know everything there is to know about the prototype. Hell we can build them ourselves, so I don't need to hear the ump-teenth time about the resolution, the FOV, and Palmers's history. I just like to watch people's reactions, and the bigger the reaction the more fun it is to watch.

[Okta]

It looks like a console gaming site. I would prefer the Rift and VR stay in the realm of the PC for a (long) while where they have a chance to mature into something great rather than a half baked console toy for the mass market. I think this has been stated in a few other threads but if this is rushed to market by the wrong people it could cause more long lasting damage to VR.

Edit.

I just watched the actual interview with Palmer and the hosts enthusiasm is encouraging. I specially liked where said that the next gen consoles will not be able to provide this experience he just had.

[Namielus]

It was a point I made in the "next-gen console support" thread, and I agree. Still think his review is valuable to the pc-oriented rift tho.

Edit;

Brantlew, I was stating that it was my personal opinion, and deeper review doesnt have to mean repating fov, resolution, tracking technology etc.
I am eager to see other things like people going in more detail about how they feel it affects their brains, what they believe is the most important factor for the immersion they are experiencing and so on.

Again its what I personally would like to see more of, as there are still things im hoping to see in coming reviews.

[Chriky]

Great review, he knows exactly how to communicate the experience to a normal person, not VR geeks.

[cybereality]

While I love the review, this is also the main reason that VR has failed in the past. Because people went in expecting the Holodeck or the Matrix or whatever, and it didn't live up to it. I'm not saying the Rift won't be great, because it will be, but to me its just one step forward toward the dream. We are still far away from actually jacking-in.

So I do agree that maybe we should save the hype for when there is something more consumer ready. But I guess it doesn't matter much now since the Kickstarter is over. They can hype as much as they want, there are only so many dev kits being made. In fact, this may be looked back on as one of the most clever marketing schemes in recent history: hyping up a prototype to hell and back (literally considering Doom 3) but only letting developers buy it. Then you have average consumers looking at a years worth of content for a product they can't buy. Simply brilliant.