On the fence over a Rift...

[Gimpymoo]

These are my concerns.

I currently game on 21:9, how "noticeable" is the FOV change when going to a current gen HMD?
Does the resolution appear "low"?

Once you start playing, is the above no longer relevant once you are "in" a game?

Many thanks for any help.

 

[Jonnybmac]

I loved it, still do, but half the time I can't be bothered to put on the headset.

Im more a multiplayer person though and cause I have no friends with VR I tend to just play pubg. I'm hoping a g29 will sway me more towards getting my VR on but I think it'll just end up the same way as the VR in which It'll be too much chew to set up.

 

[FlukeRogi]

You can't really compare a monitor ratio with the view in a HMD - it's a different experience. Resolution does appear low compared to a monitor, but a HMD gives you an experience that a monitor simply can't replicate.

I notice you're in Nottingham - if you can't decide, can't find anywhere to try one, and really want to try out a Rift, you're welcome to come and demo mine if you want to plod down the motorway to Donny.

 

[FlukeRogi]

Just to add to the question about resolution etc no longer being relevant when you're in a game - it's very much a personal thing.

For me, the level of immersion outweighs the loss in resolution, though that's not to say I don't want more. For my PC gaming mates, it's good enough that half of them now have headsets (either Rift or PSVR). For the other half, it's not quite enough for them yet, but they always have a blast when trying new stuff on mine. It's just not quite there for them to want to spend money on it.

All I can say though is that each time I load up Skyrim in VR, it blows me away again and again. Even with the current res, I can either play it in VR and feel like I'm stood in the world, or I can play it on a small rectangular screen and be aware of my everyday surroundings (and frankly, for some games like Skyrim, Elite, or most racing games, it feels poor to play them on a monitor now). For me, the trade-off is worth it.

 

[Dano]

If you're no spring chicken and have been gaming for a while now the resolution is like stepping back a decade or so, the image has always felt a lot like crt's did to me and I am more than happy with it given the addition of everything else that comes with it, hate playing flat screen games now, Elite is awesome, Fallout 4 in VR has held my interest far more than the pancake version ever did, actually having to aim the guns rather than move a 2d marker over something on screen just makes you entirely apathetic to the drop in resolution, well it does for me at least. FoV wise it's no comparison, your screen could be a full 180 degrees but you still can't simply look over your shoulder or at the ground without having to use janky mouse/keyboard/controller inputs and you realise just how janky it is when you can use your head as you've naturally been doing your entire life.

 

[Pottsey]

These are my concerns.

I currently game on 21:9, how "noticeable" is the FOV change when going to a current gen HMD?
Does the resolution appear "low"?

Once you start playing, is the above no longer relevant once you are "in" a game?

Many thanks for any help.

If you are in Nottingham I wouldn't bother with a Rift as it offers a pretty rubbish experience compared to the VR center in Nottingham. Zero Latency for example offers VR experiences that are far better then what you can get on the Rift. I would go to Zero Latency a few times and wait for better home headsets. The Rift just isn't good enough and home VR is a pretty poor experience in comparison.

The resolution is very poor on the Rift and I found the pixels subtract from the experience. Anything in the distance will be a pixilated mess. Zero Latency have the same resolution problem as the Rift but the Zero Latency immersion is far beyond what the Rift offers.

 

[melmac]

These are my concerns.

I currently game on 21:9, how "noticeable" is the FOV change when going to a current gen HMD?
Does the resolution appear "low"?

Once you start playing, is the above no longer relevant once you are "in" a game?

Many thanks for any help.

Take up the kind offer by @FlukeRogi and go try it on and see if you like it. There have been other people that have been worried about the resolution until they try on a headset and then are completely immersed that they don't care about the resolution anymore.

If you have never tried VR before you are going to be completely blown away when you put on the headset. It's an amazing experience and no amount of reading about it or watching videos will prepare you for it. At the current prices, getting a Rift is a steal. You get the headset, touch controllers and £150 worth of software and games for free.

It's the best money that I have ever spent on my PC. Have it for 2.5 years and still love it.

There are those who can't get over the resolution but these people are in the minority. Most of the people who try VR in a decent headset like the Rift or Vive, love it.

As for the suggestion of going down to a VR center instead of getting a headset is kind of silly. Sure Zero Latency is a great experience and all but it's a limited number of games, it's £20 for 20 minutes. And you can't just play when you like. It's like advising you not to buy a computer and go to the arcades whenever you want to play a computer game. It's a stupid suggestion and should be ignored.

Not to mention that there are so many great experiences to be had in VR. Amazing things to try like Elite Dangerous, Project Cars 2, Robo Recall, Echo Arena, Lone Echo, Eleven Table Tennis, Creed, Thrill of the Fight, Beat Saber, War Dust, Pavlov, Onward. The list goes on and on. What if you want to play fallout or Skyrim in VR? or experience the terror that is Alien Isolation in VR? Can't do that at Zero Latency. Can't use Google Earth either, and if I am feeling creative and want to paint or sculpt, well I am out of luck there too.

 

[danoliver1]

Go for it OP, the rift is the best gaming device I've ever used. Ignore pottsey he's talking BS. Resolution is acceptable especially if you use a bit of super sampling, but to be honest once your "in" the game the immersion level far outways the minor downsides like resolution and sde. Since I got my rift 2 years ago I havnt even played any games on my monitor its that good.

 

[imginy]

I was unsure about the rift but got it when it dropped to £350 and I am glad I did. You get lots for your money with plenty of free games and experiences and many cheap games like beat saber that are great fun and completely different to anything else you would play on normal monitor.

Yeah the res is low and the field of view is narrow but personally I didnt even notice that for the first couple of weeks because I was having so much fun.

If you have a system powerful enough and big enough play space then I would get one.

 

[bimbleuk]

You can't really compare a monitor ratio with the view in a HMD - it's a different experience. Resolution does appear low compared to a monitor, but a HMD gives you an experience that a monitor simply can't replicate.

This is my problem with how VR games are presented to the general public as you don't often see the HMD output which is very misleading. The greater appeal of VR is the immersion and interaction. Stick to made for VR games with a slightly cartoonish style and you'll be very happy. Any traditional games that also work for you are a bonus.

 

[Pottsey]

“As for the suggestion of going down to a VR center instead of getting a headset is kind of silly. Sure Zero Latency is a great experience and all but it's a limited number of games, it's £20 for 20 minutes. And you can't just play when you like. It's like advising you not to buy a computer and go to the arcades whenever you want to play a computer game. It's a stupid suggestion and should be ignored.”

It’s not silly or stupid as it lets you experience VR before buying while offering better immersion then the Rift. If someone is worried about the resolution problem then Zero Latency is the way to go before buying. If you experience resolution problems at Zero Latency then the Rift will be far worse as it’s less immersive so the resolution stands out more.

You misunderstand what I said. But you always overreact like that. VR is good but it’s not as mind blowing as you make out and I didn’t say go to Zero latency for 100% of VR and never buy your own headset. What I said was try Zero Latency a few times, skip the Rift and buy a better home headset. The Rift is not a good headset anymore it’s pretty rubbish compared to the alternatives that are out now and the ones out in a few months.

You have it the wrong way around again. Its not the minority have problems with the Rift. You are in the minority in having no problems and constantly using it. Most people sell it on or stop using it after months as once the initial wow factor wears off the majority of content is pretty rubbish with no real substance or depth. Now I know you like to overreact so to be clear I did not say all content is like that. There are some gems in the mix but not enough and the wow factor for most people dies away pretty quick often in months.

Go for it OP, the rift is the best gaming device I've ever used. Ignore pottsey he's talking BS. Resolution is acceptable especially if you use a bit of super sampling, but to be honest once your "in" the game the immersion level far outways the minor downsides like resolution and sde. Since I got my rift 2 years ago I havnt even played any games on my monitor its that good.

Since when is being sensible BS? Given the amount of people who have problems with the Rift or find it boring then trying before buying is the sensible thing to do. More so when the person in question lives near a VR arena. A VR Arena which has better immersion then a Rift and £20 is better then just diving into a full home system that you might not like.

Going to Zero Latency for a feel and buying a better headset in a month or two is not bad advice. What is bad advice is telling someone to jump into a rubbish outdated Rift without trying one or looking at the better alternatives. The Rift is almost 3 years old, it was good back then but not in todays world. The Rifts resolution is so poor it breaks and ruins immersion compared to the better headsets. If you want the best immersion skip the Rift.

 

[Dano]

You have it the wrong way around again. Its not the minority have problems with the Rift. You are in the minority in having no problems and constantly using it. Most people sell it on or stop using it after months as once the initial wow factor wears off the majority of content is pretty rubbish with no real substance or depth. Now I know you like to overreact so to be clear I did not say all content is like that. There are some gems in the mix but not enough and the wow factor for most people dies away pretty quick often in months.

Hmmm, smells like unsubstantiated 'facts' based purely on personal opinions to me...

 

[melmac]

It’s not silly or stupid as it lets you experience VR before buying while offering better immersion then the Rift. If someone is worried about the resolution problem then Zero Latency is the way to go before buying. If you experience resolution problems at Zero Latency then the Rift will be far worse as it’s less immersive so the resolution stands out more.

You misunderstand what I said. But you always overreact like that. VR is good but it’s not as mind blowing as you make out and I didn’t say go to Zero latency for 100% of VR and never buy your own headset. What I said was try Zero Latency a few times, skip the Rift and buy a better home headset. The Rift is not a good headset anymore it’s pretty rubbish compared to the alternatives that are out now and the ones out in a few months.

You have it the wrong way around again. Its not the minority have problems with the Rift. You are in the minority in having no problems and constantly using it. Most people sell it on or stop using it after months as once the initial wow factor wears off the majority of content is pretty rubbish with no real substance or depth. Now I know you like to overreact so to be clear I did not say all content is like that. There are some gems in the mix but not enough and the wow factor for most people dies away pretty quick often in months.





Since when is being sensible BS? Given the amount of people who have problems with the Rift or find it boring then trying before buying is the sensible thing to do. More so when the person in question lives near a VR arena. A VR Arena which has better immersion then a Rift and £20 is better then just diving into a full home system that you might not like.

Going to Zero Latency for a feel and buying a better headset in a month or two is not bad advice. What is bad advice is telling someone to jump into a rubbish outdated Rift without trying one or looking at the better alternatives. The Rift is almost 3 years old, it was good back then but not in todays world. The Rifts resolution is so poor it breaks and ruins immersion compared to the better headsets. If you want the best immersion skip the Rift.

LOL, I can understand Uncle Petey's Frustration in his previous discussion with you.

7 posters in this thread so far all praise the Rift, one negative opinion, yours, and you say I am in the minority.

 

[FlukeRogi]

You have it the wrong way around again. Its not the minority have problems with the Rift. You are in the minority in having no problems and constantly using it. Most people sell it on or stop using it after months

Hmmm, smells like unsubstantiated 'facts' based purely on personal opinions to me...

That's exactly what it sounds like. If I based my entire opinion of VR on my own personal experiences, I'd have 5 friends with headsets,4 of who regularly use theirs, and only one who sold his (he did so when Touch released, and his computer room is literally that small that motion controls were a none-starter). The compromises you make atm are worth it for some people, and aren't for others. I also know at least 3 people who are still holding off for the next gen headsets because the res and FoV isn't good enough for them personally, yet for my mates and me, it is.

OP - me telling you that it's good enough, or someone telling you that it isn't, is not worth a dime to you really. It's so massively subjective, you need to try it for yourself. I'll also point out that if you trawl through the VR subreddits, you will find people who own their own VR headsets who have massively varying opinions of Zero Latency as well. Some loved it, some didn't. The best advice is to try and demo the actual system you're thinking of buying.

 

[lokiss]

I think Dano had it pretty much spot on, It's roll back 10 year crt. If you're of a generation of nothing but flat panels and up, then you might have issues.

Personally I think there's good and the bad, regardless of the native resolution. Games like Zaccarria Pinball, Electronaughts and Moss look razor sharp, the pinball is photo realistic on some of the tables. Mainly the not so great comes from the ports in terms of the resolution. Game ports seem to suffer from poor lighting, leading to a blurred resolution at distances. Not all suffer, the dulled tones of Skyrim sit fine, and the dark skies of Senuas Sacrifice don't suffer. When you play in the sunshine things tend to go south and the native res stands out particularly on the unreal engine. American Truck sim, The forest, Fallout, Assetto Corsa if you don't play about with post process are villainous at times.

Personally there's more good than bad out there. Made for quality stuff out there like Primordian and the new Contractors with it's semi real visuals both negate bright lighting issues and look stunningly sharp in the unreal engine.

 

[Gimpymoo]

Thank you all for the replies.

I did not mention that this was a gift for a 10 year old.

As much fun as I think he would have with it (and me), I think for someone used to flat panels, ultra widescreen, etc etc, I do not think the experience would be what they are expecting.

I tried a Rift dev kit a few years ago and to me, it was not a "natural" experience. I was conscious I was looking through a pair of goggles.

I am happy to wait for the true "next gen VR" as I feel there is a lot to offer but for me, the wait will be worthwhile.

Regarding the nippa, I am going to get a HOTAS instead of the VR... at least when we do get a HMD, he will be set

 

[DONOHUE07]

Screw resolution, it’s not important. Comparing playing on a widescreen to VR is like comparing chalk and cheese, different completely different. VR is an experience, you are IN the game world, not staring at a flat panel. I use my PC on my living room 4K TV, and I just don’t care for any flatscreen pancake games, they are boring compared to VR games now. I may sound like salesman or a fanboy, but I’m just being honest.

 

[melmac]

Thank you all for the replies.

I did not mention that this was a gift for a 10 year old.

As much fun as I think he would have with it (and me), I think for someone used to flat panels, ultra widescreen, etc etc, I do not think the experience would be what they are expecting.

I tried a Rift dev kit a few years ago and to me, it was not a "natural" experience. I was conscious I was looking through a pair of goggles.

I am happy to wait for the true "next gen VR" as I feel there is a lot to offer but for me, the wait will be worthwhile.

Regarding the nippa, I am going to get a HOTAS instead of the VR... at least when we do get a HMD, he will be set

I would have advised you not to get one if it's for a 10 year old.

Still think you should take up Fluke's offer and actually try one out for yourself anyway. Because the Development kits are not great compared to the Civ1 (The current Rift headset). The Current Rift has wider FOV, higher resolution and higher refresh rate than the development kits.

 

[Pottsey]

LOL, I can understand Uncle Petey's Frustration in his previous discussion with you.
7 posters in this thread so far all praise the Rift, one negative opinion, yours, and you say I am in the minority.

Yes because you are. You cannot judge a game or VR headset by forums alone. The metrics of forums are typically very different and often opposite to the metrics of the total population of the subject or VR headset being talked about. That applies to all forums not just this one. A few loud people on a forum do not make you the majority like you seem to think it does. Likewise my advice to try before buying and then buying a better headset then a Rift is not silly just because you say it is. In actual fact my advice is the sensible way to do it.

For example it’s possible to have 7 active people talking about a headset or game, 50+ people who have walked away and moved on to something else as it was a subpar experience. But as those 50 are not posting the 7 appear to be majority when really they are the minority. To get a fair accurate judgement have to look far wider than just the forums and/or a tiny subset of friends.

Or to break this down for you in another way. If I go onto a horse forum the majority of posters who have ridden horses like it. But that doesn’t automatically mean the majority of people who have ridden horses like horses. The same applies to VR.

To quote one of the big VR devs. “A lot of people bought headsets just to try it out. How many of those people are active? We found that in terms of our data, a lot of users weren't." hence why I said you are in the minority when you look at the wider audience.

Hmmm, smells like unsubstantiated 'facts' based purely on personal opinions to me...

No that’s Melmac and the others who are doing that. What I am doing is looking at the wide audience and metrics and speaking to VR devs. From what I can see the minority of people stay active and keep enjoying VR. The majority are unimpressed and end up going inactive. The large amount of inactive users is the stated reason some of the big VR devs shut down.

As for what I said about resolution it’s true for the Rift. While it was great when it first came out in today’s world it offers a subpar experience and suffers from relatively speaking poor immersion because of that. With the Rift it’s like being half blind you have to stand point blank next to things to read text or dials unless they are mega enlarged. With the newer headsets you can stand double or triple the distance away and still read the text and dials. This gives the newer headsets a much more natural and better immersion experience. Hence why I say skip the Rift and go for a better headset.

 

[Andrew_McP]

The majority are unimpressed and end up going inactive.

I'm still impressed with mine. Just not impressed enough to deal with the faff of using it now the novelty's worn off. It's the gaming equivalent of an exercise bike, only you can't hang your washing on it.

I was warned I'd feel like this before I bought, but I think I'm still glad I did, because this is probably as good as VR's going to get for a long time. Especially if a lot of devs have had their fingers burned. I think I must have spent a total of about £20 on VR enabled software (during sales), and although I'm intrigued by titles like Fallout4 and now Borderlands, I never got comfortable enough with motion in VR games to risk anything more than trivial amounts of money on them. So I'm part of the problem, not the solution.